Max square footage and commute to Hearndon (houses, property tax)

[PolandSprings]

Originally Posted by diablogun

Poland,
Thanks, I will add Berryville tot he mix :-)

You really should consider your commuting costs. We lived in Winchester in 2005-2007 and commuting costs were at least $600 a month (this was with lots of car pooling). We bought something we could afford, but never thought about commuting costs. We could have lived much closer for $300 more a month and cut our commuting costs in half and saved on commuting time, too. We would have been out of pocket the same money each month, but would have spent less time in the car. We sold that house and have since bought in Chantilly - which is a great commute for us (work location has changed).

[Middlin]

Western PW County will get a lot of bang for your buck square footage wise, not to mention a lot less money spent on gas/wear and tear on your car. Depending on what time you leave in the am, and where exactly in Herndon or PW, your commute could be an hour or less.

Take a look at Haymarket, Gainesville, Bristow

[diablogun]

Originally Posted by Middlin

Western PW County will get a lot of bang for your buck square footage wise, not to mention a lot less money spent on gas/wear and tear on your car. Depending on what time you leave in the am, and where exactly in Herndon or PW, your commute could be an hour or less.

Take a look at Haymarket, Gainesville, Bristow

Will do, thanks

[dss757]

Originally Posted by diablogun

dss,
Very good information. I will try to avoid the big tolls; although they won't break me, it would take quite a bit of the benefit out of cheaper housing that far out. If you had to do it again, would you choose Charles town or Harper's Ferry? I have some friends that did some training in HF, and they said the area is nice, but I have heard the same about Charles Town as well.

diablogun--That is a really good question! Harpers Ferry is a very nice town; it's quaint and very scenic and you have walking access to the C&O canal on the Maryland side as well as the train station if you ever had the need to take the MARC commuter train or Amtrak into DC. That being said, with the commute to Herndon, I would probably go with Charles Town as that would put you closer to more convenient commuting routes. However, the 2 towns are really only 10 minutes apart (about 7 miles on route 340) so they are very close. Both towns have wonderful historic homes in the center of town, but Charles Town will also have more newer housing developements just outside of town, so you may find more housing choices there. In terms of shopping, there are really no grocery stores right in Harpers Ferry...they are all closer to Charles Town. There's one relatively large shopping center near Charles Town where you will find a Home Depot, Weis (grocery store), Kohl's and a few other shops and restaurants. There's also a shopping center with a Walmart, Staples, a bakery and a pizza place. Some great restaurants and small shops are located in Shepherdstown (10 min away). For additional shopping you usually have to drive to Martinsburg (about 15 min), Frederick (30 min), Winchester (30 min) or Leesburg (35 min). However, the area is growing, and new stores will likely be added nearby in the future. My monthly commuting costs are about $350-$400 (that is including the cost of taking the Dulles Greenway). It would be closer to $200-$250 with out the Greenway. Since the drive is mostly highway without many lights I'm averaging about 35 mpg on the commute.

[diablogun]

Originally Posted by dss757

diablogun--That is a really good question! Harpers Ferry is a very nice town; it's quaint and very scenic and you have walking access to the C&O canal on the Maryland side as well as the train station if you ever had the need to take the MARC commuter train or Amtrak into DC. That being said, with the commute to Herndon, I would probably go with Charles Town as that would put you closer to more convenient commuting routes. However, the 2 towns are really only 10 minutes apart (about 7 miles on route 340) so they are very close. Both towns have wonderful historic homes in the center of town, but Charles Town will also have more newer housing developements just outside of town, so you may find more housing choices there. In terms of shopping, there are really no grocery stores right in Harpers Ferry...they are all closer to Charles Town. There's one relatively large shopping center near Charles Town where you will find a Home Depot, Weis (grocery store), Kohl's and a few other shops and restaurants. There's also a shopping center with a Walmart, Staples, a bakery and a pizza place. Some great restaurants and small shops are located in Shepherdstown (10 min away). For additional shopping you usually have to drive to Martinsburg (about 15 min), Frederick (30 min), Winchester (30 min) or Leesburg (35 min). However, the area is growing, and new stores will likely be added nearby in the future. My monthly commuting costs are about $350-$400 (that is including the cost of taking the Dulles Greenway). It would be closer to $200-$250 with out the Greenway. Since the drive is mostly highway without many lights I'm averaging about 35 mpg on the commute.

Great information dss, that sounds like what I was thinking. Would it be fair to say that the reduced property taxes from living in WV would make up for a great deal of those commute costs? I have read the property tax is less there, but of course have no direct experience.

[dss757]

Originally Posted by diablogun

Great information dss, that sounds like what I was thinking. Would it be fair to say that the reduced property taxes from living in WV would make up for a great deal of those commute costs? I have read the property tax is less there, but of course have no direct experience.

Yes, I would agree that the lower property taxes would make up for much of the commuting costs if not all. To give an example, I was paying more in property taxes in Arlington for a 1 bedroom 800 sq. foot condo with a small deck but no yard than I am for my current place in Harpers Ferry which is a 2300 sq. foot house on 2.4 acres. It takes me about 20 minutes more each way to work than in did from Arlington. I loved Arlington also and it's a great place to live if you are working in DC, it's just very expensive. I'm not sure exactly what the property taxes are like in Herndon, but I know that Loudoun County is very expensive. I was looking at similar homes in Loudoun to the one I purchased in WV and the taxes were more than double. The trade-off, in addition to a longer commute is that you do sometimes have to travel farther for some shopping, different restaurants, getting to the airport, etc...but it's a great place to live.

[diablogun]

Originally Posted by dss757

Yes, I would agree that the lower property taxes would make up for much of the commuting costs if not all. To give an example, I was paying more in property taxes in Arlington for a 1 bedroom 800 sq. foot condo with a small deck but no yard than I am for my current place in Harpers Ferry which is a 2300 sq. foot house on 2.4 acres. It takes me about 20 minutes more each way to work than in did from Arlington. I loved Arlington also and it's a great place to live if you are working in DC, it's just very expensive. I'm not sure exactly what the property taxes are like in Herndon, but I know that Loudoun County is very expensive. I was looking at similar homes in Loudoun to the one I purchased in WV and the taxes were more than double. The trade-off, in addition to a longer commute is that you do sometimes have to travel farther for some shopping, different restaurants, getting to the airport, etc...but it's a great place to live.

HI again Dss,
Sorry to bother you, but do you know of anyone who lives in MD and makes the commute in? I can see a few new houses in Brunswick, and am wondering if that is something I should throw in there as well in regards to looking for a place to live. I know their property taxes are higher, but I have an exclusion from the VA that I think will wipe out all of my property tax liability in MD. Thanks again :-)

[terrence81]

A gal in my office just moved to Winchester. I work in Herndon. She says that her commute is about an hour and she really likes Winchester. Why not look in that area?

There are also people who work in my office and commute from Frederick. So people do indeed do it. Just make sure that your job will continue to be in Herndon. Last year I was working in Fairfax, moved closer to work only to be told to pack up and head to Herndon three weeks after I moved. I'm still closer to Dulles than I was when I lived in Arlington.

[billscamaros]

I live just south of Charles Town and commute into the Reston/Fairfax area via rt 340 and rt 7. Generally I'll leave home at 4:50 am and the commute into work (taking rt 7 from Leesburg in vice the Greenway) is roughly an hour. My commute home via the Greenway to Leesburg is roughly 70 minutes. Typically the traffic that I drive in is moving at 60 - 70 mph, with only occassional stop-and-go on the bypass in Leesburg. So, it's a fairly fast pace.

I definitely got alot more house in Charles Town than I had in Herndon, at less of a price. And it's sitting on an acre lot, vice a 1/4 acre. But remember that a large house and large lot take more time to maintain than a small house on a small lot.

My family definitely has enjoyed a better quality of life living where we do. Weekends are awesome. Weekday commute - not so much. 60 miles each way, 120 mile round trip. That adds up to alot of mileage over the years .... you definitely have to factor in wear and tear on a car when you sit down and calculate the costs associated with having that 3500 square foot house.

Good luck in your search.

[diablogun]

Originally Posted by terrence81

A gal in my office just moved to Winchester. I work in Herndon. She says that her commute is about an hour and she really likes Winchester. Why not look in that area?

There are also people who work in my office and commute from Frederick. So people do indeed do it. Just make sure that your job will continue to be in Herndon. Last year I was working in Fairfax, moved closer to work only to be told to pack up and head to Herndon three weeks after I moved. I'm still closer to Dulles than I was when I lived in Arlington.

Thank you very much, I think that would be a nice area. My only worry would be higher property taxes with the same length of commut in comparison to WV.

As to the job, it definitely will not move elsewhere :-)