Is Frederick a cheaper Alexandria? Considering moving to Maryland. (Baltimore: crime, townhouse)

[Veritas Vincit]

I work with more than one person who lives in Frederick. People working in MoCo can do that pretty easily and the MARC train makes downtown DC doable as well. Its not even the most distant place that gets DC overflow. Theres DC commuters in West Virginia.

[SethGrayson]

Originally Posted by personone

I'm not sure how many people really look to Frederick if they can't afford DC. Frederick is almost 50 miles from DC. In pre-pamdemic traffic, if someone drove, it would likely take over 2 hours to get into DC. Although there is a rail station in Frederick that goes into DC.

Frederick is further from DC than Columbia is (and Cokumnia is considered a Baltimore suburb). Gaithersburg/ Germantown is almost halfway between Frederick and DC, and Germantown IMO is pushing the limit of being in DC commuting territory, so doubling that makes Fredrick not really in the realm of DC IMO.

So I don't really think it's a city that would suffer from DC overflow. Gaithersburg is a city that did though. My dad used to work in Gaithersburg and even in the early 90's it had lots of land, greenery, and wasn't overdeveloped. I haven't been there in a while, but when I was back in town and drove through it a couple years ago, it is heavily developed in parts and a little run down in the portion closest to Rockville (although I understand that the more northern part is a little less dense and is better maintained).

But I think Frederick is way to far to ever become a "DC suburb."

Gaithersburg partially grew because of the labs, starting with NIST. The Key West and Quince Orchard corridors then added more labs. 270 also helped. The 20877 area, which is the center, is crappy part of the town. Never mind the city itself is pretentious piece of hot garbage. Neither small nor large. The Rio development is like a island that is technically part of the city and the Medimmune/Kentlands island is another desirable place separated by the geography from the crappy "center".

Montgomery County has a housing problem and they just developed Clarksburg up and are continuing to do so as the old farmers sell their tracts.

I drove up to Frederick to buy stuff of Facebook and once, going back down 355, there is a batch of new development that turned what was a one lane road into a "controlled" low speed limit place. I think I was going via route 80 to 270 on the way back.

[bus man]

Originally Posted by personone

Frederick is further from DC than Columbia is (and Cokumnia is considered a Baltimore suburb). Gaithersburg/ Germantown is almost halfway between Frederick and DC, and Germantown IMO is pushing the limit of being in DC commuting territory, so doubling that makes Fredrick not really in the realm of DC IMO.

Frederick is already well within the DC "commuter-shed." MARC does offer some service, but it's only three trains each way. Travel time to DC is 1 hour 40 minutes.

https://s3.amazonaws.com/mta-website...washington.pdf

There's also Commuter Bus Route 515, which offers more frequent service from Frederick to the Shady Grove Metro station on the Red Line. Some of the trips operate from downtown Frederick (where the MARC station is), but you'll have more service options if you drive a short distance south to the Monocacy Park & Ride (where the other MARC station is).

https://s3.amazonaws.com/mta-website...edules/515.pdf

[bus man]

Originally Posted by manitopiaaa

(I'm an LGBT Latino, so don't want a conservative or intolerant city).

A few years ago, I was visiting Frederick and happened upon a gay wedding taking place alongside Carroll Creek. As far as I could tell, no one made any faces or rude remarks or anything. I know, it's just one single anecdote, so take it for what it's worth.

Originally Posted by manitopiaaa

Or are there other historic cities in Maryland that are within DC commuting distance and you can still get a nice apartment for cheap (or a rowhome for <$500k - the amount I should be able to purchase a home for given my salary of $122,000). I know Annapolis and Ellicott City fit the bill, but both seemed harder to get to by transit. Also Ellicott City's historic core seems a bit small compared to Frederick.

There are a couple of commuter bus routes from Annapolis into DC, that serve different parts of downtown DC:

Route 220
https://s3.amazonaws.com/mta-website...edules/220.pdf

Route 230
https://s3.amazonaws.com/mta-website...edules/230.pdf

There are also several commuter bus routes that serve Columbia (which is near Ellicott City) to DC:

Route 305
https://s3.amazonaws.com/mta-website...edules/305.pdf

Route 315
https://s3.amazonaws.com/mta-website...edules/315.pdf

Route 325
https://s3.amazonaws.com/mta-website...edules/325.pdf

Route 335
https://s3.amazonaws.com/mta-website...edules/335.pdf

Route 345
https://s3.amazonaws.com/mta-website...edules/345.pdf

You would also be within range of the MARC train, either the Penn or Camden lines.

Before the coronavirus, all of these routes were very heavily used. Now, though, ridership has dropped off dramatically.

You're right about Ellicott City's core, it's pretty small. The residential component of it is even smaller. It's mostly a place for some specialty shopping or dining, not as a place to actually live your life.

[romapizza49]

3 years ago I found a great price on a place to live. It is not an apartment complex but its like small houses connected together, like 6 in a section. It has 3 bedrooms, 1 full bath upstairs, 1 half bath downstairs. Its not a huge place, but it was comfortable for 3 or 4 people. We pay rent to a landlord who owns the place we live in. I dont know how much he paid for the place, nor his mortgage for the place, but we pay 1300 dollars a month.. That includes free trash, and water / sewage. I only have to play for my electric, and other other things I want like cable etc.. That is not a bad price for that area..And we lived on the Golden Mile, right up from it.. which is 40 that runs thru Frederick. It is a busy city. But it depends in what time your out roaming around.

[DJCatan]

Originally Posted by personone

I'm not sure how many people really look to Frederick if they can't afford DC. Frederick is almost 50 miles from DC. In pre-pamdemic traffic, if someone drove, it would likely take over 2 hours to get into DC. Although there is a rail station in Frederick that goes into DC.

Frederick is further from DC than Columbia is (and Cokumnia is considered a Baltimore suburb). Gaithersburg/ Germantown is almost halfway between Frederick and DC, and Germantown IMO is pushing the limit of being in DC commuting territory, so doubling that makes Fredrick not really in the realm of DC IMO.

So I don't really think it's a city that would suffer from DC overflow. Gaithersburg is a city that did though. My dad used to work in Gaithersburg and even in the early 90's it had lots of land, greenery, and wasn't overdeveloped. I haven't been there in a while, but when I was back in town and drove through it a couple years ago, it is heavily developed in parts and a little run down in the portion closest to Rockville (although I understand that the more northern part is a little less dense and is better maintained).

But I think Frederick is way to far to ever become a "DC suburb."

Columbia is part of the Baltimore MSA, but most consider it a suburb of both DC and Baltimore. Columbia is also not an inexpensive place, it’s more expensive than Frederick. I’m not sure how many DC commuters are moving to Frederick, but there is definitely a wave of people moving to Frederick County from Montgomery County at least. Because Frederick and especially areas like Urbana are very close to the I-270 corridor, Bethesda, and Rockville, it makes Frederick County and Urbana a doable living option for those folks.

[BigCityDreamer]

Frederick vs. Alexandria? What an odd comparison. I didn’t think I would see that.

[K-Luv]

Originally Posted by personone

I'm not sure how many people really look to Frederick if they can't afford DC. Frederick is almost 50 miles from DC. In pre-pamdemic traffic, if someone drove, it would likely take over 2 hours to get into DC. Although there is a rail station in Frederick that goes into DC.

Frederick is further from DC than Columbia is (and Cokumnia is considered a Baltimore suburb). Gaithersburg/ Germantown is almost halfway between Frederick and DC, and Germantown IMO is pushing the limit of being in DC commuting territory, so doubling that makes Fredrick not really in the realm of DC IMO.

So I don't really think it's a city that would suffer from DC overflow. Gaithersburg is a city that did though. My dad used to work in Gaithersburg and even in the early 90's it had lots of land, greenery, and wasn't overdeveloped. I haven't been there in a while, but when I was back in town and drove through it a couple years ago, it is heavily developed in parts and a little run down in the portion closest to Rockville (although I understand that the more northern part is a little less dense and is better maintained).

But I think Frederick is way to far to ever become a "DC suburb."

I live in Columbia. We get OTA channels from both DC and Baltimore here. When watching 'local' news from Baltimore, Columbia is included and sometimes Frederick. When watching 'local' news from DC, Frederick is included but rarely Columbia.

Yes, it would be absurd to think of Frederick as a suburb of DC, but you could easily argue it is more of an exurb to DC than it is to Baltimore.

People who live and/or work in DC and its suburbs have been moving to Frederick for years.

Originally Posted by DJCatan

Columbia is part of the Baltimore MSA, but most consider it a suburb of both DC and Baltimore. Columbia is also not an inexpensive place, it’s more expensive than Frederick. I’m not sure how many DC commuters are moving to Frederick, but there is definitely a wave of people moving to Frederick County from Montgomery County at least. Because Frederick and especially areas like Urbana are very close to the I-270 corridor, Bethesda, and Rockville, it makes Frederick County and Urbana a doable living option for those folks.

Yes, many people around here think of Columbia as a suburb to both and you see a good mix of Ravens and 'Skins fans, and Oriels and Nationals fans as well.

Yes, more and more people are moving to Frederick over Columbia, which used to be the opposite up until perhaps a decade ago. My wife and I are also considering a move to the Frederick area or somewhere in Carroll County, perhaps.

[westsideboy]

Originally Posted by K-Luv

I live in Columbia. We get OTA channels from both DC and Baltimore here. When watching 'local' news from Baltimore, Columbia is included and sometimes Frederick. When watching 'local' news from DC, Frederick is included but rarely Columbia.

Yes, it would be absurd to think of Frederick as a suburb of DC, but you could easily argue it is more of an exurb to DC than it is to Baltimore.

People who live and/or work in DC and its suburbs have been moving to Frederick for years.

Yes, many people around here think of Columbia as a suburb to both and you see a good mix of Ravens and 'Skins fans, and Oriels and Nationals fans as well.

Yes, more and more people are moving to Frederick over Columbia, which used to be the opposite up until perhaps a decade ago. My wife and I are also considering a move to the Frederick area or somewhere in Carroll County, perhaps.

I think there was a discussion.........maybe 10 years ago now........and it was "decided" that Frederick was best considered an "edge city." So part of the D.C. metro, but still far enough out to have its own center of gravity.

[RayHammer]

Housing in Frederick is significantly cheaper than Alexandria.

Question is: can you afford the commute?

That $200 or $300 per month house savings just isn't worth commuting 10-15 hours per week of my life away. Imagine if you'd just translate that commute time into overtime! Besides, with a mortgage I'm paying myself anyway, and someone will actually want to buy my house. Out in the boons.....maybe a fish will bite, this hot market won't last forever.

I can't imagine all those commuting hours, aka unpaid hours devoted to work. Translate your commute time into what your overtime wage would be and then remember every minute that you're driving that that's money you're not making yet it's time you're giving up for your employer, as well as money out of your pocket for gas, maintenance, and miles on the odometer.

At least you'll be teleworking much of the time (or so you think), but even still, is 5 hours a week commuting worth a $300/mo. savings? On a $120k salary you can afford a house, even in Alexandria. Even if you're stretching payments your salary will go up over the years, the relative value of the mortgage payment will go down (due to inflation) and your house will appreciate more in raw dollar terms buying in a more expensive area. Still, Frederick isn't bad and it's been up-and-coming in recent years, I just don't know how long it'll last before it becomes like Hagerstown full of roving derelicts and druggies....or maybe it's already there? Haven't been in a couple years.