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Old 10-11-2007, 09:48 AM
 
24 posts, read 63,595 times
Reputation: 11

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New here with questions.

Good posiblity that my DH will be transferring to work in the Fairfax area. Can anyone give me areas around there that are good for housing and schools. Our current situtation is that we built a new home 3 years ago in a great development with lots of neighbors and kids. I have one child that is 4 and a baby on the way. I would like something similiar but understand that for the price of housing we might not get the same. We looked into moving to the Rockville area back in March but housing was just way to expensive and we didn't want to have to downgrade as much as we would have. He would be working in the 22031 zip code so something close would be nice so he didn't have to spend hours commuting to work. By the way how is traffic outside the metro area, if you stay within the suburbs?
Thanks in advance,
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Old 10-11-2007, 11:21 AM
 
Location: Manassas, VA
352 posts, read 1,592,265 times
Reputation: 91
Well, my first reaction was "W.T. Woodson!" which is the very, very nice and world-renowned HS in Fairfax/Western Annandale. Unfortunately that's not going to be any cheaper than Rockville - although prices have fallen substantially since March 2007 so it's worth another look.

Barring that, look in Gainesville and North Manassas, in either the Battlefield or Stonewall HS's. It won't be too bad (1 hour or under) to get from those areas to Fairfax, depending on where in 22031 he's working. You can also look in Chantilly in the Chantilly HS district.

Oh, and you totally won't want to commute to Fairfax from Rockville. End that thought, mercifully.

Welcome to Northern Virginia!
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Old 10-11-2007, 11:23 AM
 
43 posts, read 242,268 times
Reputation: 30
There is a current thread that is very relevant:

//www.city-data.com/forum/north...ur-advice.html

It sounds as if your husband's employer is in Fairfax City. This, to me, is a great start because the surrounding area is very good and he would not have to commute very far. Traffic in the region is horrible. Good luck.
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Old 10-11-2007, 01:29 PM
 
2,462 posts, read 8,923,464 times
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Here are two questions for you:

How much can you afford to pay for a house?
How long of a commute is your husband prepared to make?
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Old 10-11-2007, 02:59 PM
 
24 posts, read 63,595 times
Reputation: 11
They haven't gotten that far in the negotiation process I would love for his commute to not be more than 40 minutes to an hour at the most. He has a done a little bit of research and thinks we would be looking at housing somewhere in the range of $450-$550.
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Old 10-11-2007, 03:33 PM
 
1,261 posts, read 6,106,093 times
Reputation: 565
You have some good options in Burke, West Springfield and Fairfax (22032): reasonable commute for your husband, safe neighborhoods, family-friendly, great schools, close to shopping, and many amenities and community programs for children. The issue is that most of the housing, although nice, is not brand new.
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Old 10-11-2007, 05:09 PM
 
Location: TX
3,041 posts, read 11,889,306 times
Reputation: 1397
Fair oaks area is very close to fairfax city. Gainsville would be nice but unsure of the commute.
Ashburn is a family orientated huge planned community and the commute would be about 45 min-1 hour to fairfax city.

With the way real estate is going your 450-500k will get you a nice place. 2 years ago the market was totally different.

Good luck.
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Old 10-11-2007, 07:16 PM
 
76 posts, read 345,519 times
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Check out Dominion Valley in Haymarket - beautiful community, and you could get a very nice home in your price range.
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Old 10-12-2007, 07:15 AM
 
2,688 posts, read 6,684,708 times
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I would recommend choosing an older and/or smaller house in Fairfax County over a larger, newer one farther out. As you know from the first time around, with another baby there will be days when you'll be counting the minutes until your husband gets home so you can get a break! Plus as your children grow it would be a shame for him to miss a couple hours a day with them because of a long commute.

Another suggestion is that when you are choosing a home, visit the neighborhood around 3-4 pm, as children are arriving home from school. That will give you an idea of whether there are a good number of young families like yours around. Also you can go to FCPS Home Page Redirect Page to see a profile of each school in the county.

Welcome, and good luck!
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Old 10-12-2007, 07:47 AM
 
19,198 posts, read 31,479,243 times
Reputation: 4013
There's a trade-off between mortgage dollars and commuting time. Every family has to make the call along that spectrum as they see it. From my experience, the mistake that people most often make is in (sometimes grossly) undervaluing the easier commute. Particulalry, as was pointed out, with small kids. If you let it, commuting here can turn your life into a nightmare, so don't let it.
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