Sterling? (Leesburg, Winchester, Fairfax: real estate, condos, crime rates)

[vickilynn]

Does anyone live in this area or know anything about it?

Thanks

[saganista]

Don't live there, but nearby. Close enough to have had dinner at the Sweetwater Tavern in Sterling Sunday night. The Sterling area, including Sterling Park and the communities across Rte 7 in Potomac Falls, are mostly farmland rather nicely developed into mid- and upscale suburbs over the past 20 years or so. Sterling proper and Broad Run Farms are the older and more established areas of the group. Lots of singles and young families, good schools, quite safe. Best for commuting to jobs in Loudon County or central or western Fairfax County, as the trip into anything like downtown DC can be a real nightmare. Like all of the DC metro area, it can be on the high side in terms of cost-of-living, but the area is better than most or at least many in that regard...

[vasinger]

Pretty dull and conventional. Lots of subdivisions, vinyl siding. Sterling Park even has gang activity. They never had that before. I reccomend Leesburg- about 10 miles west.

It still has some kinda charm.

Sterling is just the pits. I spent the first 15 years of my life there.
Never to return .

[5stones]

There are some very nice areas in sterling, but there are also some very bad areas. As I mentioned before the only places I would live in Sterling would be Cascades (houses,TH and condos) or country side (older).

Ashburn isn't too far from Sterling and has a better reputation.

[saganista]

Originally Posted by vasinger

Pretty dull and conventional. Lots of subdivisions, vinyl siding. Sterling Park even has gang activity.

It has gang activity if you count as a gang the two sixteen-year olds who decided shooting real bullets into random houses would be fun way to pass the time. Actual personal and property crime rates in the area are half the national average.

Originally Posted by vasinger

I reccomend Leesburg- about 10 miles west. It still has some kinda charm.

Get it while supplies last. The Leesburg of old (like ten years ago) is all but gone at this point. It still is a nice area, but differences between it and the Sterling area grow smaller and fewer by the day...

[vickilynn]

Thanks for the input!

It gets frustrating, because all I can do right now is google real estate and photos of areas. I am in Maine and won't be able to get down until April...and we want to move in June. My husband starts work the beginning of May...he will rent, somewhere!

Sigh...

I really liked all that I found out about Winchester. I don't want all strip malls and vinyl-sided condo's and townhouses. (I do like townhouses though...just don't want cookie-cutter row after row.)

My husband does not have to be in DC proper...he doesn't have an office to get to during morning hours. He can schedule his DC area meetings for later on in the morning, and can leave the city by 3pm...does that make a difference as far as "commuting" from Winchester?

Right now, in England, he has a very large area...and is 3 hours plus from his home office. He drives all day long...planning his day to makes stops from one meeting to the next. He likes driving, and has always lived in large cities, but obviously wouldn't want to drive 2 hours bumper to bumper each way.

We have 6 year-old twins, obviously want a relatively safe neighborhood. I hold a teaching certificate...was hoping to go back to school this year for a M.Ed. Once my home here in Maine sells we have about 250k free to put towards a home...I was hoping we would only need a tiny mortgage so I would have the money for tuition and not have to worry about teaching right off. I really don't want a house where we need to spend another 200k...especially since we don't know where we want to settle long-term. We like charm. We liked the fact that Winchester has an Irish pub!

But...I will rule out Sterling...and will keep looking into Leesburg and Ashburn, unless you can recommend some place else?

[claremarie]

Where were you considering studying for your graduate degree? That will influence your housing choices. Winchester might be a long haul from any university.

[vickilynn]

Originally Posted by claremarie

Where were you considering studying for your graduate degree? That will influence your housing choices. Winchester might be a long haul from any university.

They have the masters in reading specialist at the Shenandoah University in Winchester. Also, because we can get the same size/type home in Winchester for about 30-40k less (than what I am seeing around Leesburg/Ashburn), going back to school is doable.

[saganista]

Originally Posted by vickilynn

Thanks for the input!
I really liked all that I found out about Winchester. I don't want all strip malls and vinyl-sided condo's and townhouses. (I do like townhouses though...just don't want cookie-cutter row after row.)

Once my home here in Maine sells we have about 250k free to put towards a home...I was hoping we would only need a tiny mortgage so I would have the money for tuition and not have to worry about teaching right off. I really don't want a house where we need to spend another 200k...especially since we don't know where we want to settle long-term. We like charm. We liked the fact that Winchester has an Irish pub!

Just as a thought, you might consider the area around Harper's Ferry and Martinsburg, West Virginia, and some of the communities that lie on the Maryland side of the Potomac to the east. Harper's Ferry itself is only about 25 miles from Leesburg and there is MARC rail service into and back from downtown DC during the am and pm rush hours re both HF and Martinsburg. Places like Brunswick and Point of Rocks have that same rail service and might also offer more of that rural yet still somewhat au courant sort of thing you seem to be looking for. Also the prices (and in WV, the taxes) will be quite a bit lower and might leave you a little more financial flexibility. Dickerson and Barnesville MD might offer some of the same while being a little closer to DC, though there are some pricey areas there. One way to see what your money would get you would be to visit www.trulia.com. They have data and photos on almost every property currently on the market almost anywhere. Today in Point of Rocks for example, you could get a completely renovated 3BR home originally built in 1888 sitting on a one-acre lot for $300K, and via MARC or via car outside of rush hour, you'd still be about an hour +/- from DC. Just something else to think about. You don't have to do the modern-blah suburbia scene if you don't want to...

[babelsgp]

We're in the same boat, husband has No. VA, MD, and PA as his territory and we're moving from VT. If you find anything out good, would you mind passing the info on?

Thanks!