Relocating in November (Arlington, Alexandria, Orange: apartments, rentals, condo)

[becauz]

Hello! I am relocating to the DC/VA area in November. I will be attending George Washington University. I am hoping to gain insight on what area would be best for me to reside. I am a 34 young professional.

In particular I am hoping I will receive recommendations on actual rental communities/buildings. If you know of any you think I would like please let me know.

I would like a washer/dryer in the unit and have cats. I am looking at Arlington, Alexandria, Georgetown and Foggy Botom. I am learning the metro system and will have a car. Please let me know which would be best for the area you recommend.

Thanks so much!!!!

[Mike from back east]

We lived there in 1976-77 and I worked there as late as Sep 2004. It has an Arlington, VA post office address.

Look at Crystal City, VA. Lived there 76-77, can't recall about the W/D issue. Tons of condo's for rent there and apartments all along that stretch. Key thing is we were able to take the elevator to the basement, walk through The Underground, and hop on the Blue line subway to DC. So very civilized. The Underground has quite a few eateries, shopping and a Safeway. Here is a map of Crystal City showing apartments, by name: http://crystalcity.com/_/File/_/crystalcity_site_plan.pdf (broken link)

Consider close-in stops on the Orange Line in Arlington County, as these are very suitable for young singles.

Subway link is: http://www.wmata.com/metrorail/systemmap.cfm (broken link)
Pictures of stations and surrounding areas are at: http://www.stationmasters.com/index.html

[DavidS827]

Arlington (Ballston in particular) would be great for you..IMO. Close to DC, lots of rentals and great nite life. You should expect to pay $1100 to $1700 for a 1 bedroom 1 bath. In DC it goes for about $1300 - $1800 for the same.

[becauz]

Thank you so much for the great insight!! The links were very helpful.

I think I have narrowed my choices to Foggy Bottom, Ballston, Clarendon, Court House and a community I found called Avalon at Arlington Square near the Pentagon metro station.

I would like to live near GW in Foggy Bottom but the cost for square footage is so much more than what I would be able to receive in Arlington.

Any other insight would be greatly appreciated.

[DavidS827]

Not sure if this will interest you or not, but I belive DC is going smoke free as of January 1, 2007. The reason I think this may interest you is that the "Party" is going to move across the Potomac to VA. So if you live in a place like Balston, you'll literally be down the street from the hottest spots in town.

[stewartthrower]

Hopefully VA is smart enough to go smoke free as well. You don't have to smoke to party.

[dullnboring]

Virginia just banned smoking from most government buildings and state vehicles. It will go into effect January 1st. It's a step.

Originally Posted by DavidS827

Not sure if this will interest you or not, but I belive DC is going smoke free as of January 1, 2007. The reason I think this may interest you is that the "Party" is going to move across the Potomac to VA. So if you live in a place like Balston, you'll literally be down the street from the hottest spots in town.

Interesting. I never even thought about that. I think however if smoking ever starts to become banned in restaurants and bars in Virginia, Arlington will be the first locality to do so, so any businesses and clubs moving to Arlington may have only bought themselves a couple of years before having to switch over to smoke-free anyways.

[DavidS827]

Originally Posted by dullnboring

Virginia just banned smoking from most government buildings and state vehicles. It will go into effect January 1st. It's a step.

Interesting. I never even thought about that. I think however if smoking ever starts to become banned in restaurants and bars in Virginia, Arlington will be the first locality to do so, so any businesses and clubs moving to Arlington may have only bought themselves a couple of years before having to switch over to smoke-free anyways.

I think they have tried to ban smoking indoors a few times, but have not been successful - as good as it may be for you health, it's not that good for business (which is very unfortunate). When I lived in West Palm Beach, they banned smoking indoors and the bars that were able to survive the transition were those that had outdoor patios and smoking areas.