Moving: Iraq to Navy Yard, DC - what areas are nice? (Washington: apartments, for rent)

[Patrick77]

Hi all -

I just found this forum today and looked around a bit. I'm hoping you all can help me narrow my search for a place to live. I assume the more info, the better - so my apologies if this is too long for a first post.

As the forum topic says, I'm moving to DC from Iraq so it's going to be a bit of a challenge for me to spend a lot of time looking for a place to live when I get there in January 2008.

I'm a 30 y/o professional military officer. Single, no kids, no pets.

My next job will be at the Washington Navy Yard. I'm looking to live in a nice area with about a 30 minute commute either by car or metro. I'd rather live in a little bit of a smaller place that is closer than spend hours in traffic.

Also prefer to live in an area with other young people (professionals, students) but I don't want to live next to a bar or anything. No problem with city living if I can get parking in a garage.

Someone recommended Rosslyn... my brother said Adams Morgan.

thoughts/recommendations? Is this even reasonable? haha

My ceiling for rent is $2,000/month give or take a bit.

I appreciate any feedback I can get,

Patrick

[goldenmom7500]

Welcome home!

So, on the Northern Virginia board (go to Virginia and go to the Northern Virginia link) there is a thread entitled "Budget of $2600 ... " that should be on the first page. That person was also moving to the Navy Yard (he/she wasn't sure) so there are a ton of responses about good places, good commutes. It would still be applicable with a budget of $2000 - I think that's a great budget and won't be a problem.

In any case, Rosslyn is a good suggestion. Adams Morgan ... well, when I was in my mid-late 20s, Adams Morgan was getting a little bit young for me, but others will know better.

[Carrot2000]

Rosslyn probably fits your needs in terms of living near other young professionals. The problem is that there is no way you will have a 30-minute commute, even by Metro, if you move there. Same with Adams Morgan.

The Capitol Hill-Eastern Market area would probably be better commute-wise. You could take the N22 or 92 bus to the Navy Yard in be there in a few minutes.

[Patrick77]

thanks. how long is the commute from Rosslyn? Adams Morgan?

[Zack]

Rosslyn is about 20-30 minutes; Adams Morgan is pretty similar in time even though it's a little trickier, depending if you drive or take metro. If you don't want to live near bars don't live in Adams Morgan. Rosslyn is a pretty boring area as everything closes up after the office workers leave, though you can easily walk to Georgetown. I work down in the Navy Yard area and I can drive from there to most of Arlington, Alexandria, and DC within 30 minutes during rush hour. Also the Navy Yard is only about a 5 minute walk from the green line.

As far as areas you might like. A number of military guys live in Crystal City, Pentagon City and along the Orange line in Arlington as there are a number of apartments and condos, and you still have access to amenities. Inside DC I would probably recommend Gallery Place, Logan Circle area, and Capitol Hill though with any one those you would be looking at higher rents and parking would cost around $200/month though some parts like Capitol Hill have decent street parking. All of those are under 15 min commutes during rush hour; some parts of Capitol Hill you could even walk from.
Other areas of DC such as Georgetown, Dupont Circle and Foggy Bottom tend to be quite expensive and might be out of your price range. Areas like Adams Morgan and north of there tend to have longer commutes, but do have a lot to offer.

[Carrot2000]

Originally Posted by Patrick77

thanks. how long is the commute from Rosslyn? Adams Morgan?

Wherever you decide to move, check out the Metro website to get an idea of your commute via public transit:

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority

[PenguinSix]

If you can find a one bedroom in the area of the Navy Yard, you might really consider that. It's a pretty popular area for young people though not as night life-y as say Adams Morgan or Georgetown. Do a search for Eastern Market and Capitol Hill (South), Barracks Row, Potomac Avenue (Metro station), Lincoln Park. You would/could walk to work from those areas and have plenty of young people nearby.

I think your goal would be the SE sections of Capitol Hill. Depending on where exactly you were working in the Navy Yard (it stretches about 8-10 blocks I think). If you could live really close to the Eastern Market metro (say E, F, G Streets SE, 5-6-7-8-9-10th Streets SE) you might have a nice little commute with plenty to do at night.

[Patrick77]

does anyone know where I can find a map showing where the (general) boundaries are for these areas? i.e., where does capitol hill end and eastern market begin, etc.

[PenguinSix]

Where do they start and end? Million dollar question--literally. People will try to sell you something a mile from Eastern Market and claim it is 'Eastern Market' because the value of EM is higher than say North of RFK.

A really good guide is the Metro Map. Is it closer to Eastern Market or Potomac Avenue or Stadium Armory or Union Station. All four stops are on 'Capitol Hill' though you'll find a walk from the NE areas of Capitol Hill to the Navy Yard to be 'brisk'.

Capitol Hill is a huge area, from the Capitol to RFK stadium West/East, and from about H Street NE to M Street SE (Navy yard). People are now calling the area south of Florida Avenue (Galludet)
'North Capitol Hill'. While at one time the neighborhoods are more defined, it has sort of morphed into one big area. Basically you'll see ads saying 'Capitol Hill' often with sub-tags for for Union Station, Stanton Park, Lincoln Park, RFK, Potomac Avenue, Eastern Market, Capitol South, North Capitol Hill, and Near SE and a few now saying Navy Yard (near the Navy Yard metro stop--changing area).

If I had to guesstimate Eastern Market, I'd say 4th - 10th Streets, SE, south of East Capitol (so E.Capitol, A, Independece, B,D,D,E,F,G,H). You can also add North & South Carolina Avenue and Pennsylvania Avenue in the mix. But when you get your feet on the ground you'll be able to have a much better estimate.

Metro has a map with about these boundaries:

EASTERNM

[saganista]

Originally Posted by PenguinSix

Where do they start and end? Million dollar question--literally.

Exactly. On an official basis, DC is divided into 8 Wards. Within those are 37 Advisory Neighborhood Commissions, and within those there are 127 officially-named and designated neighborhoods, but those aren't always the ones that people use. There is no Eastern Market at all for example. But while they are kind of fuzzy at best, most of the neighborhood names have been around for a century or more, and they do have both historic and current meaning. As others have noted, the main thing to watch out for is realtors who claim a more upscale name (such as Capitol Hill) for a place that isn't really in that neighborhood and doesn't actually have the characteristics that the neighborhood is known for. Otherwise, they are a perfectly workable and often charming construct that people use every day...