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I'm glad that the previous poster is having a good experience in Brentwood, but my perception of Brentwood versus Hyattsville... there's no contest that Hyattsville is the rising star and current "darling" of PG county.
No doubt that the Hyattsville Arts District is the "darling" of this area. It has seen the most improvement and has lots of beautiful town homes and I really love all of the beautiful old Victorian style homes in that neighborhood. Home prices in the Hyattsville Arts District definitely reflect this but are still considerably cheaper than DC or other close in suburbs. Neighboring Mt. Rainir/Brentwood are also part of the Art District/Corridor and also have some beautiful homes but at a lower price as these areas are still a little more "Up & Coming" but will soon be there as well.
Or give the local public school a good, critical look instead of buying into a random comment online. Hyattsville Elementary, which is the in-boundary school for kids in the Arts District, has a strong staff, good parental involvement (although it can always improve), and a diverse student body. Hyattsville Middle benefits from the creative and performing arts magnet program, and Northwestern High School is launching a visual and performing arts academy program starting this year.
Im sorry but why is a diverse student body a plus? People throw this out as some sort of fact when the data is pretty mixed in regards to the benefits of diversity.
Im sorry but why is a diverse student body a plus? People throw this out as some sort of fact when the data is pretty mixed in regards to the benefits of diversity.
In part because kids learn from peers as well as from formal instruction and the gain from an exposure to a broader range of ideas and experiences. It's true that there are more anecdotes than studies of this, but most of the data I've seen isn't about outcomes or child experiences (with the exception of mainstreaming and children with disabilities), it's about teachers and curriculum. If you can point to studies that tie negative outcomes to diverse classrooms, I'd be interested to see it.
In part because kids learn from peers as well as from formal instruction and the gain from an exposure to a broader range of ideas and experiences. It's true that there are more anecdotes than studies of this, but most of the data I've seen isn't about outcomes or child experiences (with the exception of mainstreaming and children with disabilities), it's about teachers and curriculum. If you can point to studies that tie negative outcomes to diverse classrooms, I'd be interested to see it.
I'm sure on some level there maybe some truth to what you say. I've read how poor kids who attend wealthy school districts such as Greenwhich do well but if their proportion gets too high, like over 20% the benefits fade away.
Also keep in mind just because a school is diverse the classrooms may not be. When I went to TC back in the 90s there was little interaction between Whites & Blacks.
I'm sure on some level there maybe some truth to what you say. I've read how poor kids who attend wealthy school districts such as Greenwhich do well but if their proportion gets too high, like over 20% the benefits fade away.
Also keep in mind just because a school is diverse the classrooms may not be. When I went to TC back in the 90s there was little interaction between Whites & Blacks.
Poverty is a difficult situation to address and it brings with it a host of problems that schools aren't necessarily funded, staffed, or equipped to handle.
As for in-classroom diversity, that's something a school administration has to watch and manage. There are things schools can do to both increase and decrease diversity in the classroom, but hopefully it's managed appropriately. As for interactions with kids, I can't speak to TC in the '90s, but at Hyattsville Elementary there is a degree of kids self-segregating by language or ethnicity, but a lot of it seems fluid and I've not heard from my kids of any antagonism or divisions based along ethnic, linguistic, or economic lines beyond the sort of small slights that seem to go with little kids feeling their way around a new social situation.
I went into check these townhomes out, they're still building. Couple of notes, it's a joint project by Pulte and EYA. EYA, apparently, according to the Pulte rep, was losing money so that's when Pulte stepped in and is helping to finish the job. They are also building it for a lot less than EYA, which gave me pause. First, EYA is losing money and second, Pulte is using less money to build these homes than EYA. Does that mean the material is cheaper?
I checked out 3 different homes, the Adams, Blake, and Calder. Adams is the smaller one at 1500 square feet, while the Calder is almost 2000 square feet. All of them are 4 levels with at least 3 bedrooms and 2.5 baths. Each has a roof terrace though to me its a little suspect, because you could just as easily climb from roof terrace to another. It's a little awkward.
They told me they hope to be built and sold by January 2015. I'm definitely interested, but not sure if it's feasible. My girlfriend thinks they're overpriced, but the ones I looked at start at $314K and $348K which isn't bad considering you're getting at least 1500 square feet of house.
I went into check these townhomes out, they're still building. Couple of notes, it's a joint project by Pulte and EYA. EYA, apparently, according to the Pulte rep, was losing money so that's when Pulte stepped in and is helping to finish the job. They are also building it for a lot less than EYA, which gave me pause. First, EYA is losing money and second, Pulte is using less money to build these homes than EYA. Does that mean the material is cheaper?
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Since EYA’s grand opening in mid-April, 16 homes have already sold on the east side of the Arts District. According to EYA, 10 homes are now under contract and six have been reserved. One home won’t even be ready until August 2014.
This is a welcome change for the Arts District Hyattsville which saw a slowdown in recent years as the entire nation went through a real estate slump.
Roughly 10 people camped out on the day of EYA’s 11 a.m. grand opening, arriving as early as 3 a.m., to be the first to purchase a new EYA home in the Arts District.
EYA made a two-part land deal with Pulte, which is responsible for 136 of the homes on Arts District East while EYA is responsible for 61. Both developers are building simultaneously, which EYA said will help to complete the remaining construction faster.
The newer ones are cheaper because they are smaller than the first phase I do believe. It's hard to get the facts on the first phase sq footage. Some were live/work units, etc.
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They told me they hope to be built and sold by January 2015. I'm definitely interested, but not sure if it's feasible. My girlfriend thinks they're overpriced, but the ones I looked at start at $314K and $348K which isn't bad considering you're getting at least 1500 square feet of house.
All I can say is that there are times when opportunities present themselves to get in on something good. The Arts District is that opportunity. It is growing and improving every year. Hyattsville was already a good community and now the Arts District is making it one of the hottest new neighborhoods in the DC area. Which is probably why the prices seem a little high. Talk to some of the current homeowners and businesses in the area. See what they say. Read some of the future plans for the area such as Riverdale Park's new town center redevelopment and the redevelopment of Mt. Rainier's downtown revitalization. There are so many neighborhoods in DC that 10 years ago you'd run from, but now are pricing out even those with good incomes.
The newer ones are cheaper because they are smaller than the first phase I do believe. It's hard to get the facts on the first phase sq footage. Some were live/work units, etc.
All I can say is that there are times when opportunities present themselves to get in on something good. The Arts District is that opportunity. It is growing and improving every year. Hyattsville was already a good community and now the Arts District is making it one of the hottest new neighborhoods in the DC area. Which is probably why the prices seem a little high. Talk to some of the current homeowners and businesses in the area. See what they say. Read some of the future plans for the area such as Riverdale Park's new town center redevelopment and the redevelopment of Mt. Rainier's downtown revitalization. There are so many neighborhoods in DC that 10 years ago you'd run from, but now are pricing out even those with good incomes.
And I told her this, but she doesn't seem to be willing to get past the stigma of "it's Hyattsville, PG County" etc. She doesn't know the first thing about real estate and how it works, and I'm slowly trying to help her out when it comes to these things.
The homes are very nice, the only pauses I have is the roof terrace situation makes it easier to climb from one to another, which I don't see happening, but you just never know. The other is that it's not gated, which is a minor quibble of mine. The community is pretty small, so anyone could conceivably walk into the community and they don't have to be living there. It's different from say...the Leesborough community in Wheaton which is spread out, lots of townhomes, like you'd have to be lost to be walking around the area if you don't live there.
There was one home in particular that I liked. 4 levels...there was the entrance on the bottom level, and I'm assuming garage level. 2nd level was the kitchen/dining room/living room area, 3rd level I believe were 2 bedrooms including the master bedroom. 4th level was the roof terrace, bedroom, and living room area which could be used as a man cave lol. It was nicely laid out and didn't feel congested.
And I told her this, but she doesn't seem to be willing to get past the stigma of "it's Hyattsville, PG County" etc. She doesn't know the first thing about real estate and how it works, and I'm slowly trying to help her out when it comes to these things.
Stigmas can be transformed. Like I said, tons of DC neighborhoods had stigmas 10 to 15 years ago that they don't have now.
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The homes are very nice, the only pauses I have is the roof terrace situation makes it easier to climb from one to another, which I don't see happening, but you just never know. The other is that it's not gated, which is a minor quibble of mine. The community is pretty small, so anyone could conceivably walk into the community and they don't have to be living there. It's different from say...the Leesborough community in Wheaton which is spread out, lots of townhomes, like you'd have to be lost to be walking around the area if you don't live there.
Welcome to urban living. I understand your concern about the rooftop terrace. Perhaps there are things one could do to mitigate people climbing over terraces? Or, just don't leave anything of value out? Again, it may help to ask some people with rooftop terraces has there been any burglaries. The first phase has terraces too. I haven't heard about any rooftop burglars, but it may be good to investigate. Hope everything works out.
This is a great area. I don't know what the fear is, I lived in NE DC, and heading to Franklin's or Busboys was a regular occurrence. If you are more the driving type or open to taking the bus the pricing on these is unusual considering the area.
Only downside is metro access is kind of weak. But do not hesitate because this is PG. Not all of PG is bad, this is a prime example.
I can give my vote of confidence here.
In terms of stigma, this area is nice. I have lived in Arlington, several DC neighborhoods (own in Takoma), etc. This is more than up and coming, it's a great neighborhood which is going for far less the price of similar ones in DC, NoVa, and Montgomery County for housing. Just look at the places for $650K in Brookland. Same floorplan as the cheapest one...$300K more. (The most expensive unit, is $833K in Brookland.) So if you think this is overpriced, it's not. This is about as cheap as it comes for a good community in the DC metro area with good amenities. The Art's district is a great area to get into especially considering the price.
As noted the more expensive units were phase I, and were larger.
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I understand your concern about the rooftop terrace. Perhaps there are things one could do to mitigate people climbing over terraces? Or, just don't leave anything of value out? Again, it may help to ask some people with rooftop terraces has there been any burglaries. The first phase has terraces too. I haven't heard about any rooftop burglars, but it may be good to investigate. Hope everything works out.
