Just Got A Job In Chantilly - Where to live? (Centreville: crime, houses)

[finfan3dp]

I just got a job in Chantilly and I'm wondering where we should live. I have a wife and two kids ages 9 and 4. We would like something with a small town feel as we are from upstate new york. We will be making around 110K combined to start off with. Any suggestions?

[mark2544]

Errr uh, how about Chantilly? Fairfax County Schools are well above average, crime is relatively low, and your job is there. You can go to Trader Joe's in Centreville. IAD is very convenient, as well.

[memiller]

I concur. Live where you work. This is a major metropolitian area so "small town" is reserved for a very few spots in the area. Leesburg, Warrenton, those may have the small town feel in parts, but basically, live in Chantilly and you'll enjoy life more.

[dullnboring]

Unfortunately, there aren't really any small towns in the traditional upstate New York sense of a pedestrian-friendly downtown full of independent businesses and tightly knit neighborhoods anywhere within a 50 mile radius of DC. Development sprouted up differently (more recent and geared towards the automobile) in this area than it did in upstate New York. With that said, the closest you'll find to such a thing in the area would be parts of Vienna, Falls Church, Leesburg, Herndon and the city of Fairfax, but none of these are really all that small, but rather quieter and older outposts in the midst of a bustling metropolis.

Commuting in the area is absolutely atrocious so it's always advisable to live as close to work as possible. I generally advise people to stay within a 10 mile commute of their office, but that's based more on my own personal tolerance for commuting than anything as there are thousands of people who commute 15, 20, 30 miles a day.

Chantilly itself is perfectly fine. There is no small town element there. It's prototypical suburbia for the most part. There is no downtown but rather dozens of strip malls and subdivisions and office parks strewn along traffic-clogged roadways. The schools in the area are very good, crime is minimal, and you should be able to live just fine on 110K. If you decide to commute from closer in, like Fairfax city or Vienna, one benefit would be that such a commute would be a reverse commute and more tolerable.

[cliftonLLR]

I would suggest Little Rocky Run in Clifton. Very nice neighborhood with a small town atmosphere. The houses are very affordable for a total income of 110K.

[kevinm]

South Riding is great for the "small town feel". It is very "family friendly". The average family in South Riding is something like 3.5 kids.

[Adrian71]

Originally Posted by dullnboring

If you decide to commute from closer in, like Fairfax city or Vienna, one benefit would be that such a commute would be a reverse commute and more tolerable.

Yeah, I was going to suggest that. We lived in Fairfax and my wife worked in Chantilly when we first moved out here. While there's really no such thing as a reverse commute around here, just because traffic is so bad everywhere you go, it IS more tolerable than a commute in the opposite direction.

[MarsMary]

I'd definitely agree with South Riding. Its a very family orientated neighborhood, great schools etc. There are lots of activities in South Riding - Soccer, Little League, dance, Brownies, Scouts etc. There are 4 swimming pools, tot lots and town parades/fairs. We have been very happy here! My husband works in Chantilly and the commute is 10-25 mins depending on traffic.