Moving to DC-neighborhood questions (rentals, condo, house)

[DSmus]

Hello,

I've really enjoyed browsing this forum, so I thought I'd join and ask some questions.

I'm moving to DC to work at Catholic University and am looking for a 1 bedroom. I've been warned to avoid the area near Catholic. How seriously should I take that? I've lived in cities like Chicago and Boston, so I think I have some street sense, but I know there are also some dangerous areas one should avoid.

I'm browsing listings in Takoma Park & Silver Spring. I do like the urban lifestyle, however, and would like being in the city if I could find someplace safe. I'd like to avoid paying more than $1500/month, if possible.

I'm checking out several areas in the city and would like some input. How is the Bloomingdale/Ledroit area near Howard University? Also, I've read someone saying avoid SE addresses, but some areas near Union Station are ok. Are there any "boundaries" for good areas in SE? Lincoln or Stanton Parks? Also, are there some good NE addresses?

For NW, I've read that anything west of Rock Creek Park should be ok, but what about on the eastern edge, like Columbia Heights, Petworth, Brightwood & the area near Walter Reed?

Thanks in advance for the advice/opinions.

[lscalder]

I recently sold my home in Brightwood Takoma Park and it was ok. I sold in November 2006 so I would doubt and thing have change. Lots of drug activity. I lived on 9th street a cross from SafeWay on Georgia Avenue. I got tired of calling the police and they will never show up. My house got brokern into twice in 2006. My husband car got broken into in front of our home. I was tired of people stealing from my family so I had to move. My next door neighbor who works for the Dc police department also move because of the drugs in the area. You will never see kids playing outside.

[Zippy7fo]

Sir there are good people around Catholic University but yeah the advice you were given is probably correct. Revitalization has not hit that area yet surprisingly since you have Catholic U and the Hospital Complex in the area....

My advice would be to check out Silver Spring, Parallel parts of NW DC, or College Park/Laurel....Jest depends on your commute preference...

[saganista]

Originally Posted by DSmus

Hello, I've really enjoyed browsing this forum, so I thought I'd join and ask some questions. I'm moving to DC to work at Catholic University and am looking for a 1 bedroom. I've been warned to avoid the area near Catholic. How seriously should I take that?

Pretty seriously, but not because it's all THAT bad. More because there are better yet affordable areas to choose from.

Originally Posted by DSmus

I'm browsing listings in Takoma Park & Silver Spring. I do like the urban lifestyle, however, and would like being in the city if I could find someplace safe. I'd like to avoid paying more than $1500/month, if possible.

There are nice and some not so nice parts of those two. For that sort of money, a place should be in one of the better parts.

Originally Posted by DSmus

I'm checking out several areas in the city and would like some input. How is the Bloomingdale/Ledroit area near Howard University?

It was once major league upscale, then sank like a stone. Ledroit Park in particular has been making a strong comeback, but I'd visit in person before signing on any dotted line.

Originally Posted by DSmus

Also, I've read someone saying avoid SE addresses, but some areas near Union Station are ok. Are there any "boundaries" for good areas in SE? Lincoln or Stanton Parks? Also, are there some good NE addresses?

A lot of SE was once low-grade but is coming back. Give it another ten years and it will be great. Some of it already is. The areas around Eastern Market and south along the 8th Street Corridor are quite nice. I'll be having dinner there Saturday, actually. The new Nats ballpark will open in the Navy Yard area next April. Money will be coming. Everything but the north side of Union Station would also be fine. Penn Quarter and Gallery Place are just to the west. Those are great for urban living if you can find a place. Lincoln and Stanton Parks are on Capitol Hill. Very nice indeed, unless you get too far east of Lincoln Park. There actually are some good NE addresses (such as those on Capitol Hill), but not as many as in the other three quadrants.

Originally Posted by DSmus

For NW, I've read that anything west of Rock Creek Park should be ok, but what about on the eastern edge, like Columbia Heights, Petworth, Brightwood & the area near Walter Reed?

Everything west of Rock Creek is Georgetown. Nice, but pricey. Further north, you'd have Woodley Park, Tenleytown, and the like. Those are solid, upscale, but still mostly affordable areas. Of the other four you named, I'd find Petworth the most intriguing. Keep in mind that all of these are areas that are also trying to come from a long way down. But Petworth, while it still has plenty of back alley drug dealings, is a beautiful place, has always had a strong community, and has had a bunch of public and private money dumped into it, thanks in part to the Metro. I'd probably pass on the other three for now if I could...

[DSmus]

Thanks for the answers, this helps a lot. What about the SW Waterfront? I'm seeing a lot of condo rentals advertised there on the rental listings. Is it worth checking out?

[saganista]

Yes, I would say so, but on a case by case basis. SW is by far the smallest of the four DC quadrants, and by rights, it should have been one of the nicest. Instead, it's spent most of its history being a pretty dreadful area but for a few islands here and there, and that's despite a near complete renewal in the late 50's and early 60's. But all that is changing now, perhaps not as quickly as in SE, but SW has a head start. There has been quite a bit of private development money put into the area, and the city and feds now both seem firmly behind the idea of making the SW Waterfront into an actual attraction. They did the same with the Georgetown waterfront 10-15 years ago, and that's worked out well, so there's no reason to think it won't go the same way in SW. You've again got the influence of the Nats' new baseball park to consider as well. A lot of renovation, upgrading, and condo conversions have been going on over the past 5 years or so, and as the result, there are some very nice places going for less than what they would in other parts of town. The job isn't quite done yet, so you'd want to maybe do a before- and after-dark check on a place before actually committing to it. There are, however, more and more places that would pass that sort of test pretty handily...

[DCSailor]

North of Catholic University Ft Totten is gentrifying. You might want to check there. Takoma Park gentrified about 30 years ago. Columbia Heights has a lot to offer, but there is some street crime still in the area. Petworth is OK but blocks differ.

The old adage about staying west of the Park is about 30 years out of date.

[14thandYou]

This thread is nearly 2 1/2 years old. I would hope the OP has found something by now. Please check the dates before resurrecting an ancient thread.