Wesley Heights, NoDa, Chantilly, Midwood... Thoughts? (Madison: for sale, rent, condos)

[johnsanc]

My fiance and I are in our late 20s looking to buy a place close to uptown for under 300k.

We were looking at Plaza Midwood (upper end of budget), a Steel Gardens townhome in NoDa (well under budget... good due to other big expenses coming up!), or possibly a home in the Lela Court area of Wesley Heights.

We also like Chantilly but there really just isn't anything that great on the market in that neighborhood right now in our budget.

What are your thoughts on each of these areas now? I found a lot of old threads but am curious how things are currently and what direction they are heading. We currently rent in Dilworth and love it, but unfortunately our budget doesn't go far in Dilworth.

[lovesMountains]

Originally Posted by johnsanc

My fiance and I are in our late 20s looking to buy a place close to uptown for under 300k.

We were looking at Plaza Midwood (upper end of budget), a Steel Gardens townhome in NoDa (well under budget... good due to other big expenses coming up!), or possibly a home in the Lela Court area of Wesley Heights.

We also like Chantilly but there really just isn't anything that great on the market in that neighborhood right now in our budget.

What are your thoughts on each of these areas now? I found a lot of old threads but am curious how things are currently and what direction they are heading. We currently rent in Dilworth and love it, but unfortunately our budget doesn't go far in Dilworth.

I would suggest you look at places like Oakhurst and Echo Hills just south of Chantilly, in addition to Cotswold and Sherwood Forest (which are a little further out but still within 10 minutes of uptown in non rush hour times) over the other areas you mentioned.

[USCRugbyNo1]

I personally do not like any of those areas. Lela Court isn't a bad value.

[PEABO14]

I would choose Chantilly, Plaza Midwood, NoDa and Wesley Heights, in that order, based on amount of time of "gentrification" and state of surrounding area.

Have you considered Sedgefield, Colonial Village, Madison Park areas? They're very close to those areas and very safe. Not to mention more affordable.

[The Native 1]

I'll chime in here since Chantilly has been my hood for quite a long time. You will not find a better area than Chantilly IMO. For an inner city neighborhood it is about as safe as you can get and very quiet. If you happen to stumble upon a deal there I would snap it up.

Personally Steel Gardens in NoDa seems a little risky to me. Not so much because of the safety factor but because there are so many condos/townhomes for sale over there.

I do like the area of Wesley Heights. It is far less crowded than many of the other inner city areas and it reminds me of my hood 10+ years back. I'm not totally sure I would feel safe over there if I were female though.

Maybe also check out Merry Oaks near Plaza Midwood or Commonwealth Park.