Farm area accessible by train to DC?

[Margery]

Originally Posted by beebelle

Thanks for the suggestions. I will research them. At the moment, DH says he'll commute up to two hours, door to door, but that's it. We don't know how much we'll have to spend because who knows what our house will sell for?? But we'd like at least 20 acres, so we can have horses, goats, chickens and grow crops. He thinks we'll be able to make a semi-living at this (think CSA, farmer's markets, and the like), so he'll be able to change venues and live on the farm in a few years. As I said, pipe dream....

I will look into Loudon schools. Are they as good as Montgomery County, MD? Or Fairfax, VA?

I grew up on a farm. A farm is a lot of work. There is NEVER a day off, the animals have to be taken care of every day. Horses, goats and cows give birth anytime, the chicken coops have to be cleaned (you haven't lived until you shovel out the chicken manure from the coop). You have to keep the chickens in at night or a fox or weasel will get them. You couldn't pay me to live on a working farm again.

[cardinal2007]

There are some places in Loudoun Co., but you will have to spend plenty of money.

38691 BOLINGTON Rd, LOVETTSVILLE, VA 20180 | MLS# LO7103655
14888 NEER Ln, PURCELLVILLE, VA 20132 | MLS# LO7096846
17003 WILSONS GAP Rd, ROUND HILL, VA 20141 | MLS# LO7111942
40685 JOHN MOSBY Hwy, ALDIE, VA 20105 | MLS# LO6985337

There isn't that much selection listed on redfin for 20+ acres, if you go down to 10 you have a lot more choices.

[clintsullivan]

Originally Posted by jaunespinoza

Harper's Ferry West Virginia?

Nope, between Shepherdstown & Charles Town, 1 mile north of the stop at Duffields.

[Denton56]

Lovettsville has great schools! I would put my kids in Western Loudoun schools over most of Fairfax and Montgomery county schools. Schools out in western Loudoun are VERY good. My DH takes the MARC train to DC, it's 90 minutes each way. Lovettsville is just across the river from Brunswick, Maryland, where the MARC is. Here's a list of houses available in Lovettsville, scroll to the right to see acreage: FranklyMLS.com Virginia & DC MLS via Keyword Search & Wiki. Homes for Sale Lovettsville is very much farm country, LOTS of horses and cattle, but also a goats and a buffalo farm, and vineyards too. Lucketts is similar and it's also very close to the MARC train, one stop closer to DC. FranklyMLS.com Virginia & DC MLS via Keyword Search & Wiki. Homes for Sale

[beebelle]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll file them away in my "dreams" file. Now DH realizes that perhaps a hobby farm is not a practical idea for the moment. I'd LOVE to live on a farm. I love animals and miss taking care of them and being around them all the time. But the job is in DC, which is a long way from any affordable farmland, so reality has set in.

[normie]

Originally Posted by beebelle

I love animals and miss taking care of them and being around them all the time. But the job is in DC, which is a long way from any affordable farmland, so reality has set in.

How about volunteering at the National Zoo? They have a nice little farm. Maybe you could help care for the Alpacas. Or help out at Kidwell Farm at Frying Pan Park Frying Pan Farm Park .

They have plenty of animals, including the presidential turkey that gets pardoned every year. (Ironic, I know. That turkey goes out of the fire and into the Frying Pan. )

You could have all the fun of caring for farm animals... as well as the fun of driving home and letting somebody else take care of them when you want to do something else.