African-American Single Parent Mom relocating to VA-DC (Arlington, Alexandria: 2014, for rent)

[warmgiver]

I'm a black, single parent with a elem. school age son and college daughter planning to relocate to DC-VA area. I have BS in Computer Information Systems and am currently an IT Project Manager. I'm looking for a job with good work-life balance, good school systems with cultural diversity for my son and a 2500 sq ft. home to rent in a somewhat suburban area. Last but not least, would love to have some type of social life. (In 40-50 age bracket). Any suggestions for best companies with work-life balance, DC/VA locations with good schools and affordable housing? Thanks in advance for your help. I've never lived in this area and have no family there.

[justtitans]

Originally Posted by warmgiver

I'm a black, single parent with a elem. school age son and college daughter planning to relocate to DC-VA area. I have BS in Computer Information Systems and am currently an IT Project Manager. I'm looking for a job with good work-life balance, good school systems with cultural diversity for my son and a 2500 sq ft. home to rent in a somewhat suburban area. Last but not least, would love to have some type of social life. (In 40-50 age bracket). Any suggestions for best companies with work-life balance, DC/VA locations with good schools and affordable housing? Thanks in advance for your help. I've never lived in this area and have no family there.

As always, depends on your budget.

[kinkytoes]

The entire area is expensive, but I think that the schools are OK no matter where you go. Arlington, Bethesda and Fairfax are good areas and close enough to jobs and entertainment. My personal opinion is that moms should stay home with the kids and not date, but depending on what you like to do there are a lot of activities here. There is also a decent dating pool...but not sure how it is for older women.

Before you move anywhere, I'd recommend visiting to see what it is like. If you live farther out, it is cheaper...but EVERYONE has moved to this area because of the economy, and the traffic is nightmarish. It may be worth it for you and your family to spend more to be closer to work.

[warmgiver]

Thank you, Justtitans. I can give and take on square footage. After a little research, I would anticipate paying somewhere between $2000-$3000 for rent. Does that sound practical for the area?

[warmgiver]

Thank you, kinkytoes. I'm not a 'party girl' by no stretch. Been there, done that in my younger years. My main concern is for my son who is very intelligent and I would like him to have a broad base of options for academics and sports. Since I don't have family in the area, I don't want my work commute to be over 45min. I've heard the best way to help kids transition to a new area is to get them quickly involved in extra-curricular activities. I'm relocating from Charlotte, NC so 'nice,friendly' areas are a plus. (I read a posts about DCers not being very friendly) I will check out Fairfax and Arlington as you recommended. Thanks again for taking time to respond.

[Carlingtonian]

The problem in the DC area is that most places with good schools are very expensive. However, you're somewhat in luck, in that you can rent a nice house in a good school district for well under $3000--especially if you can accept less than 2500 SF, which I'm glad to see you're willing to compromise on. (After all, it's just the two of you.)

I do think that getting too deeply into locations is putting the cart before the horse until you have a job lined up. The job location will determine what housing is a reasonable commute from you. If you find something in DC or Arlington, then look at N. Arlington, McLean, and Falls Church City. If you get a job farther out, including outside the Beltway, then perhaps Annandale, Springfield, Burke, or Loudoun County (Ashburn, etc.). Worst schools would be Alexandria, S. Arlington, Manassas, and DC. But that's also something to consider more after you know where you'll be working.

As to jobs, I'd suggest something with the Federal government. (I'm a fed myself, so I'm biased, I suppose.) It varies by agency, but generally, I think there's more work-life balance than in the private sector--and certainly more stability. Go to www.usajobs.gov to search. There are, however, many tech startups in Arlington. IT may be one of those fields where people take a big pay cut to work for the Government; finance and law are the same.

Friendliness here really varies; everyone is from somewhere else, so some are standoffish, and some are outgoing.

"Diversity" here can mean any number of things. Often it's a euphemism for "99% low-income Hispanic." If you mean actual diversity, very affluent McLean is very diverse, with lots of legal immigrants from Asia (e.g., Indians, Chinese, Middle Easterners) and perhaps a smattering from Europe. Some are tech entrepreneurs, many work for the World Bank or law firms, and some are foreign diplomats.

By the way, let me be the first to commend you for choosing Virginia! You're going to get a lot of flak from black Marylanders for daring to live in what is technically (historically) the South--most of us don't think of it as such--but there are a lot of successful African Americans here, who care more about quality of life than fitting into others' expectations.

[justtitans]

Originally Posted by warmgiver

I'm a black, single parent with a elem. school age son and college daughter planning to relocate to DC-VA area. I have BS in Computer Information Systems and am currently an IT Project Manager. I'm looking for a job with good work-life balance, good school systems with cultural diversity for my son and a 2500 sq ft. home to rent in a somewhat suburban area. Last but not least, would love to have some type of social life. (In 40-50 age bracket). Any suggestions for best companies with work-life balance, DC/VA locations with good schools and affordable housing? Thanks in advance for your help. I've never lived in this area and have no family there.

Originally Posted by warmgiver

Thank you, Justtitans. I can give and take on square footage. After a little research, I would anticipate paying somewhere between $2000-$3000 for rent. Does that sound practical for the area?

A couple of thoughts with this:

It's important to know where you are going to work because it can greatly influence your lifestyle. When you get that, you probably can narrow down this list. There are parts of Northern VA that are diverse and parts that are not. To be honest with you Arlington is not very diverse (relatively speaking). Fairfax is a much more diverse county but it also depends on what part you live in. If you are working in the Reston/Herndon/Chantilly/Loudoun County areas then a place like Centreville or Fairfax City make sense. If you are looking to work in DC or in eastern Fairfax then a place like Springfield, Franconia, Lorton, and parts of Alexandria (Fairfax County side) make more sense.

Keep in mind "affordable" is relative and the prices will be more expensive than in the Charlotte area. You have a good budget but you may not get all of your desirables.

[Carlingtonian]

Originally Posted by justtitans

To be honest with you Arlington is not very diverse (relatively speaking). Fairfax is a much more diverse county but it also depends on what part you live in.

I live in North Arlington. My small street has one black family, two families with one Hispanic parent, several with one Asian parent, and at least a couple of gay people. How is that not diverse? Our previous neighborhood in Arlington was similar. Remember, "diverse" does not mean "99% the same race as long as it's not white."

[justtitans]

Originally Posted by Carlingtonian

I live in North Arlington. My small street has one black family, two families with one Hispanic parent, several with one Asian parent, and at least a couple of gay people. How is that not diverse? Our previous neighborhood in Arlington was similar. Remember, "diverse" does not mean "99% the same race as long as it's not white."

The county is 9% black. Given that the OP is black, I would assume that may be an issue. It's just depends on where one lives. I am sure there are neighborhoods like yours but that doesn't represent the whole county.

[warmgiver]

Thank you all, very much! I have a couple of interviews lined up, so I will reply back to the post once I nail down a job. All your feedback has been beneficial and thanks again for taking the time to respond. I am also going to check out the government jobs! Thanks again.