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Old 12-13-2011, 12:31 PM
 
298 posts, read 681,341 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kuntz View Post
I guess I'd better settle in for a small and ugly house closer to DC.
Welcome to the club. For my money, smaller and uglier but closer in >> larger and prettier but further out.
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Old 12-13-2011, 01:18 PM
 
69 posts, read 144,722 times
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I guess you have been in for quite some times and I am sure you are enjoying it.
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Old 12-13-2011, 01:47 PM
 
43 posts, read 114,721 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SallyField View Post
Welcome to the club. For my money, smaller and uglier but closer in >> larger and prettier but further out.
Agree! We picked smaller townhome 5 min walk to Vienna metro instead of those McMansion we can get out there much further away!
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Old 12-13-2011, 01:50 PM
 
Location: Fairfax, VA
1,449 posts, read 3,173,729 times
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Some people are willing to suffer the long commute for a bigger house. You have to decide what you can personally deal with. We went for older house in Fairfax rather than PWC or Loudoun because we do not do well with long commutes. Our place is a midway point for both of our commutes.

You're moving to the area from elsewhere, right? It might be in your best interest to rent for a while rather than purchase, honestly.
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Old 12-13-2011, 03:02 PM
 
8,982 posts, read 21,189,238 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by kuntz View Post
I guess I'd better settle in for a small and ugly house closer to DC.
Your choices may be smaller but not necessarily "uglier". There are a lot of great TH communities closer-in. The social stigma that one might feel in other places for being a townhome owner doesn't exist here. If you're bringing a family, you'll be happy to know that many TH communities have a common play area and other shared amenities that make up for the smaller outdoor space.

Edit: I saw in another thread that you and your family currently live in Alexandria. So the options suggested above probably aren't new to you.
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Old 12-13-2011, 03:15 PM
 
Location: Chapel Hill, NC, formerly NoVA and Phila
9,781 posts, read 15,810,424 times
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In real estate terms, "small and ugly" translates to "cozy and charming." Look at it that way, and it will seem much better.

Signed,
someone who lives in a cozy and charming 1950's house in Vienna.
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Old 12-13-2011, 04:43 PM
 
Location: Fairfax, VA
1,449 posts, read 3,173,729 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by michgc View Post
In real estate terms, "small and ugly" translates to "cozy and charming." Look at it that way, and it will seem much better.

Signed,
someone who lives in a cozy and charming 1950's house in Vienna.
OTOH, some people are not into the newer communities and think they are "ugly," too.

It is all about perception and taste.
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Old 12-13-2011, 05:10 PM
 
1,257 posts, read 1,385,864 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SallyField View Post
Welcome to the club. For my money, smaller and uglier but closer in >> larger and prettier but further out.

I feel the same way but the new homes are so seductive that people convince themselves that the commute won't be that bad -- but it always IS that bad -- and worse.

I counsel my nieces and adult children to buy inside the Belway if at all possible. What you are going to get is a smaller, older house at a ridiculous price but you usually have trees and a nice established neighborhood -- and in Washington DC it is ALL about the commute.
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Old 12-13-2011, 06:45 PM
 
373 posts, read 871,231 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by FrannyBear View Post
I feel the same way but the new homes are so seductive that people convince themselves that the commute won't be that bad -- but it always IS that bad -- and worse.

I counsel my nieces and adult children to buy inside the Belway if at all possible. What you are going to get is a smaller, older house at a ridiculous price but you usually have trees and a nice established neighborhood -- and in Washington DC it is ALL about the commute.
Everyone is different. I moved to Haymarket a little over a year ago and commute to Alexandria. My commute is 37 miles and it takes me about 40 minutes, leaving my house about 5:40 AM. In the afternoon, it takes me about 50 minutes leaving at 3:00 PM. My wife is a stay at home mom, and I'm a pretty mellow person, so the commute doesn't bother me. It also helps that I work from home one to two days a week. Just before the cutoff for the hybrid HOV license plate, I got a hybrid, which saves me probably 5 minutes in the morning and 10 minutes in the afternoon. Of course if I get stuck at work, it usuallys saves me more time than that. If I had a job that required me to be in at 8 or 9, I probably would live closer in.

If I worked in DC near a train station, I'd probably live closer to the VRE in bristow, although they have been talking about putting a train station in gainesville and possibly haymarket, but right now it is just talk.

There are commuter lots for buses to the metro in Manassas and Centreville.
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Old 01-15-2013, 04:53 PM
 
1 posts, read 1,472 times
Reputation: 10
Default Commute time from haymarket to DC

I'm looking to move to Haymarket from the Woodbridge area. My commute times are amazing from Woodbridge because I slug up 95, but I can't seem to find any sluglines along hwy 66. Any intel?

Other option I looked at was driving to the park n' ride in Centerville to take a bus to Vienna to metro into DC. But, maybe I should simply drive all the way to Vienna rather than busing? Is there any advantage to taking the bus (besides parking)? What is the typical commute time from Haymarket to Vienna?

If I have to drive, what do most people do instead of taking 66 within the beltway? Do you have to take 50?
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