Where to live: moving to Fairfax from Brazil (Burke, Centreville: apartments, rent)

[valvendrame]

Hello,
I’m moving from Brazil to Fairfax in October with my husband and our 2-year-old daughter. He will develop a research at George Mason University for the period of one year.
I won’t have a job, so I’ll be at home taking care of our daughter and my husband won’t necessarily have to go to university every day. He’ll work from home two or three days per week. We are not considering sending our daughter to school and we are considering having a car.
My question is: in which neighborhoods should we start looking for a place to live there? We are looking for a 2 bedroom single family home, preferably in a close-knit community where we could interact with other families and our daughter could play outside with other kids. We can afford to spend up to $1,500 monthly on rent.
Thanks in advance for any suggestions for neighborhoods or anything else that might help.

[boyd888]

I would look west of George Mason like Centreville or even in Prince William County. Housing is significantly cheaper...with your husband working from home some days and you not working there is no reason to pay the close to DC premium.

[Middlin]

Getting around without a car near where your husband works will very difficult. The area near George Mason is very suburban. If you attempted to move further east towards DC the prices rise considerably. I think you're also going to find that $1500 is on the low end. A single family home is going to be out your budget so look at apartments or townhouses. I would 2nd the recommendation of Centreville

[Ffxdata]

Have y'all requested to live in Masonvale? This is the community for faculty and staff apartments. It's beautiful, walkable, and very friendly. Many kids too. It's also very near Green Acres community center which has lots of activities.

[6513OCC]

It is very difficult to find a 2-bedroom single family home in Northern Virginia. The majority are 4-bed or 3-bed.

I would take a really good look at Burke. There are some affordable 3-bedroom homes in that area. Would be a very quick commute to Mason. TONS of families. Burke is very quiet -- but that's why people like it. Safe with good schools.

You might also be able to find something affordable in the older Fairfax neighborhoods around Mason. County Club View would be an example.

But I think you'd find the most volume in Burke.

Price-wise, I do think it'd be difficult to find a single family around $1,500. You might need to increase your budget, or as one of the other folks posted, look further out. Or go for a townhouse or condo.

[JfromReston]

I agree with 6513OCC there are very few 2 bedroom single family homes in Northern Virginia. Your best bet is to look for a 2 bedroom townhouse and you may have to raise your budget a little. Traffic is terrible - live as close to George Mason as you can. You will really need a car in this part of Northern Virginia.

[Hal Roach]

A friend had a TH right off of Braddock Rd., that I walked to from GMU. There were actually quite a few South Americans living there. Peruvian on one side; Ecuadoran on the other side. Built in 1980, three level, 1700 SF, with walk out basement. Very affordable by Fairfax County standards, but every bit of 2000 per month and its proximity to GMU probably demands 10% more for the same thing compared to other areas of Burke. You could go carless there, if necessary, as a number of students do and thankfully it is pedestrian friendly. Centreville is a good suggestion, but would require a car, but you would have to go out to Manassas before you saw small bungalows for 1500 and about a forty minute commute worst case. Put half of the 600 per month you would save being carless on higher rent and you will live in a lower crime, more educated environment. Car maintenance can be super costly in NoVa.

[valvendrame]

Thank you all for the information. As you all said, we'll have to raise our bugdet to live in NoVa. We are now getting used to the types of housing existing in the US and what I meant by "2 bedroom single family home" is a place where we don't need to share, for example, a kitchen with other people. We are not interested in a big detached house, so an apartment or a townhouse would suit us very well.
No doubt all your suggestions will help us a lot to find a good place.

[gronkforlife]

My wife and I may be relocating to Fairfax for work. We're able to spend at or slightly above 1mil but of course would like to be below that. I personally would prefer using public transportation instead of driving. How is public transportation? Is it easily accessible and reliable? Is Fairfax itself a nice place to live in terms of low crime, good schools, and things to do? If not, what areas would y'all recommend? Thanks.

[Ffxdata]

Originally Posted by gronkforlife

My wife and I may be relocating to Fairfax for work. We're able to spend at or slightly above 1mil but of course would like to be below that. I personally would prefer using public transportation instead of driving. How is public transportation? Is it easily accessible and reliable? Is Fairfax itself a nice place to live in terms of low crime, good schools, and things to do? If not, what areas would y'all recommend? Thanks.

Will you be working in Fairfax?
Yes, it’s very safe with very good schools. You would be able to find a very nice (even new) home in a Fairfax or nearby Oakton or Burke neighborhood.
There are some public transit options within Fairfax which center on the bus system (Cue mainly).