Moving to Northern VA. Need help finding a city/town that suits my needs. (Reston: apartment complex, rentals)

[crys_tyle08]

After doing a little research based on the advice everyone has given me, I am going to focus on Reston and Herndon when I come to visit tomorrow. I'm still going to stop at a few other places just to check them out. My next question is, I did a general search on google earth for directions from Reston and Herndon to Dulles Airport and it says Reston is 7.6 miles, and Herndon is 4.7 miles but I know traffic can be insane in that area, and I was just wondering if anyone could give me a good idea of what traffic is like from the airport to Reston and Herndon and an estimate of travel time during rush hour.

[crys_tyle08]

Originally Posted by tigger37708

If you don't have to commute into DC then definitely do yourself a favor and look out beyond Dulles.
The commute factor is a huge cost factor. The closer in to DC the way more you will pay.
Why put up with the high cost and congestion when you don't have to?

That's a great point. The only problem is that my boyfriend, who will be moving with me, will probably have to commute closer to DC for work. He's a barber/men's stylist and he's looking for work in a high-end male salon. We found one in particular and it's actually a bit closer to DC than Dulles, so to make life at least a little better for him, I'm trying to stay just slightly east of the airport.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by crys_tyle08

Lake Anne Plaza looks exactly like what I'm looking for. Fortunately, two of the apartment complexes I found are only a mile away. That's great! Thank you so much

You're welcome. It's one of my favorite places. Spend a little time there, though, just to be sure you like it. The last time I recommended it to someone he didn't end up liking it that much. Lake Anne is a slower paced place, and all the action seems to be at RTC. The buildings are older and smaller that what you'll find in other parts of Reston/Herndon.

BTW, since you're interested in partments in Reston and Herndon, you will probably find these apartment threads interesting, too. The first one has an extremely detailed photo tour of a few Reston/Herndon apartment buildings.


https://www.city-data.com/forum/north...amazing-2.html (has detailed photo tour of Archstone in Reston and a few other places)

https://www.city-data.com/forum/north...partments.html
https://www.city-data.com/forum/north...st-reston.html
https://www.city-data.com/forum/north...-virginia.html

[crys_tyle08]

Originally Posted by robbobobbo

What, is everyone waiting for someone else to break it to him gently?

crys_tyle08, Northern Virginia is mostly suburban sprawl, especially around the Dulles area. It does not consist of towns, villages, small cities with "Main Street USA", with a few exceptions. It has "Census-Designated Places". Many places sprawled out as subdivisions built near what used to be a crossroads of a few stores, gas station, and a few farmhouses. It's not like Pennsylvania or Northeast towns*. The flip side is that there aren't run-down areas or distressed, economically-suffering towns (some places might be lower income, but I can't think of places that look like they are crumbling, or wide swaths of neglect). It is very car-centric.

I will give my input on your listed places - most of them I have not lived in (though I've lived in NoVA for 35 years) so take with a grain of salt and hopefully others will chime in.

Reston: originally a planned community, modernist 1960's era. Now has Reston Town Center, an area of a few blocks of dining and shopping, tall buildings and parking garages.

Ashburn: suburban to the core. Nice older homes around Ashburn Rd and Hay, but I don't think there is any town, per se.

Herndon: an actual town, though the historical main street area is very small. Mostly suburban and strip malls outside the small quaint part of town.

Sterling: subdivisions, strip malls on a very crowded busy road (Route 7).

Falls Church: nice small town, kind of ho-hum main street that is walkable but still a main drag (Route 7 again) that's stretched out, not condensed into a core of "main downtown". I lived here, I think it's a good community for people 30 and up.

Fairfax: small city, seat of Fairfax County so the jail, courthouse, and therefore many lawyers' offices are here. Very small historic downtown and main street, George Mason University is nearby so there are (still are, I guess?) some hangouts for college students. I lived here as a college student. Most of my friends and I went into DC for entertainment rather than hang out in Fairfax.

South Riding: planned community, apparently attempts to have a town feel with one of the ever-popular suburban "town centers" - a strip mall with tower-like appendages tacked on.

You missed Vienna, a small town with a stretched-out main street, apparently a nice family environment (several residents are forum members here), and walkable in terms of shopping, library, parks, etc, and has community events.

There is also Leesburg, an actual town. Others can comment better than I on commuting times from various places to Dulles, and hopefully can give more first-hand accounts of lifestyle in these places.

*My personal knowledge of Pennsylvania towns (not big cities) that I use for comparison is limited to Amish country. Towns like Lititz, Manheim, Ephrata are what I wish NoVa had. Going up in size, the city of Alexandria would be like an expensive Lancaster, but it's not a good commute to the Dulles area.

Awesome answer! Thank you so much.

[JfromReston]

The good news about travel to and from Dulles Airport is the dedicated airport access road - that runs right next to the toll road. It is often confusing at first as the access road has no tolls and is nearly never backed up with traffic. You should be able to get from Dulles to Reston in about 10 minutes even at the peak of rush hour.

Don't miss Roti Grill in Lake Anne Plaza - it is the lunch counter in the pharmacy.
Roti Grill - Reston, VA

Also, if you get to the South Lakes Area of Reston - Cafesano is my favorite - had dinner there last night. Sign up for their email club and you will get a buy one entree get one free coupon.
Cafesano

Here is the link to the Reston interactive map - it will show you the 55 miles to trails around Reston and the location of the lakes, tennis courts, swimming pools, etc.
Reston Association - Interactive Map Guide

Here is the link to the Reston Community Center
Reston Community Center

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by crys_tyle08

That's a great point. The only problem is that my boyfriend, who will be moving with me, will probably have to commute closer to DC for work. He's a barber/men's stylist and he's looking for work in a high-end male salon. We found one in particular and it's actually a bit closer to DC than Dulles, so to make life at least a little better for him, I'm trying to stay just slightly east of the airport.

I don't know lot about the male salon business, but my guess is that he might also have some luck finding a job in Ashburn/Lansdowne/Sterling (the Cascades part of Sterling, not Sterling Park). Loudoun is the wealthiest county in the US and the fastest growing part of Nova. Lots of salons are opening left and right and need workers. There's a stylist about a mile from my house in Lowes Island that has had a sign in the window looking for stylists for at least a year now.

[Caladium]

Reston to Dulles Airport is extremely easy. It's a straight shot down the Airport Access Road. Ten minutes at the most, and you don't even have to pay the toll.

[Caladium]

One last thought, since J is one the forum right now--I'd try to rent a condo from an individual rather than renting in an apartment complex. The complexes are ok, but people say the condos seem nicer. J is a realtor, so he might be able to tell you how to find a good place. Avoid Crescent Apartments.

[JfromReston]

Originally Posted by crys_tyle08

That's a great point. The only problem is that my boyfriend, who will be moving with me, will probably have to commute closer to DC for work. He's a barber/men's stylist and he's looking for work in a high-end male salon. We found one in particular and it's actually a bit closer to DC than Dulles, so to make life at least a little better for him, I'm trying to stay just slightly east of the airport.

Fairfax Connector has buses from Reston to West Falls Church to take the Metro into DC. Depending on where you are in Reston you can take one of the buses from the neighborhood or go to the Reston East Park-n-ride.
See buses 505, 551, 552, 553, 554 & 557. Also note that the Reston East Park-n-ride will be moving in the spring to a location near the Target on Sunset Hills. Depending on where you start in Reston and where you are going to in DC, it take about 60 to 90 minutes to get to DC via the Bus/Train.
North County Route Schedules and Maps*- Fairfax County, Virginia

[JfromReston]

Originally Posted by Caladium

One last thought, since J is one the forum right now--I'd try to rent a condo from an individual rather than renting in an apartment complex. The complexes are ok, but people say the condos seem nicer. J is a realtor, so he might be able to tell you how to find a good place. Avoid Crescent Apartments.

I'm not a realtor - I just know a lot about Reston real estate. I agree best bet is to rent a codo from an individual or realtor rather than to rent an apartment in a complex.

I'm actually a she and a scientist for the government.