Moving to NoVa, need your advice. (Arlington, Alexandria: apartments, rentals, loans)

[MovingToNova]

Hi everyone,

I have been offered a federal position in Alexandria, which I begin very soon. My salary is approximately $80,000 per year (before taxes and deductions). I am single male in the late 20s/early 30s age group with no major debt (paid off car, no college loans etc.). Is this a decent salary for the area? Can I afford to rent a nice one bedroom apartment with this salary?

I want to rent a room for a couple months, take that time to look for an apartment and then sign a lease. Do you have any advice on where I should look for a room for rent other than just Alexandria?

Any advise is highly appreciated.

Thanks.

[Bigfoot424]

Not a bad salary for the area. The further south you go the more you can afford. Get outside of the beltway and rentals become cheaper but of course traffic can become a real PITA. Is your job within proximity of public transit?

[DefenderRoute1]

Where exactly in Alexandria? There are several places where you can find a nice one bedroom apartment.

[CAVA1990]

Originally Posted by MovingToNova

Hi everyone,

I have been offered a federal position in Alexandria, which I begin very soon. My salary is approximately $80,000 per year (before taxes and deductions). I am single male in the late 20s/early 30s age group with no major debt (paid off car, no college loans etc.). Is this a decent salary for the area? Can I afford to rent a nice one bedroom apartment with this salary?

I want to rent a room for a couple months, take that time to look for an apartment and then sign a lease. Do you have any advice on where I should look for a room for rent other than just Alexandria?

Any advise is highly appreciated.

Thanks.

If I were you I'd stick with looking at places in Alexandria, preferably Old Town or Del Ray (along Mount Vernon Avenue). Any savings in rent by moving further out would be eaten up by commute costs. Plus as a young person you will enjoy the amenities there a lot more than the outer burbs. Check out airbnb.com for room rentals. You'll do fine on that salary.

[stpickrell]

Originally Posted by CAVA1990

If I were you I'd stick with looking at places in Alexandria, preferably Old Town or Del Ray (along Mount Vernon Avenue). Any savings in rent by moving further out would be eaten up by commute costs. Plus as a young person you will enjoy the amenities there a lot more than the outer burbs. Check out airbnb.com for room rentals. You'll do fine on that salary.

$80k is plenty. If you're not a huge partier, maybe something in the west end of Alexandria would work, but you ought to be able to get a room in Old Town unless you have lots of student debt.

[claremarie]

In your financial situation, you can afford to live close to your job. A short-term rental is a great idea, as it will give you the chance to test-drive the commute from various locations.

[MovingToNova]

I looked at Old Town. Most of the rooms (in shared apartments) there are on rent for $1000, does that sound about right?

Also, I want to take public transportation to work since federal offices and agencies subsidize that. Are places in Maryland on the Red Line too far? Or Southwest DC?

Thanks for the posts!

[delorean1985]

$80,000 a year? Yeah... That's more than enough, unless you're the type who's an idiot about his finances. On the Maryland side, you'll have to pay a county tax if in Montgomery County i.e. MOCO. Used to live there... Not worth it if you don't have children.

You can also take a look at various spots in Arlington.

[PK12]

If you are single and will be making 80K with no loans/debt, that is a pretty darn good salary for the DC area.

I’m not too familiar with the rents in OldTown, but you can probably get a shared accommodation (house or apt) for 1K even in Arlington, which is much more 20-30s oriented than Old Town and might be a better fit for you. Commuting to Old Town from Arlington will be a breeze, reverse commute on 395-S and from there you can take King St or Braddock depending on where in Old Town you work

[MovingToNova]

I do not spend frivolously. After taxes and deductions, this salary works out to about $3700 a month. I completely agree that this is a great salary, especially given that it is a federal position, and consider myself very fortunate.

My question is that for a decent one bedroom apartment (no roommates, just a one bedroom apartment) in Arlington, Alexandria or Northern Virginia in general, what can I expect to spend?

When I search online I see one bedroom apartments for $1200 but their reviews are horrible. So, should I look at spending more towards $1500 plus? I do not need a luxury apartment. Just a relatively nice and safe one.

Thank you again. Its great to speak with people who have so much knowledge of the area.