RE: PG County - It's Worth it to Research and Physically See Neighborhoods Yourself (Bethesda: appointed, crime)

[Jaded]

I've been in DC for almost a month (three weeks this Sunday). My hubby works for the gov't and we are staying in Dupont Circle temporarily.

I was so nervous, reading about different neighborhoods, crime, rude people, traffic, etc., that I didn't know what to expect. I have to say, I've been pleasantly surprised! I know that three weeks isn't a great gadge, but, if I took everything I read on this forum as absolute truth...I'd be disappointed if I chose to buy a home in a more favored county and later discovered what I've discovered now after the fact.

The bottom line is I've found that the cities in the DC Metro area all have a different feel to them. Bashing one county or comparing it to another for the sake of making it look bad and the other look good is not helpful for what people are looking for on this forum. Thankfully, I just took everything with a grain of salt and "looked" for myself...many people don't do this, and go off of what they read here on the forums. Which is sad. Below are my thoughts so far:

• I really, really, like the DC Metro area
• All of PG County is not bad
• Montgomery County is very nice, very affluent and expensive
• Fairfax and Arlington County are nice, but pricey
• There are very nice, affluent areas in PG County
• I do not care for Waldorf (Charles County), it's just not for me, personally
• Loved the National Harbor, can't wait until all the shops are in
• If money were no object I'd live in Bethesda or Chevy Chase - EASY
• Money being an object, Bowie, Upper Marlboro, and Ft. Washington, are my next choices (in the order listed)
• Overall I like Maryland moreso than Virginia, but both are nice
• Yes, it only took me three weeks to come to these conclusions!

I've also checked out some of the grade schools online, and it turns out, many parents like quite a few in PG County. Now, the county schools don't compare to Montgomery's, Fairfax's or Arlington's, but, had I ONLY gone off of what certain posters wrote on these forums, my conclusions would be different.

So, I would just advise those who are considering Maryland, specifically PG County, please look at the areas yourself...there are some very, very nice neighborhoods. And of course, there are bad ones too!

[laurelengineer]

... It's all true.

Here's the thing: It's very easy to convince people that a place is not pleasant over the internet on message boards such as these, particularly if you already think the place is bad. It gives them an "out" so that they don't have to do any legwork on their own. But it is all but impossible to convince people that a place is pleasant using the same means. Once, we have a predisposed thought, anonymous posters are far less likely to convince us otherwise. Human nature, I guess.

[Giantone]

Originally Posted by laurelengineer

... It's all true.

Here's the thing: It's very easy to convince people that a place is not pleasant over the internet on message boards such as these, particularly if you already think the place is bad. It gives them an "out" so that they don't have to do any legwork on their own. But it is all but impossible to convince people that a place is pleasant using the same means. Once, we have a predisposed thought, anonymous posters are far less likely to convince us otherwise. Human nature, I guess.

So what if you know it to be true and ...don't tell someone,can you live with yourself knowing you just might have put somebody or their family in harms way?Not telling the truth about the crime in PG county...well ..is a crime in itself and when someone does it just to sell homes ....that's worse.

[Zippy7fo]

PG county crime is exaggerated....Most drive by'ers make the stupid comment without ever setting one foot on pg county land...i had nothing but good times in PG County...

[Giantone]

Originally Posted by Zippy7fo

PG county crime is exaggerated....Most drive by'ers make the stupid comment without ever setting one foot on pg county land...i had nothing but good times in PG County...

Congratualtions,you were lucky.

[Giantone]

Originally Posted by Zippy7fo

PG county crime is exaggerated....Most drive by'ers make the stupid comment without ever setting one foot on pg county land...i had nothing but good times in PG County...

Really, put in the date of Jan of this year to the present and see what it says?


Prince George’s County Maryland crime maps

[RFMD]

Originally Posted by Giantone

So what if you know it to be true and ...don't tell someone,can you live with yourself knowing you just might have put somebody or their family in harms way?Not telling the truth about the crime in PG county...well ..is a crime in itself and when someone does it just to sell homes ....that's worse.

Jaded: It does not take long before the people you refer to try to defend themselves and legitimize their agenda. The forum is full of this stuff.

[Zippy7fo]

Most of the crime is
1. black on black
2. people that know each other
3. drug related..

more pg county fear mongering from 495 drive by's.....

[bunky3301]

Originally Posted by Zippy7fo

Most of the crime is
1. black on black
2. people that know each other
3. drug related..

more pg county fear mongering from 495 drive by's.....

Tell that to the family that gets a stray bullet in there house and it hits a little child. It happened quite often in DC back in the late 80's when they were having 400+ murders a year. Fear mongering?? Is it ok that the crime is ONLY "black on black"? "people that know each other"? or "drug related"? I still remember the little girls face in SE DC who died from a stray bullet from "ONLY" a drug related black on black CRIME. When is the madness going to stop??

I grew up in PG County and left in 1997, I had hoped things would get better espeacially the school system. It hasn't....Im 40 years old and the PG school wasn't great at all when I went there back then in Clinton.

PG is a rocky road and now EXPENSIVE in some areas, yes theres a few exceptions there, but not many.

[Zippy7fo]

PG county does not equal SE DC.....and yes the crime was bad during the 90's and it had the following characteristics..

black on black crime
drug related
people who knew each other