I need help with a decision (Winchester: sales, employment, school)

[johnsonkk]

Originally Posted by Walter9453

Thank you everyone for your responses! What I like about Loudoun County was the small town feel, the historic downtown and there is so much to do outside....the weather is great too, especially in the winter. That's basically what I'm looking for, small town, charm, lots of families, local farms, great schools.

Can you wait and try to get an offer from a hospital in Loudoun county? It would be closer ( since you want to move to Loudoun) and an offer would probably be higher. That would be the best of both and hubby would have more opportunities to find a job.

[Tish Thompson]

Originally Posted by Walter9453

I current live in the Chicago suburbs where I grew up. I'm married with 3 small children. I work part-time in a hospital that I LOVE; My husband and I make about $92000 combined. We live comfortably, in a small house, cars are almost payed off, student loans and mortgage being our only debt. The things is, I don't love the town we live in, the schools are not good so we send our kids to a private school (which is amazing. I absolutely love the private school they go to). All of our family, who are very helpful, live in the area.
We recently visited friends in the DC area and I fell in love with it. I applied to a job and they gave me an offer for 76000 with a relocation package and 40000 in student loan repayment. The town is an hour west from DC (Purcellville) so it's not as expensive as DC, but more than here. My husband wouldnt have a job yet so we would live on my income until he finds something (his work is not high paying). I would have to work full time with a lot of driving time....30 min each way (Winchester), occasionally having to drive about an hour each way (Luray) on a rural road so winter might be horrible. I won't see my kids as much, but the town and schools are wonderful!!!!

What do I do!?!?!

If you're commuting from Purcellville to Winchester, you'd have a reverse commute; traffic wouldn't be an issue unless there was an accident. If you can make that kind of money in Winchester GO FOR IT!! I live in the Winchester area (and I hate it here...pace is too slow for me) but money like that could make it more appealing

[LynchburgLover]

I'm a bit confused -- the job is in Purcellville? But you'd be driving to Winchester and Luray a lot?

I'd recommend you rent for a year or two. Purcellville is a cute small town but don't rule out living in Winchester. It's a really nice small city. If you're working there and commuting to Luray occasionally, it will be much easier.

There are some really nice schools in Winchester and you'll be hard pressed to find a community more devoted to Handley High School. There is tremendous pride in the school and the city. During your year of renting, be sure to attend the Winchester Apple Blossom Festival and you'll see an unbelievable sense of community.

Winchester also has a historic downtown and residential area that is significantly more developed than Purcellville.

Don't get me wrong -- Purcellville/Western Loudoun is great if you're working in Leesburg/Ashburn/Reston areas but your commute to Winchester and Luray will be a bear in snowy/icy/foggy weather. That little hill on Route 7 might not look like much but can turn quite treacherous and there are very, very few alternate routes that will take you miles out of the way.

Best of luck.

[Mnseca]

Originally Posted by Walter9453

Thank you everyone for your responses! What I like about Loudoun County was the small town feel, the historic downtown and there is so much to do outside....the weather is great too, especially in the winter. That's basically what I'm looking for, small town, charm, lots of families, local farms, great schools.

I have to disagree. What I hate about NoVa is that the weather is not conducive to outdoor activities. I would consider myself very outdoorsy, and it's frustrating here that in the winter everything is covered with ice and then in the summer it's just too hot to do anything outdoors. Plus, the mosquitoes are extreme. I also don't think small town charm is an accurate description of NoVa at all, although maybe Purceville fits that description, I'm not really sure. But it does sound like you are just looking for people to justify your move and it doesn't really matter if you have an accurate portrait of the area or not. So I would say just double check your finances and make sure you can really live on that salary.

[Mnseca]

Originally Posted by johnsonkk

Can you wait and try to get an offer from a hospital in Loudoun county? It would be closer ( since you want to move to Loudoun) and an offer would probably be higher. That would be the best of both and hubby would have more opportunities to find a job.

Wait, OP - I just saw this about a hospital. Are you planning to work at Winchester Medical Center? Another reason to hit the pause button - it is not supposed to be a great place to work. Research that one carefully if that's your plan.

[Fallout Zone]

Originally Posted by Walter9453

I current live in the Chicago suburbs where I grew up. I'm married with 3 small children. I work part-time in a hospital that I LOVE; My husband and I make about $92000 combined. We live comfortably, in a small house, cars are almost payed off, student loans and mortgage being our only debt. The things is, I don't love the town we live in, the schools are not good so we send our kids to a private school (which is amazing. I absolutely love the private school they go to). All of our family, who are very helpful, live in the area.
We recently visited friends in the DC area and I fell in love with it. I applied to a job and they gave me an offer for 76000 with a relocation package and 40000 in student loan repayment. The town is an hour west from DC (Purcellville) so it's not as expensive as DC, but more than here. My husband wouldnt have a job yet so we would live on my income until he finds something (his work is not high paying). I would have to work full time with a lot of driving time....30 min each way (Winchester), occasionally having to drive about an hour each way (Luray) on a rural road so winter might be horrible. I won't see my kids as much, but the town and schools are wonderful!!!!

What do I do!?!?!

Two comments:

1) Purcellville is generally considered a nice location, but it is also within commuting distance from the Dulles corridor, and for those that can handle the daily trip, DC itself. That means that it is quite a bit more expensive than places further west towards Winchester. I don't know how much house searching you've done, but just plugging in a single family house on at least a 1/4 acre lot with 4 bedrooms gives you almost no inventory under $450k. Now, if you are thinking that you can do fewer bedrooms or live in a townhouse, that opens up more options

2) I'm not sure you need to worry about the drive to Luray that much other than the length. I don't consider the roads to get there as "rural".

[Walter9453]

It is Winchester medical center! I took a tour and seemed ok..why is it not a great place to work? I need all the info I can get about the weather....I feel like Chicago is similar regarding weather, except it's worse in the winter. Also, how are the people like in western NoVa? Friendly?

[HokieFan]

OP, what type of work does your husband do? And how does he feel about a move?

I know you like Purcellville, but how about other small towns? Woodstock is a nice small town with decent schools, and your $76k (which BTW is an excellent salary for the Shenandoah Valley) would go much farther.

[Walter9453]

My husband currently works in a medical supply company and is wanting to get out if it.....he's former military and is hoping for a fresh start. We are planning on him working part-time for now while he goes to school.

[Walter9453]

My oldest will be entering first grade. I'm so nervous about moving, not liking it then having to move again and switching schools. But Illinois is draining us d/t the extremely high taxes....we have to move somewhere.