Washington County, Hagerstown (Baltimore, Frederick, Robinwood: real estate, coupons, apartment complexes)

[sz89128]

Hell all. I was contacted by Washington County School District for a potential teaching position for next year. I currently live in Pittsburgh and am looking into possible places to relocate with my wife and daughter. I did look at some websites about Washington County but would love to get some in depth info from locals about life there.

I am wondering about the school system of course. Housing (places to rent), crime, cost of living are among other things.

Any insider info would be much appreciated.

[htownterp]

I'll try to help as much as I can. School system is solid, good reputation. Their budget seems to be in better shape than some of the neighboring systems. For example, they are still building new schools, teachers have only been one year (I believe) without a pay raise, don't have as many cuts they are discussing, etc.

Cost of living I would imagine would be a little more than Pittsburgh, but with the drop in the market, you could build or buy here for pretty darn cheap. I like the towns of Smithsburg, Boonsboro, Williamsport, as well as the North and East ends of Hagerstown, and Southern "suburbs".

Crime I would guess is pretty average: theft, bank robberies occasionally, domestic stuff. I feel safe pretty much everywhere. Every other year there may be one homicide. Crime is really not a big issue to me.

I would encourage you to come down and find some neighborhoods you like and maybe some folks could give you some more specific feedback on the schools.

It's a very pleasant place to live, including the surrounding areas in PA and WV.

[JacksonJeep]

I recently moved to Hagerstown so I'll also give advice as much as possible. If you're already a PA resident and the school doesn't require you to live within the district, then I would say to stick with living in a nearby PA locale such as Greencastle, Waynesboro, or Chambersburg. They are all very nice towns, with the latter two being larger in size. Both seem to be a little cheaper than Hagerstown, but yet you're close enough to take advantage of all the amenities of the H-Town area. Personally I would stay in PA if only for the hassle of registering vehicles in MD. it can quickly turn into a nightmare, so it would be easier to keep residency in the same state you currently live in if at all possible. That's just my opinion.

But just come explore the area, I think you'll see we're in a pretty nice area!

[Steelers10]

Originally Posted by sz89128

Hell all. I was contacted by Washington County School District for a potential teaching position for next year. I currently live in Pittsburgh and am looking into possible places to relocate with my wife and daughter. I did look at some websites about Washington County but would love to get some in depth info from locals about life there.

I am wondering about the school system of course. Housing (places to rent), crime, cost of living are among other things.

Any insider info would be much appreciated.

Washington County is pretty much like taking SW Allegheny County (as well as SW Pittsburgh proper) and making it its own separate county. The climate is pretty much the same but Washington County is more agricultural in its periphery.

The school system is quite good and wherever you choose to locate you will be within a good cluster. There are only a few schools (literally two or three) on the west side of Hagerstown that aren't the best. They are not violent or anything, they just don't perform as highly as other Washington County schools.

There is not really that much crime. I would say typical property crimes but not really a lot of violent crimes or murders. The police really don't have that much to do. A month or so ago they shut down a street thinking a gunshot was fired when it was really somebody throwing trash or something out of second story window downtown. Not really a place where you fear walking around at night but it always pays to be careful.

The cost of houses are higher than South Central and SW Pennsylvania but the property taxes are much lower, especially in unincorporated Washington County. The cost of housing is definitely a lot lower than Frederick County to the east which is actually part of DC metro. Unfortunately, Frederick has the nearest Giant Eagle and Wegmans (the Giant Eagle closed down here and Frederick is just getting a Wegmans but I guess you won't miss what you don't have). There are no high end retailers or dining in Hagerstown but it has been this "no-frills" approach to development that has prevented Washington County from being overbuilt. Therefore, a there are not a proliferation of apartment complexes or townhomes but there are generally places all around Hagerstown (including single family homes) for rent at any given time.

I hope this has helped! Please let me know if you have any specific questions.

[sz89128]

I will be in Hagerstown this Friday for my interview. Any places I should check out while I'm there?

What about apartments? If I do happen to get the job I know we will want to rent for a few years. Due to all these budget cuts you can't be too sure. My friend is a first year teacher and just bought a brand new house. And what happens? She was just told last week she is out of a job next year. I want the option to be able to move if somehting like that happens. Luckily I have 10 years in teaching so I have more experience than most applying out there.

Let me know the best renting options so I look around. It is myself, wife and 9 year old daughter. A 2 bedroom would work but a 3 bedroom would be ideal.

[htownterp]

Apartments off of Robinwood seem pretty decent, Rosewood Village, Meadows Apartments, and one more down toward the community college. You may be able to rent a townhome for pretty cheap as well. I'd check out herald-mail.com to see if there are any listings there, or talk with a real estate agent about places to rent. The teachers association will sometimes have a list of nice places to rent that are owned by teachers, for teachers, and that might be a route to look at as well.

[heather3]

I used to live in Garden Lane Apts near the Prime Outlets and never had an issue. Are they still nice/safe? We also built a home in a development off Rt. 65 and stayed for a few years until we had child number two. I wanted my kids to go to Frederick Co schools (where I went as a child) so we moved. I would drive around and see what areas you like, then look at the stats on Wikipedia and see if that area/school system has what you want. What grade do you teach? Would you want your daughter to go to your school where you may teach?

[sz89128]

I forgot to mention that we have pets (2 cats) so I will need to find a pet-friendly place. I know that narrows my choices.

[ecolby924]

We looked at the woodbridge apartments, they are so nice! They are clean and spacious! The people that work there are very friendly and helpful. They have townhomes too. They are pet friendly it's a $250 pet security fee and a $350 deposit but they said they have coupons all the time to get one of those free.

[vwclassic]

Most of the other posters are on the money. Washington Co. schools do have a solid rep. I know a local public school teacher and overall she seems happy with her situation. There was recently a superintendent change and the local media (T.V. and newspaper) made is look like a big, quasi national deal. They eventually hired a higher up from a children's book publishing company, I believe.

Finding housing that allows cats shouldn't be too hard. I would recommend driving down for a day trip, getting a paper and looking at houses, rather than dealing with those big complexes. There are some nice ones, but they have always seemed like a hassle to me. Especially, when there are plenty of alternatives. And especially when those alternatives are cheaper and better located. Housing is extremely cheap, very comparable to nearby Southern PA housing prices. Utilities are also on the lower end price wise. Crime isn't too bad. Nearby Berkley Co. WV seems to get most of the high profile criminal cases. Hagerstown has been pushing a bike friendly city initiative, which is nice. There are also plenty of nearby state parks to take advantage of.

The local culture scene is decent as well. Proximity to Baltimore and DC gives this area plenty of options regarding art, music and museums. Not to mention the crazy amount of civil war stuff that is constantly going on- if that is your scene.

I don't know Pittsburgh too well and it may be the same there, but many of the local teachers take advantage of cheap nearby grad programs while they are working. It seems like a good set up for them, both for competency and advancement purposes. Good luck with your decision. This really is a nice area that offers quite a bit.