Looking for home near Herndon, VA (salary, to live in, eat)

[JfromReston]

Originally Posted by BOS2IAD

Those homes listed for rent in Herndon---Dew Meadow Ct., Mountain Mill Pl. and Old Silo Ct. are in the McNair Elementary School district. The house on Clover Field Cir. didn't have any school info. McNair doesn't always get the best reviews. If you are going to rent in the area, do your homework on the school. That way, you can come to an informed decision.

I don't know much about McNair elementary school but Great Schools gives in a 8 of 10.
Mcnair Elementary School - Herndon, Virginia - VA - School overview

If you are looking for better ranking school than that, try Sunrise Valley in Reston (Great Schools 10 of 10).
Sunrise Valley Elementary School - Reston, Virginia - VA - School overview

[BOS2IAD]

Originally Posted by Bly5

Is Sterling a better area and school district than Herndon?

Stay away from Sterling Park. The housing stock is older (many houses are 50 years old or slightly more). The number of flophouses that have 20-30 people is out of control. The 4 elementary schools, the 1 middle school and the 1 high school have gone downhill in the last 10 years. One elementary school, Guilford Elementary, has sunk so low that it can't get full accreditation. That's heartbreaking because at one time, it was a good school. Also, I know many people who have left Sterling Park---some were widows and single women---because their homes became surrounded by flophouses and they didn't feel safe anymore.

Also, if you see something in Sugarland, be sure to do thorough research. Some pockets there are not good. I once had a friend who was single and lived there. While no one bothered her, she had some not so great neighbors.

If you want to live in Sterling, I suggest looking into the Cascades area---mainly areas that have schools that feed into Potomac Falls High School. At one time, it was considered to be one of the best HS in LoCo. Still, I would say research the schools because when Dominion HS opened up, there was a bitter battle over school district lines. The people in the Potomac Falls HS boundaries wanted it to stay the same but the country broke it up because Dominion would have ended up with all the poor performing students.

[dating_houses]

Agree with the comments on Reston. You'll likely find something within budget there and the schools are pretty good. My kids also went to Terraset and really liked it. Make sure to also look at 20171 Oak Hill (formerly Herndon).

[perries]

Have a look at Herndon south of the toll road, Fox Mill neighborhood 20171. It will be a quick commute for him (well, as good as it gets once you get past traffic shock) and a great neighborhood for family, very active and involved community and school.

[Bly5]

What do you think of Vienna or Falls Church? Ashburn also looks nice. The housing there looks newer and the High Schools are an 8 on the greatschools.org site.

[JfromReston]

Originally Posted by Bly5

What do you think of Vienna or Falls Church? Ashburn also looks nice. The housing there looks newer and the High Schools are an 8 on the greatschools.org site.

You are going to have to up your price point significantly to accommodate a family of 4 in Vienna or Falls Church. Falls Church will definitely be more than a 30 minute commute.

Ashburn may be a good option, but be sure you understand the traffic issues. Ashburn could easily be more than a 30 minute commute.

[blindside]

You can get a 2BR apartment in ashburn for about $1800. If your kids share a room, it's a good choice. Just make sure to negotiate the tollway fees to get to Herndon in your husbands salary. It's $5.20 per way just to Rte 28 and another $1 to the Herndon exit. Do not hesitate to ask for reimbursement on tolls (or better yet a company issued EZ-Pass), it should be a cost of living item.

[bluef250]

I live in Sterling in an apartment just south of Route 7 across from the Dulles Town Center. Dig the place because it feels like a townhouse... and I even get an attached covered garage. BTW, Park View High School serves my area; unfortunately, it's not the best school. If I lived just north of Route 7, then the schools are better... but living there is more expensive than where I'm at now.

FYI, Sterling to Herndon commute-wise is about 20 minutes via surface streets; with the evening traffic a little worse if you decide to take Route 28 right around Waxpool Rd. Good thing about the general area is how close it is to the Reston metro. If you ever have to go into DC, that's your best and most convenient bet.

Anyway, you should know that Virginia has this wonderful thing called personal property taxes. And there are real estate taxes too. Yeah, I know, that's probably a given, but just be aware that there are some places where you have to pay both the town AND the county a tax for your vehicles and your house. It varies from town to town and county to county. For example, living in Sterling, I pay personal property tax on my truck and car to Loudoun County. If I owned a house, I'd also pay real estate taxes to the County. If I lived in Leesburg, on the other hand, I'd pay a personal property tax for my vehicles to BOTH the County and the Town! Same for real estate. Now if I lived in Herndon, then they DON'T collect a personal property tax for vehicles, but you still have to pay Fairfax County. And if you just so happen to own a 3/4-ton pickup truck like I do (and it's registered that way), no matter where you're at in Virginia, you pay the full fare for taxes ($500 every six months for an 8 year old pickup, just north of $600 if I lived in Leesburg). Sorry for being long winded, but the point is that these are things that need to be accounted for if you're trying to budget your move.

Oh, and BTW, HOA's are plentiful here... good luck finding a place without one.

Hope that helps.

[Riley09swb]

We used to live in Dominion Station which is near the intersection of Church and Rte 28 in Sterling (20166).It wouldn't be a bad commute to Herndon. We lived in a town house but they do have SFH. It was called Peace Plantation. The high school was Parkview but it was switched to Potomac Falls I believe several years ago. It's another neighborhood to check into. We almost rented a 3 bed town house in 2010 when we moved back to the area for a short time and at that time they wanted $1800.

[leavingwash]

I moved from out of state to the Sterling area a couple of years ago. Some of my thoughts/learnings (personal opinions):

Sterling Park - I was told to steer clear of anything "south of 7". Now living in the proximity in my opinion, the homes in Sterling Park are definitely a bit older - but the lots are typically bigger. I have seen some decent safe-looking sections; I have found the closer to 7 the "better".

Sugarland Run - Area is North of 7. Similar to Sterling Park, I believe that it depends on "where"; there is good and not quite as good.

Potomac Station/Dominion Station - South of 7. Homes look nice, lots of townhomes. Good proximity to shopping.

Cascades - definitely considered to be "most desirable". Property costs are higher. Great neighborhood and I am told good schools.

Not familiar with Herndon homes, but have heard there are "pockets" of good and bad.

Good luck.