Considering Ellicott City Home Purchase (Baltimore, Columbia: rent, home builder, neighborhoods)

[Harmon25]

My wife and I live in Baltimore city (rent) and will be home shopping this Spring. We’re both young (31) and ready to stop paying rent and purchase our long-term home. I work in Baltimore City my wife works near Pikesville. We’re focusing in Howard County instead of Baltimore County so we have more flexibility should either of us ever work in DC, which we both have in the past.

I’ve done some research on Howard County and EC seems to meet some of what we’re looking for. Great schools, which we are very focused on since don’t want to pay for private and homes in our target purchase price $550-$650k and size. However I do not know a lot about the town or what it’s like to live there. Been to Main St a couple of times but honestly don’t like it but that wouldn’t be a make or break for moving there.

Any help would be appreciated. I’ve read some old posts but always nice to have some fresh perspective. Looks like there are 3 high schools all seem great. Anything to think about schools wise (elementary, middle, etc)? What’s it like traffic wise commuting into Baltimore city? I know it can be rough but ived lived and commutes in heavily trafficked areas before (DC, NY, NJ). Any other areas heavily visited that you like non-main street? If you were me what would you wish you knew before moving to EC? What else would you recommend I do before making any final decisions? Thanks!

[bus man]

One can live their entire lives in Ellicott City and never once step foot on Main Street. So I wouldn't let your opinion of that one location influence how you feel about the town as a whole.

Ellicott City is very definitely oriented towards families. It's not a big party place (we have Baltimore and DC for that, assuming you are so inclined). What we have is the stuff that families want: great schools, lots of recreational sports teams, shopping centers, movie theaters, playgrounds, parks, and things of that sort. It's very suburban, which is great for family living (in my opinion) but some people don't care for it. Expect to spend a lot of time in your car, especially when you have kids and you're toting them around to one activity after another.

As for commuting to Baltimore, if you mean downtown, then the east side of Ellicott City is best, because you have easy access to Route 100 and thence I-95. Traffic into Baltimore really isn't that bad, most of the time. It's certainly nothing like the misery of commuting to Washington. There is also a commuter bus from Columbia into Baltimore plus another local bus that goes from Ellicott City to downtown.

For your wife to commute to Pikesville, you've basically got two choices: I-695 or Old Court Road. For the Beltway, you'll want to be near "central" Ellicott City (the area around U.S. 40 and U.S. 29) so that she can access I-70 over to the Beltway and then up to . . . Reisterstown Road, I suppose. If she chooses to commute via Old Court Road, you're better off on the western end of Ellicott City. Probably it would be best to focus your search towards the middle, to split the difference.

For shopping, you'll surely find a local grocery store that works for you. Most people in Ellicott City find themselves at the Long Gate Shopping Center (Target, Kohl's, Safeway, etc.) on a regular basis. The Mall in Columbia is just down U.S. 29 as well, and Arundel Mills Mall is a little bit further away down Route 100. If you like Korean food, you've got loads of choices here, including two Asian supermarkets and lots of restaurants.

Hope this helps. Good luck in your search.

[MrRational]

Originally Posted by Harmon25

I work in Baltimore City my wife works near Pikesville.
...more flexibility should either of us ever work in DC...

Setting aside the buy vs rent & cost issues...
I'll suggest that you sort out the possible DC jobs aspect of your lives before moving.

If that is real... EC is at the far end of practical for that life.
If it isn't real... EC is at the far end of practical for the current life.

[Harmon25]

Originally Posted by MrRational

If it isn't real... EC is at the far end of practical for the current life.

Not sure what this means

[MrRational]

Originally Posted by Harmon25

Not sure what this means

Driving from EC to Pikesville (and back) 250 times a year will get very old very fast.
Driving from EC to Downtown (and back) 250 times a year won't be a lot of fun either.
Without kids to use the HoCo schools I can't see any advantage to the several sacrifices.

Have you looked in Mt Washington?

[bus man]

Originally Posted by MrRational

Driving from EC to Pikesville (and back) 250 times a year will get very old very fast.
Driving from EC to Downtown (and back) 250 times a year won't be a lot of fun either.
Without kids to use the HoCo schools I can't see any advantage to the several sacrifices.

Have you looked in Mt Washington?

I can't speak for the OP, but since he's mentioned schools, I'm assuming that he and his wife are planning on having kids.

Mount Washington is probably an easier commute to both Pikesville and downtown (again, assuming that downtown is the location in Baltimore to which he is commuting), but I don't believe the schools are as good there as they are in Howard County. That said, in general it's a nice area, so it may well be worth a look.

But really, commuting from Ellicott City to Baltimore isn't that bad. I can make it from my house (5 minutes from Route 100) to downtown Baltimore in about 30-35 minutes, pretty consistently. This is especially true if I leave home before, say, 7:15 or so. Granted, the Beltway is no great joy for the Pikesville commute, but Old Court Road might be a viable option. It's certainly more scenic!

[MrRational]

Originally Posted by bus man

I can't speak for the OP, but since he's mentioned schools

Granted but that's all future tense at best.
No less than six years have to pass from now before they need those schools.

I'll repeat that getting the DC jobs they seem to want should be their focus ...
and if they want to move to be either between the two jobs or closer to the DC trains.

If/when? Then look into what HoCo and those schools are at that time.
But Boyds to Gaithersburg is (I suspect) what they'll want then.

[Rufus Clay Banger]

I don't have much to offer in the way of specific Ellicott City advice, but I highly recommend Dorsey Family Homes, which is small, local home builder who exclusively builds in Howard County....and they are always building in and around EC. I'd keep an eye on their website and see where they are building, and perhaps build on your likes and dislikes about EC based on new neighborhoods. Good luck!

https://dorseyfamilyhomes.com/locations/

[dad2paisley]

EC is expensive, lots of traffic and congestion. Commute to Baltimore could take at least 45mins on a good day. There is really no land left, just homes and strip malls, so much build up. There is Centennial Park. Not a lot of places for kids to play.

[Harmon25]

Thank you all for the EC specific advice so far and any more advice would be great. Can anyone give me a rundown of the different High Schools? I have heard mixed things about Howard High.

For all others, I’m well aware of the costs associated with living there, well aware if I have children they don’t enter school for 5 years, and well aware of what it means to commute to DC (Did it for 2 years from Baltimore). If I had any questions about those things or what it’s like to live in Mount Washington, I would have asked.