Reston job, please help, must decide by next Tuesday! (Leesburg: cul-de-sac, real estate)

[bbarn002]

Greetings all,

I will start off by saying that I have read every single post on Reston and the surrounding areas that I could find on this site. I've been researching properties in that area for awhile - but of course don't know anything about neighborhoods, etc. - all in anticipation of being offered a certain job.

Friday, I was offered the job. <<GOLF CLAP>> Now, the problem is, I'm not sure where in that area I can live on the salary that they offered. AND I HAVE TO DECIDE BY TUESDAY.

So here are my facts. It got a little long so I will bold the main parts, don't know if that helped...:

- Single, but attached - boyfriend lives in Maryland but will not be joining me so this is a solo venture
- I live in Pittsburgh, and have a house here I will have to sell (and yes I am well aware of the INCREDIBLE difference in cost of living - one site estimated that my housing costs will triple)
- the offered salary was just under $104k.
- I will have to buy, renting will not be an option (see next point)
- Ihave *ahem* five cats (this is why I know no one will rent to me and no, re-homing them is NOT an option) that I love dearly. I MUST be close to a good 24 hour animal ER. I would be willing to give up other things for this (on the web people seem to like the, um, Herdon Clock Tower Clinic? I think that's the name?)
- I have no kids, so school districts are unimportant

PLEASE PLEASE HELP!!! With ANY information.This is one of the biggest decisions I've had to make in my life, and I feel like I'm making it half-blind. Lots of the information on the internet is either dated, or is polarized in terms of opinions. Of course I would prefer a SFH, but have come to terms with the fact that I'm looking at a townhouse.

Currently I have a 50-minute commute, but it's driving against traffic into farmland, and the only thing I have to worry about is not hitting a cow. No, seriously. But I've lived in congested areas before (Philly, Baltimore).

ANY HELP WOULD BE SO APPRECIATED AND IF I KNEW WHERE YOU LIVED I WOULD SEND YOU HOMEMADE COOKIES!!!!

[VRE332]

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

[marie5v]

There isn't quite enough info here. So the job is in Reston? You gave the salary (which I think is more than enough for one woman and 5 cats, no matter what anyone says), but didn't actually give a housing budget. You also didn't say what kind of area you prefer to live in - Nova offers suburbs in different flavors - rural-ish, small town-ish, city-ish, and standard monotonous. If the housing prices are affordable, I personally would live right in Reston. Maybe a condo in Reston town center (if there are no HOA rules against 5 cats), or a townhouse someplace. Even if I could afford it, I doubt I would consider a single family home if I were on my own.

Also, do you have a real estate agent? Have you looked at Redfin or similar to get some ideas of what's available?

[eerickso]

I've been in Reston since 1979. I moved here from up north and never looked back. (I don't know anyone here who would rather live in Pittsburgh. )There are two emergency vet clinics relatively close (one in Leesburg) and a number of good vets. There's even a mobile service that you might find particularly useful with 5 cats!

You say school district is unimportant, but you might find it particularly important to a buyer when you go to sell in the future. Fairfax schools are rated fairly highly.

Let me know if you have other specific questions about the area.

[Old Monkey]

Congratulations on your new job and impending move!

Just wanted to assure you that there are many excellent vets and animal clinics here in the Reston/Herndon area. We've been very happy with Clock Tower. The Hope Center (24/7 animal ER) is great and is about a 20 minute drive from Reston; it's located in Vienna.

Like you, we moved here with a well-loved pet family (3 kitties and two dogs). We also bought right out of the gate to accommodate our animals.

Housing is extraordinarily expensive here. Do you have a budget in mind? Obviously, what you can afford will affect your neighborhood choice. SFHs, even in so-called less-desirable areas, are rarely listed for under $450K (although there are notable exceptions in Herndon and parts of Sterling). Moreover, I suspect some townhouse HOAs MAY have a limit on the number of kitties you can have.

Even though you don't mind commuting (which is a horror in these parts), you're not going find anything all that much cheaper in Loudon or Fairfax counties. Some people may recommend areas south, in Prince William County. FWIW, I recommend sticking closer to work.

Good luck!

[bbarn002]

thank you all!

to answer the questions above:

- yes, job is in Reston
- housing budget: probably 250-275ish. I could probably stretch it to 300k
- I'm a small town/rural/end of the cul-de-sac "hey you kids get off of my lawn I like it quiet" sort of a girl.
- I do not have a real estate agent (I didn't think I would need one SO SOON)
- I have been looking at Redfin (and Truila, and Zillow). Lots of condos, some townhomes. Lots of foreclosures, too. I get different opinions about what the different areas are like. Then I get overloaded and have to stop. I know things will be different when I am ready to buy, of course - unless my house here gets snapped up (which is not likely)

also, @eerickso, I never thought about that re: school districts. And about Pittsburgh... aw, come on, you just bein a jag or what? Yinz've clearly not met any native Picksburgers, born n raised in da Burgh. We bleed Black and Gold, baby! Ain't nuttin tuh worry bout. I know yer just yakkin' on dis here board. S'okay. Oh, hey, Kennywood's open, ya might wanna do summin' bout that.

[HokieFan]

One of the important questions to first ask is:

Is the salary increase enough to justify moving to a higher cost of living area?


And what is your commute time tolerance? With your budget you could definitely get a condo but a ready-to-move-in townhouse may be a stretch. However, if you are willing to move further out (increased commute time), it would open more options.

[JfromReston]

Here is my suggestion for a place to buy in Reston.

11556 ROLLING GREEN CT #100, RESTON, VA 20191 | Listing Information | MRIShomes.com

Also, don't rule out rentals. I was amazed recently when a co-worker moved to the area looking for a rental with 5 cats. I thought she would never find a place to rent with all those cats. She found a rental in a matter of only a couple of weeks and it was even listed as no pets allowed!

[BarqCider]

250-275k? then you're looking at a townhouse/(rowhouse for those from the north.). i personally think its best to rent, get a feel for the area then buy. i dont know about you, but in my view it seems when people dont want pets, they usually mean dogs and not cats. id look into that, but hey its my opinion.

also unlike pittsburgh/baltimore, there is no ghetto in northern va. just some areas that have heavily concentrated with minorities (sterling,reston for example)

[bbarn002]

Oh, thank you ALL so very much! All the information is really very helpful.

I'm getting a little tired of my long drive here, and I rarely have to deal with more than 5-10 cars at a time. Recently, by my house, there has terrible, block-up-the-interection sort of traffic due to construction. I have NOT fared well, and on more than one occasion have leaned out my window and yelled and cursed at someone. So, probably I should look into paying more for a shorter drive.

@JFromReston / @BarqCider: I will look into renting then. I would rather rent, but thought it was ridiculous to try.


This isn't a very big increase in salary for me, but it is a fairly drastic change in job description. This is not a job I would take for the money, but to take my career (which is stalled in a distasteful place) in a different path. It would be sacrificing a lot - I currently have a 3br, 2.5bath house that backs up to a city park (nothing but trees) at the end of a quiet dead end street. I like my house, my neighbors are awesome - and despite its reputation in some places, I like Pittsburgh. And even though I'm fed up with my job - and more days than not it exhausts me and I hate it - I work with very, very good people.

As I said in my first post, it is one of the biggest and hardest decisions I've ever made, and having to make it so quickly is not helping. They can sit on my application for, oh, five months, but I have to make a decision in four days... love me some Federal Government. I've been nauseous and shaky since Thursday. This has all been so helpful. If there is more out there, please keep it coming!