Relocating to Sterling area (Centreville, Charlottesville: apartments, rentals, house)

[jeanbeard]

Hi everyone! My husband has been transfered to Sterling VA we will be relocating from NJ and have never been to northern VA. We were looking around in the Culpeper area but are having a hard time finding rentals that don't have income limitations. Can someone please give us an idea of were we should look. We are looking to rent for a year so we can get use to our surroundings before purchaseing a home. Ideally we want a two bedroom or one bedroom with a den that can be used for guests, dishwasher and washer and dryer in unit or hook ups in unit. We have two cats. His office will be in Sterling but he has projects in northern va, dc and md. We would like to keep the rent no higher than $900.00. Any advice would be appreciated.

[jb124]

Howdy and welcome to NoVA.

Any way you could deal with more than $900 a month and move closer in? even up to $1200 should give you more options. Culpeper to Sterling is probably about an hour on a Saturday, so it would likely be longer during a commute. If he had to commute to DC or MD for a project it would be 90-120 mins easily each way.

[saganista]

If work will involve commuting to the rest of NoVa, DC, and MD in addition to Sterling, the better place to set up shop would be east of Sterling somewhere. Vienna, Oakton, Dunn Loring, Merrifield, Falls Church...any of those would be good Culpepper is meanwhile half way to Charlottesville. Every place is far, far away from Culpepper during rush hour. But you won't get a 2-bedroom for $900 in any of those other places. As <jb124> said, if you can live with maybe $1200, you will at least have some things to choose from. In Culpepper, you'd end up spending the difference on gas and psychiatrists, anyway...

[Margery]

Where are you from in NJ? I lived in Morris county for 13 years. You will have to go higher than $900 for more than 1 bedroom, there are some 1 bedrooms available in Leesburg for that price. If you contact me with your email information, I will be happy to send you a list of apartments available. Reconsider your budget, considering what you will spend on gas commuting from Culpeper. You will love this area, there is so much to do that doesn't cost anything, and you will be close enough to visit D.C. with its many sights and sites.

[saganista]

Morris County is a lovely area. Similar to some parts of Fairfax County...I like them both!

[mark2544]

For 900 you are looking at a 650 square foot one bedroom, with tons of illegals, and a hallway that smells of camel dung. You might be able to find a basement apartment in a nice neighborhood for 900. Leesburg is probably good advice--commute wouldn't be bad. Culpepper? No way Jose!

[sweet-t-virginia]

I agree with Saganista - Culpeper to Sterling would be a very long commute. If you lived in the Vienna area, for example, it is a straight shot up Route 7 to Sterling. Your husband would be going against the traffic to get to Sterling if he is going to go there every morning.

Alternate choices would be anything off Route 28 like Herndon, Chantilly or Centreville.

I also have to agree with the others that you may need to spend more than $900 a month to get a place you described. Renting for a year and then deciding where you want to buy a house is a wonderful idea! These forums and all the internet research you do really won't give you a feel for the area until you have seen it for yourself. Good luck with your move and welcome to Virginia!

[5stones]

look in Leesburg, Purceville, Hamilton, Dullas, Ashburn, and even Roundhill all those areas are an easy commute to Sterling.
Check craigslist.

The windsor at Fieldstone is a nice aprtment community in Leesburg. They start at about 1000 for a 1 bed 1200 for a 2 bedroom. The commute to sterling would be about 30 min.

[memiller]

If you want something clean, neat and close, you'll need to go to about $1000-$1100. We have one available in Ashburn for that price. It's only a few miles from Sterling. If you're interested in learning more, send me a direct message with your questions.

[debt82]

Im am from PA and are relocating to Sterling. Any insight you can give me?