VRE from Manassas to DC? (Alexandria, Leesburg: renting, condo, mortgage)

[msmiranda]

Hi all, my DH has been offered a job in Leesburg, I will be downtown. We are thinking of Manassas within walking distance of the VRE so I will have a rail commute, he will drive to Leesburg. The schedule indicates it will take about an hour to Union Station. Are the trains crowded (i.e. not everyone gets a seat?). I gather from this forum that a lot of people have issues about Manassas, i.e. it's rednecky, too far away from the city, too many illegal immigrants, schools are not as good as Fairfax County. But it seems as though there would be some population of professionals like us who want a non-driving commute to DC from an affordable place and maybe a more small-town atmosphere. We currently live in the District -- NOT in one of the "nice" upper NW neighborhoods -- and now that we have a child I am seeing the downside of urban living more and more. Would Manassas be trading one set of problems for another? Is it family-friendly? We don't intend to stay in the area longer than 2-3 years, so schools are not as much of an issue for us.

[linux_n_Pontiac]

You may want to poke around on vre.org. If I remember correctly, Broad Run, Manassas and Manassas Park VRE stations are having parking issues, i.e., the lots are filling up early. But you mention walking distance, so that may not be an issue. I cannot tell you whether there are seating problems. My office mate lives near Manassas Hospital (about 1 mile from the Manassas VRE) and takes the 1st train in the morning. He does not have a parking or a seating problem (he returns on the 5:12 out of Alexandria). Those neighborhoods on the north side (hospital) of the station should be fine. That encompasses Old Town. The south side of the station is sketchy (Georgetown). HTH.

[goldenmom7500]

Hi,

I can't really answer on the VRE question - well, I've taken the VRE from Manassas but it was always the train leaving at around 11AM and it was a *gorgeous* double decker train with very few occupants. Anyhow, I did want to say that Manassas really takes a lot of abuse on this forum. Manassas has many, many, many fantastic parts. It has the huge newer homes on acreage around the Prince William Parkway; above Sudley it has this neighborhood with some streets that could be in Greenwich, CT; even off of Liberia (not the best area), it has the large, popular, newish community of fantastic very upscale carriage homes (why am I forgetting the name, sorry).

I moved out of state only a few months ago and last month when I was visiting I expected it to look horrible just based on this forum (I know that doesn't make sense, but this forum has been reshaping my memories) and instead I found this thriving, sort of preppy, energetic community.

But yes, there are definitely really bad areas, no doubt.

That said, my first instinct is that maybe you should just live in Leesburg, just so at least one of you doesn't have a bad commute. I mean, if nothing else, at least you will save some money otherwise spent on gas or rail tickets. But I don't say that because I think you should avoid Manassas.

[Edit: Sumner Lake is the neighborhood off of Liberia].

[jaywallace]

If you go with Prince William try the Braemar area or somewhere near Gainesville. If you have to be in Manassas, i would stay clear of the whole Georgetown South area.

[El General]

But you can now buy a townhome in GTS for 122,000 (realtor.com). Maybe it will come back. Or you can pay 280K next to it and get about the same bag of tricks and a substantially higher mortgage payment to go with it. With one of you in Leesburg, and the other DC; at least one of you will be suffering. I see the trains frequently in Manass.
They do not appear to be overcrowded. But, they have to go slow, when it is very cold or very hot. They are constructing a new parking garage on Main St. I drive 3 miles to work and it takes me 15 minutes early in the morning. Door to door from PW County part of Manassas to Union Station in DC would probably be 1:15. How late can you be?

[goldenmom7500]

... but still, I would only look at Georgetown South if someone really had a budget of $122K. Even some of the townhouses over the fence in Wellington just seemed to me to be cramped and have issues from GS.

Back to VRE, there are some nice places right there off of Signal Hill, so I guess that is technically called the Manassas Park stop. Of course, I love old town Manassas, but if they are only going to be in the area for a few years, buying a house in there doesn't make as much sense as buying/renting one of these newer places off of Signal Hill. I say that mainly because any older house will have some issues, yardwork, etc., that won't be so much at issue with a newer place or a rental.

PS - I guess I don't know your budget, but have you looked at something like Potomac Falls? (closer to Leesburg) It's a newer area with houses, townhouses, etc., and I just get the impression that those move (sell) relatively quickly in any market.

[knopfler]

Originally Posted by El General

But you can now buy a townhome in GTS for 122,000 (realtor.com). Maybe it will come back. Or you can pay 280K next to it and get about the same bag of tricks and a substantially higher mortgage payment to go with it. With one of you in Leesburg, and the other DC; at least one of you will be suffering. I see the trains frequently in Manass.
They do not appear to be overcrowded. But, they have to go slow, when it is very cold or very hot. They are constructing a new parking garage on Main St. I drive 3 miles to work and it takes me 15 minutes early in the morning. Door to door from PW County part of Manassas to Union Station in DC would probably be 1:15. How late can you be?

There are abundant reasons why Georgetown South is so much cheaper... this has been a consistent state for 20 years - there's no "back" for that neighborhood. Living there would likely be WORSE than the DC neighborhoods that they're coming from, not better. Not to mention the detail that it's not walkable to VRE.

The politics in Manassas/PWC have recently taken what some would consider a rednecky turn, but I wouldn't paint the region with that brush - it's quite suburban and moderate, generally.

In any event, if you're looking at VRE being walkable, you're looking specifically in Manassas City, zip code 20110. Do try to stay away from the Liberia Avenue corridor as the immigrant problem seems to be focused around there, and it's not terribly walkable to VRE.

There are some WONDERFUL VRE-walkable older neighborhoods to VRE from old town Manassas, though, and a couple new condo developments that also look promising. I'm not sure what your budget is, though.

Best of luck in your search, and welcome in advance to Northern Virginia!

[El General]

Originally Posted by goldenmom7500

Back to VRE, there are some nice places right there off of Signal Hill, so I guess that is technically called the Manassas Park stop. Of course, I love old town Manassas, but if they are only going to be in the area for a few years, buying a house in there doesn't make as much sense as buying/renting one of these newer places off of Signal Hill.

If you are talking about the Oakenshaw area of Signal Hill, you should think twice. The siding is already falling off some of those houses that fetched as much as 600K. Maybe they didn't have staples in the staple gun when they were assembling them.

[goldenmom7500]

Oakenshaw? Not sure where that is. I have friends in Roseberry, etc. I've driven back there right by the VRE stop and it seemed nice (it's all newish).

[ShopCzar]

The drive from Manassas to Leesburg is tough, it will take your partner some time to get there. I'd look at the South Riding and Stone Ridge communities in Loudoun County. It's a 20-30 minute drive to Leesburg from South Riding depending on traffic.

Back to the bus, it's really clean (a touring bus) and runs from Stone Ridge to downtown DC. It costs $7 one-way, $6 if you prepay a book of tickets. It's so nice, quiet and convenient. Some people watch movies but most sleep and read. For your return home, the last one leaves the city around 5:30. It takes about 1 hour and 15 mins from Dulles South to downtown DC. The parking in the lot is free. There's also a bus running from Leeburg to downtown DC.

One of my colleagues used to take the VRE in from Manassas, she lived far out in the country. The only problem was the fact that the train was a bit of a walk from where she worked (a good 20 minute walk from the 3rd & Connstitution to the depot) so she always had to leave here by 4:50 to get the last train out.

Good luck!