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Old 08-28-2011, 06:07 PM
 
150 posts, read 296,872 times
Reputation: 105

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My husband and I (and two small children) have lived in Fairfax County for two years and we feel like we are sort of getting to know the area, at least a little bit. We want to buy something, though, and this darn county is just so expensive that we're looking in Maryland. I've found a lot of great homes in our price range in various parts of northern Anne Arundel County. My husband works in DC so it's important that we are relatively close to a Marc station. (Yes, we know it is a long commute but his commute is fairly long now, too. It's just life.)

Basically, I need the lowdown on the following places (and any places near them).
- Odenton
- Crofton
- Severn
- Pasadena

And if you're feeling generous, maybe these, though I know they aren't in AA county:
- Bowie
- Laurel

My criteria are pretty much what you would expect for someone with a young family, EXCEPT that schools are only an issue for us as far as resale goes because we homeschool.
- SAFE--this is the biggest issue for us. We're really flexible with pretty much everything else.
- lots of kid amenities (parks, community center activities, nature centers, libraries, etc.)
- a family-friendly atmosphere, preferably a place where there are a lot of young families
- it would be a nice bonus to have other stay-at-home moms around

Also, which parts should I avoid?

Thanks so much for your input! I know I'm asking for a lot of information.
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Old 08-29-2011, 06:26 AM
 
150 posts, read 296,872 times
Reputation: 105
Did I say something wrong?
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Old 08-29-2011, 08:55 AM
 
Location: VA
211 posts, read 449,513 times
Reputation: 215
Hi there,
I think you should take a look at Arnold, Severna Park and Broadneck. You can check out the schools on school digger. com.

Millersville might be a good choice too since it is so close to 97.

There are a lot of parks nearby these areas. Lots of stay at home moms and Severna Park has a wonderful moms group.

Severna Park also has a great community center and a good library. I do like the library in Crofton also.

Crofton has a new shopping center being built. There are also a lot of young families.

The closest Marc station is in Odenton I think, but there also might be a good one near BWI. I recommend checking out the Odenton Marc station in order to get a feel for the area.
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Old 08-29-2011, 11:58 AM
 
10,597 posts, read 12,034,874 times
Reputation: 16753
No fear. You said nothing wrong. It sometimes takes a while for some posts to get answers, that's all. Plus I'm sure people have been busy with hurricane issues. I hope more posts will come for you. I live in Bowie, which I love and where we have plenty of parks and great library -- and a MARC station. I know Crofton a bit as well, but being single with no kids can't help on any of the 'mom' issues.
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Old 08-30-2011, 06:36 PM
 
Location: Bay Area
281 posts, read 808,982 times
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I live in Greenbelt which I love -- community oriented x10 here, great neighbors, we can walk to library, community center, aquatic and fitness center. There's a lake -- and always something going on for activities. I have a teen though. Not young kids.

I did look at Crofton which was our second pick - Greenbelt was much closer to my work, had Metro access very close which makes weekend DC activities super easy, and I loved the community feel. I l live in Old Greenbelt though. Crofton felt much more rural to me but it def. had the kids playing, run over to your neighbors vibe thing going on -- I cannot speak to library's or groups and such.

I cannot provide much more than that. Good luck!
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Old 08-31-2011, 08:56 AM
 
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
4,640 posts, read 11,890,196 times
Reputation: 9885
No experience with Reston. I'm originally from Howard County, lived in Odenton, Severn, and Crofton. Hubby grew up in Bowie. My vote is for Crofton. Not sure if you're into these things or not, but so does CNN/Money as they picked Crofton as one of the top 100 places to live (Number 82) for 2011, here Best Places to Live 2011 - Top 100: 76-100 - from MONEY Magazine

Crofton is not rural anymore --tons of shopping with more coming in. Waugh Chapel Village is nice and there's another center coming in (believe it will be called WCV 2) and will have Target and Wegman's and a movie theater. There's also a rec center in the works, but don't know when that will be finished. Of course, this means our traffic is a bit of a jumble right now, but in the end it'll work out. Also, Annapolis Mall and Arundel Mills are extremely close. We also have a relatively new library in a quiet neighborhood. If your kids are into sports, there are a lot of sports activities here via Crofton Athletic Council. My kids are homeschooled and have had no issues playing in the county leagues. One thing I'd point out is that if you plan to swim, check out if the HOA you buy into (almost all neighborhoods here are part of one) includes the pool fee. Otherwise, you're looking at several hundred dollars for a pool membership.

As for schools, they're also considered good. My neighborhood has a new elementary school that is only a few years old.

We also enjoy the location which is between Annapolis, DC, and Baltimore, not to mention Assateague/Ocean City--which are only a few hours away.

Affordability: Hmmmm, that would be relative. We moved here b/f housing went crazy. RE is in flux so it's hard to say what the average price is for a townhouse or SFH. However, if you''re finding townhouses under $300,000 or houses less than $300,000; I'd do more research. We've always homeschooled; but specifically bought into our neighborhood b/c of the school reputation. Like you, we were thinking ahead to resale.

Finally, here's some links

Shopping: The Village at Waugh Chapel The Village at Waugh Chapel

Library: Anne Arundel County Public Library

Sports: Crofton Athletic Council Sports, Crofton MD

For schools, I'd go to greatschools.net or just google.
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Old 09-01-2011, 07:38 AM
 
Location: Annapolis md
11 posts, read 18,564 times
Reputation: 10
In response to your post on Anne Arundel co.I was wondering if you have looked into southern anne arundel co ? you may even be able to get a good deal near Annapolis with the current housing market. kathy
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Old 09-13-2011, 08:10 AM
 
7 posts, read 17,808 times
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I recently bought a townhome in Crofton (well, could be Gambrills depending on who you ask, but our postal address is Crofton...)

I really like it here. However, I have no kids and all I know about schools is that there is one across the street from us.

There's a new shopping center going on on Route 3 that will have a Wegman's, Target, a movie theatre, and other amenities. There are some parks and a nice library.

Housing is expensive. If you want to spend less than $300k, you're looking at a townhome. I recently bought a non-renovated 2-bedroom townhouse for $175k. However, I always feel very safe and the community is very friendly.
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Old 09-13-2011, 09:56 AM
 
Location: Hiding from Antifa!
7,783 posts, read 6,052,723 times
Reputation: 7099
Quote:
Originally Posted by kathymcmillan View Post
In response to your post on Anne Arundel co.I was wondering if you have looked into southern anne arundel co ? you may even be able to get a good deal near Annapolis with the current housing market. kathy
The main problem with So AACo is the restrictions on commercial development. This is great if you live there and like it that way. The problem is, whenever you need to do any shopping, you have to factor in the cost of gas every time
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Old 09-13-2011, 06:19 PM
 
503 posts, read 803,870 times
Reputation: 382
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cruzincat View Post
The main problem with So AACo is the restrictions on commercial development. This is great if you live there and like it that way. The problem is, whenever you need to do any shopping, you have to factor in the cost of gas every time
Yes, God forbid that you might have to drive a couple of miles to the nearest grocery store in exchange for less traffic, lower taxes and less pollution.
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