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I'm anticipating a move to the DC area for work in the next month or two. I'd be working in Falls Church, VA, more specifically near Leesburg Pike and Columbia Pike area. I'm a guy, early 30s, single and looking to live in an interesting, but nice, area, preferably where things are in walking distance. And ideally, I also would like to be in walking distance to a metro station.
One consideration is that I can catch a free shuttle from the Pentagon City Metro Station, so if I live near a metro, i can probably take it to Pentagon City and catch a shuttle from there.
Anyhow, doing my research, I know Ballston, Rosslyn, and Courthouse are nice neighborhoods. Any suggestions on which I should focus on. Rosslyn is close to Georgetown and I've read a lot of good things about the area. Would my commute from there or any of the other N. Arlington areas to where I'll be working be a pain? I imagine traffic runs into DC on the freeways, but what's it like taking the local roads to go from say DC or Rosslyn to Falls Church?
Are there any particular apartment complexes or condos (that rent) that anyone can suggest as being a nice place to live? I'd like to spend between $1200-1500 ideally for a decent 1bedroom, and I'd need a parking spot. Ideally the unit would have a W/D in it, also.
Would anyone consider living in DC and doing the "reverse commute"? If so, what areas would you recommend?
Finally, I could always consider living near work and walking, but what do you guys think of that area -- Falls Church, but I think more so Bailey's Crossroads?
Thanks in advance for any insight or advice you can provide!!!
Although, Bailey's Crossroads isn't the nicest area, there are some nice high rise condos that might work for you. Otherwise, I would consider Shirlington as a great option except that it doesn't have a Metro station. There are many rentals near the Braddock rd station in Alexandria as well. In general, Old Town Alexandria is a very walkable neighborhood, but you could end up a mile from the metro station. The good news is that you should be able to find a decent 1BR in your price range, but you may have to give up something (i.e location, amenities, etc.)
I live near Bailey's Crossroads up Carlin Springs Rd. in Arlington. We are about 3 miles from the Ballston Metro. The area I live in has mainly families, but there is a nice condo near us, as well as a new building that just opened on Columbia Pike. While we are not next to a metro, we have several buses that go directly to Ballston.
Ditto Shirlington as well. I don't know the prices for condos/apartments in Shirlington but it is great for food, near the bike trail, and 395. Also, they have a bus station that has buses that run to many metro stations in the area.
In Arlington (Ballston in particular), for your price range, there are some older complexes that you can look at.
If you lived in Bailey's Crossroads, you wouldn't want to be walking Route 7 or Columbia Pike to do your average stuff, even if you could walk to work.
The "in" place for singles is North Arlington, but don't rule out south Arlington, particularly Pentagon City or Crystal City area. If you can get a shuttle to work from there, then why not live there? It's a pretty quick drive to Clarendon in North Arlington if you want to go in the evenings. There is shopping, some restaurants, a library. It's easy to get on the bike path to DC (or elsewhere in VA). River House apartments are decently-priced, but no in-unit W/D, they have laundry rooms in the basement. There are quite a few other apartment buildings in the area.
If you really like North Arlington and the job is in Bailey's, it's an easy commute down Carlin Springs Rd to Columbia Pike. I'd recommend Ballston, Virginia Square, or Clarendon, to be close to Carlin Springs and Glebe. I don't see much point in living in Rosslyn. If it's still like it was when I lived there, it rolls its sidewalks up after 5 and on weekends, because it's primarily a work location. Sure, it's easy to get into Georgetown, and Georgetown is fun. But if you lived in Ballston, it wouldn't be a hassle to get to Georgetown for the times you want to go.
Alexandria, in and near Old Town, is a great walkable place to live, but for a commute to Bailey's, you have better options in Arlington.
Ok so, let's say I go with Ballston or Clarendon, for example. What kind of commute by car am I looking at in the morning and after work to the Bailey's Crossroads area where I'll be working? I'm just trying to compare it with the option of living near the Pentagon City metro stop to take the free shuttle. I mean, if I can avoid having to drive to work every day by either taking the free shuttle from PC metro stop or finding a bus route from N.Arlington, that'd be awesome.
My only concern about Pentagon City and Crystal City is that I wasn't sure if things go on at night like in Ballston/Clarendon (from what I've been reading) and if a lot of young professionals live there. Being new to the area, still relatively young, and single, I'd like to be in an area where I'll be able to meet other young professionals. But I suppose it wouldn't be a big deal driving to N.Arlington to hang out or even jumping on the metro to get there. I just don't want to be in an area that turns dead or boring in the evenings and on the weekends.
I don't know if the shuttle you speak of would go south on 395 then take Rt 7, or if it goes down Columbia Pike. It would make a difference in time (latter option longer), so without knowing that it's tough to compare trip time to driving from Ballston. I haven't done the Ballston to Bailey's trip in the mornings, and only a few times in evening rush hour. It moved fine then. But one thing is certain - Glebe Rd is gridlock at rush hour. You avoid it as much as possible.
Using Google maps, I measured from around Fairfax Dr and Quincy (Ballston) to Bailey's Crossroads at 7 and Columbia, using Carlin Springs Rd, and came up with about 3.4 miles. There aren't a whole lot of traffic lights. Trip time could be from around 15 min to 30 min.
If you didn't have the option of a free shuttle, I wouldn't recommend Pentagon City in your particular case. I don't believe it has much going on in the evenings - not late evenings, anyway. There are plenty of professionals living in the apartments there, I don't know where they hang out. Pentagon Row shops has some restaurants and bars, Sine Irish pub is popular. Nearby, 23rd St has a short stretch of restaurants. But there isn't live music (that I'm aware of) or a funkiness/trendiness like Wilson Blvd has. But a free commute that you don't have to drive is worth something, and like I said, it's a breeze driving down Washington Blvd to get to N. Arlington. There will probably be a price advantage to Pentagon City vs Ballston/Clarendon as well.
Ok so, let's say I go with Ballston or Clarendon, for example. What kind of commute by car am I looking at in the morning and after work to the Bailey's Crossroads area where I'll be working? I'm just trying to compare it with the option of living near the Pentagon City metro stop to take the free shuttle. I mean, if I can avoid having to drive to work every day by either taking the free shuttle from PC metro stop or finding a bus route from N.Arlington, that'd be awesome.
Quote:
Originally Posted by corolla9090
My only concern about Pentagon City and Crystal City is that I wasn't sure if things go on at night like in Ballston/Clarendon (from what I've been reading) and if a lot of young professionals live there. Being new to the area, still relatively young, and single, I'd like to be in an area where I'll be able to meet other young professionals. But I suppose it wouldn't be a big deal driving to N.Arlington to hang out or even jumping on the metro to get there. I just don't want to be in an area that turns dead or boring in the evenings and on the weekends.
1. Your commute by car from either Ballston or clarendon would be great to Bailey's. You will have some traffic no matter what, but I don't think it will be a major factor. If your job offers free parking then you are all set.
2. There are plenty of things to do in pentagon city/crystal city. Crystal city has "restaurant row" on 23rd st. which includes crystal city sports pub, and *crystal city restuarant* (bring your $1 bills)
the pentagon city metro is probably more convienent since the crystal city metro is surrounded by offices. I agree with Robbo that Rosslyn isn't a top choice.
You could try living in DC and doing the reverse commute, but crossing the bridges could occasionally be a problem.
based on everything that you said though, I would recommend Shirlington.
So that's the thing. Parking will be $108/month at the building where I'd be working. Granted, I'd be allowed to use pre-tax dollars to pay for parking, so it'll be less when you consider the tax savings. If I were to go with Pentagon City or Crystal City, I'd have to balance I suppose my social life in that area with the money savings on gas and parking. But at least I'd have metro train access to get to DC and to N.Va.
Anyhow, you guys have all been mentioning Shirlington. Won't lie, don't know much about it (and on the net, it seems like all you hear about is the Clarendon-Ballston-Courthouse areas), but I'm intrigued to know why everyone has been recommending it. According to this link, About Shirlington, seems like it's a nice place to live for young professionals. I guess my only concern there is that there isn't a nearby metro for those trips into DC. I mean, am I being way too concerned about living near a metro station? For example, is it easy to park in N.VA like in Clarendon or Ballston if I wanted to head up there, or say i'm living in Shirlington, can you park at the Pentagon City metro to take the metro into DC?
I guess what I really want is the best of both worlds -- if that's even possible -- to minimize how much I'll need to use my car (by being able to walk or rely on public transportation to get to work, to DC, to bars and what not) and to live in cool area where things are always going on. I mean, my car is old, like 1997 old, but I'm sure it'll last me another 3 years (especially if I'm not driving it much). That said, if something were to happen to my car, I definitely want to make sure I'm not so dependent on it and that if I have to scrap it one day, that I can easily postpone buying a car for a year or two while I save up enough $ buy another. In fact, if I can somehow even get away with not even bringing my car to the DC/Arlington area, and just rely on walking/metro/bus/shuttle/zipcar, that would be pretty pretty cool. Is that even realistic?
Thanks everyone for taking the time to answer my questions. You guys are a big help!
Shirlington's main "disadvantage" is that it is not walking distance to a Metro station. However, as you may have discovered in that link, there are plenty of buses that pass through and connect to the trains. And you'll save a few bucks on rent compared to the Ballston-Clarendon corridor.
As long as you plan to spend your off-hours in Arlington, DC or even Alexandria, you can probably get away without a car. If you don't want to bring the semi-classic with you then Zipcar is certainly a viable option to get around further in the 'burbs.
Shirlington is ok. I once lived close to it yet never felt like spending time there. There is about a block's worth of restaurants and small shops, a movie theater, and a branch of the Arlington library.
I'm sure there are buses to Pentagon or Pentagon City Metros, as well as Braddock Rd Metro.
Your idea of living in Shirlington and driving to Pentagon City to catch Metro or shuttle won't work out because you won't find parking. Nearly all the parking in that area is metered, or in the neighborhoods of single family houses, requires a local zone permit. I imagine your transportation, if you choose Shirlington and not use car, would be a bus to Pentagon City, then the shuttle to work (or the Metro to DC). (The exception about parking is in the evenings if your intent was to go to Pent. City to catch a subway into DC, then you could probably find free parking).
There also are buses between Ballston and Bailey's. Check routes at Metro - Home page
I have heard of people living in the Ballston - Courthouse corridor who are carless and use Zipcar when they need one, and it's feasible for them.
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then Zipcar is certainly a viable option to get around further in the 'burbs.
