Opinions wanted on moving away from NOVA (Manassas, Leesburg: 2015, townhouses)

[Vectorhead]

We've lived here for 12 years and really like it. But if you're not happy, I would suggest looking at the place we loved the most -- Colorado Springs. It's got a thriving high tech industry, the cost of living is much lower, and it's got a wide variety of school districts. The weather is awesome as long as you don't hate snow (it doesn't actually snow that much more than it does here) and the summers are so much more comfortable.

[NOVA_guy]

I should've also added that I grew up here and only went away for college, so I'm a bit biased but for people that are from small town America, I could see why they wouldn't like it here or how it's an overwhelming place that at times feels hard to get acclimated to.

[Middlin]

Well, the area is so much more than just Manassas and from your description, just a small part of it as well. You don't mention how long you have lived here and apart from your job, you've enjoyed nothing here?

[blindside]

Originally Posted by Vectorhead

We've lived here for 12 years and really like it. But if you're not happy, I would suggest looking at the place we loved the most -- Colorado Springs. It's got a thriving high tech industry, the cost of living is much lower, and it's got a wide variety of school districts. The weather is awesome as long as you don't hate snow (it doesn't actually snow that much more than it does here) and the summers are so much more comfortable.

Amen to Colorado. Lived in Denver for 7 years. Besides proximity to the mountains, the other thing that stood out conversationally is that what people do for work was never a topic of conversation. In fact it usually had something to do with being outdoors or what happened during the weekend. I got the impression that a majority of people there don't live to work... but work to live.

[HokieFan]

Originally Posted by MarineVet89

Hello everyone,

So the down and dirty point of this post is to gather opinions on moving away. I understand that it is ultimately my own decision, I just want input. So I'm a married mid-twenties man with no children, I work in the tech industry and I live in Manassas. I've lived here a for a little while and I'm just finding more and more that I don't like this place, and it's not just Manassas, it's NOVA as a whole. So here are the things I like about NOVA:

1) I love my job
2) The money is good
3) Job security
4) ... That's about it.

The things I don't like:

1) The "northern" attitude (rude, busy, angry people)
2) Everything in Manassas just looks dirty
3) Even though my wife and I both work and make good money, I couldn't imagine buying a house
4) Traffic, Traffic, Traffic
5) High taxes and poor public shcools
6) And I guess I'm just not a fan of urban living

So there it is, I've got a great job that I enjoy in a crap city that I can't stand. My wife and I would like to have kids soon and I just can't see raising children in Manassas. I'm considering maybe moving to Raleigh, but I'm open to other places. I just want somewhere quiet where I can have a few acres of land and a decent house.

So what are your thoughts?

My husband and I are somewhat in the same boat. We don't dislike living in NoVA but our ideal would be a nice single family home on at least an acre while still having a decent commute. Unfortunately, I don't ever see us being able to afford that in NoVA.

We will eventually move to an area that better suits our wants but in the meantime we're making the most of living in this area by saving money, building equity in our home, and enjoying the fantastic amenities offered by living in this area.

OP, it appears as if your job is the only thing keeping you here. If that's the case, take advantage of not being tied down by homeownership and children and try something different. You can always come back!

My suggestion is to have a job before you make the move. So pick a couple of smaller cities that fit your wants/needs and start applying for jobs.

Raleigh, Charlotte....Nashville is particular favorite of mine.

[jillybean720]

Do you perhaps have family in another area that you'd like to move closer to? That was my draw. My husband and I were in northern VA for about 10 years. In that time, I lived in an apartment in Manassas, a high-rise in Alexandria, purchased a townhouse in Woodbridge, and then bought a SFH in Sterling. I worked in Chantilly, Centreville, Fairfax, Merrifield, Falls Church, Herndon...I like to think I got a pretty good feel for the overall area.

Generally, I thought it was sort of just okay. We stayed for the reasons you mentioned, primarily the job market and relatively good salaries. But then, we had kids. Being without local family or close friends (I had trouble making more than acquaintances, really, and the few friends I did make were a good 30+ minutes away thanks to the area traffic and sprawl), for us, made raising a young family really challenging. So, we moved to be closer to my family.

We now live in Virginia Beach (though I actually kept my job with my NOVA company, so I travel up there frequently). It's a bit slower paced, which I prefer for my kids, but it's still close enough for weekend trips to plenty of places (Williamsburg, Richmond, DC, Baltimore, other beaches...). But the civilian pay in this area is woefully short of what it should be as compared to the cost of living, and a lot of things are very focused on the huge military presence.

But being near family has been indescribably helpful for us. Every place will have it's pros and cons. Just something else to possibly consider if you're looking to start a family.

[frostopsy]

Move to Raliegn, still has a southern charm while being modern.

[VRE332]

Originally Posted by frostopsy

Move to Raliegn, still has a southern charm while being modern.

How are the single women down there, they southern and charming too?

[frostopsy]

Originally Posted by VRE332

How are the single women down there, they southern and charming too?

Beats me. I've had some friends move there and they seem to love it. Can only imagine the women are nice too.

Back to the OP, if you don't like NOVA, it isn't going to get any better. It doesn't grow on you, nor does it just come around after a while. Some people think it's the greatest place on earth, and others don't, not a whole lot in between.

My advice to find places with you're industry that have growth. Google laid high speed line in Kansas City a few years ago for example. They also started a regional office in Chicago. Colorado is booming with tech jobs, NSA built a huge data center in Utah. Austin has a booming tech sector, Dallas is next to get Google Fiber.

Life is too short to be miserable, I'd say move while you can. You can probably afford a temporary lower salary, you aren't pulling kids out of school, or uprooting yourself. This is probably a golden Opportunity to get out of there.

[hokiepoke]

I left NoVA in my late twenties but grew up, went to school, and started my IT career there. You're pretty much on point with the same likes and dislikes at the time on why we left the area. Wife and I had good paying stable jobs but we wanted to start a family, live in a SFH and have wifey be stay-at-home mom when we have kids and not just struggling to get by unless I make Director/VP/CFO. Couldn't make the numbers work with the high COL.

Wife transferred her job to Dallas and I quit my cushy NoVA job. Took me 4 weeks to get another job in Dallas after we arrived and I was paid more than what I was making in DC - definitely opposite of what everyone was tell me at the time to not give up a good job and move away. We built a new house a year later and within 2 years, my wife quit her job to stay at home for good when our first kid arrived. I would say I do miss being near families that are in NoVA still when our kids were little and there are things that are in NoVA you don't find elsewhere.

Fast forward, we now live in Tampa because Dallas was too landlocked to our liking and it was too cold for us. We still have our SFH and SAHM and live a mile from the beach. I work remote for a company that has a big presence in NoVA and have to travel back there now and then which works out to visit old friends and family and get my fill of NoVA. I tell ya tho NoVA changes so much it's like going thru a time machine whenever I visit.

Life is indeed too short to be "stuck" where you're miserable. If you have the capability, make the change while you can. My kids have put down roots now so it'd be hard for us to leave again but if/when the time comes, I'd have no qualms about moving again.