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Old 02-02-2014, 12:06 AM
 
Location: Prince Georges County, MD (formerly Long Island, NY)
1,558 posts, read 2,714,656 times
Reputation: 1651

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Hey there, Long Islander here.

So I'm looking at a potential job in Landover, Maryland-- it's right off the New Carrollton station on the Orange Line.

I'm going down to the office this week, and wanted to drive/walk through some neighborhoods to get a sense of what's out there.

I've been to the DMV several times, but not to look for apartments, so I'm trying to ascertain what the rental climate is. I know I'm not being terribly descriptive, but I guess I'm just wondering how far $1200/month would get me. I could possibly bump it to $1300, but that's about as high as I'd like to go.

I'm used to long commutes-- my issue is just having to make lots of transfers. If it's one or two lines for about an hour, I'm fine.

Basic info:
- Single, no kids
- Mid-20s young professional
- Black (not that I think that matters...)
- Have a car, but can leave it if I'm in DC (if MD, then I'd probably keep it)
- While I prefer walkable areas, I understand that may not be possible on my budget
- Would prefer to do without roommates (too many bad experiences), but will explore the option

Again, any neighborhood preferences or general advice would be much appreciated

If you need more information, please let me know.
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Old 02-02-2014, 12:45 AM
 
Location: DC
2,044 posts, read 2,947,883 times
Reputation: 1824
Quote:
Originally Posted by bigjretrac View Post
Hey there, Long Islander here.

So I'm looking at a potential job in Landover, Maryland-- it's right off the New Carrollton station on the Orange Line.

I'm going down to the office this week, and wanted to drive/walk through some neighborhoods to get a sense of what's out there.

I've been to the DMV several times, but not to look for apartments, so I'm trying to ascertain what the rental climate is. I know I'm not being terribly descriptive, but I guess I'm just wondering how far $1200/month would get me. I could possibly bump it to $1300, but that's about as high as I'd like to go.

I'm used to long commutes-- my issue is just having to make lots of transfers. If it's one or two lines for about an hour, I'm fine.

Basic info:
- Single, no kids
- Mid-20s young professional
- Black (not that I think that matters...)
- Have a car, but can leave it if I'm in DC (if MD, then I'd probably keep it)
- While I prefer walkable areas, I understand that may not be possible on my budget
- Would prefer to do without roommates (too many bad experiences), but will explore the option

Again, any neighborhood preferences or general advice would be much appreciated

If you need more information, please let me know.
1. You can afford an apartment in this area with your budget, even in DC. Maybe not Columbia Heights, but you are well within budget for some good neighborhoods in NE and the Northern Part of NW. I would honestly not rule out MD either, you would be a short drive from the cool areas like Hyattsville, Mt. Rainer, and college park. All pretty walkable, and both Hyattsville and Mt. Rainer are pretty nice. Stadium-Armory area might be a place to look, but I have not been in that area in ages.

2. Keep your car, at least until you pinned down your commute. While your rental may be close to the metro, it still may be better to use it for your job. I am not saying don't move near a metro station, but rather wait until after you have figured out what works best for you. I am looking at landover and it is kind of in one of the more inconvenient places. A 15 minute drive might be an 1+ hour trip on metro. While I am pretty committed to public transit myself, something tells me you would be happier just with the short drive.

3. I think you will be fine considering your budget. It's when people are wanting three bedroom houses on your budget that we consider them insane.
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Old 02-02-2014, 06:20 AM
 
1,024 posts, read 1,508,003 times
Reputation: 455
Quote:
Originally Posted by bigjretrac View Post
Hey there, Long Islander here.

So I'm looking at a potential job in Landover, Maryland-- it's right off the New Carrollton station on the Orange Line.

I'm going down to the office this week, and wanted to drive/walk through some neighborhoods to get a sense of what's out there.

I've been to the DMV several times, but not to look for apartments, so I'm trying to ascertain what the rental climate is. I know I'm not being terribly descriptive, but I guess I'm just wondering how far $1200/month would get me. I could possibly bump it to $1300, but that's about as high as I'd like to go.

I'm used to long commutes-- my issue is just having to make lots of transfers. If it's one or two lines for about an hour, I'm fine.

Basic info:
- Single, no kids
- Mid-20s young professional
- Black (not that I think that matters...)
- Have a car, but can leave it if I'm in DC (if MD, then I'd probably keep it)
- While I prefer walkable areas, I understand that may not be possible on my budget
- Would prefer to do without roommates (too many bad experiences), but will explore the option

Again, any neighborhood preferences or general advice would be much appreciated

If you need more information, please let me know.
You might be able to find a nice apartment for your price range in DC, but I would consider you lucky. Most people rent apartments that are $2000 a month if they want to be in the city. I would visit this website, it might be helpful to get an idea of how much apartments cost Washington Apartments for Rent | Washington, DC Rentals - Apartments.com
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Old 02-02-2014, 09:51 AM
 
Location: DC
2,044 posts, read 2,947,883 times
Reputation: 1824
This is why I suggested Hyattsville. In DC it might be a bit of a struggle to find a place in his price range and metroing from one of those communities may literally be painful exercise, but in Hyattsville, most apartments are in his price range and it's a ten to fifteen minute drive to his work in Landover. If he could get something in something like the art's district I think he would be fine. There is also a large stock with nicer apartment buildings that are not insane on rent. Nobody is going to say "don't move to Hyattsville" right now. It's a great community and many young professional people are moving there precisely because it inexpensive compared to the district and has decent amenities.

College park is another option, but he may want to escape the college kids. Hyattsville is a bit more grown up.

Considering it is a 10-15 minute drive to work, and not on the insane highways in the DC area, it's probably his best choice.
There is some great communities close to where he works.
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Old 02-02-2014, 01:15 PM
 
Location: Prince Georges County, MD (formerly Long Island, NY)
1,558 posts, read 2,714,656 times
Reputation: 1651
Quote:
Originally Posted by DistrictSonic View Post
1. You can afford an apartment in this area with your budget, even in DC. Maybe not Columbia Heights, but you are well within budget for some good neighborhoods in NE and the Northern Part of NW. I would honestly not rule out MD either, you would be a short drive from the cool areas like Hyattsville, Mt. Rainer, and college park. All pretty walkable, and both Hyattsville and Mt. Rainer are pretty nice. Stadium-Armory area might be a place to look, but I have not been in that area in ages.

2. Keep your car, at least until you pinned down your commute. While your rental may be close to the metro, it still may be better to use it for your job. I am not saying don't move near a metro station, but rather wait until after you have figured out what works best for you. I am looking at landover and it is kind of in one of the more inconvenient places. A 15 minute drive might be an 1+ hour trip on metro. While I am pretty committed to public transit myself, something tells me you would be happier just with the short drive.

3. I think you will be fine considering your budget. It's when people are wanting three bedroom houses on your budget that we consider them insane.
Thanks so much for you insight, DistrictSonic! I'm responding to each of your numbered points:

1) This is so comforting to hear. When I was researching prior threads here, a lot of posters didn't seem optimistic about similar price points, but I'm realizing those were often couples looking for a 2BR, or something like that. Glad to know I'm not priced out before I even get here

2) Funny you should say that-- I wanted to be flexible, but I really want to keep my car. I know you don't need it in DC, but I do enjoy driving. It's a Honda Civic, so it's pretty small.

3) Gotcha, thanks for the reassurance Like I said, I'm trying to swing low on the rent because I want to continue to save money, instead of living paycheck to paycheck (thankfully, I had scholarships for my BA and MA, so no student loans or credit card debt).

Quote:
Originally Posted by TyBrGr View Post
You might be able to find a nice apartment for your price range in DC, but I would consider you lucky. Most people rent apartments that are $2000 a month if they want to be in the city. I would visit this website, it might be helpful to get an idea of how much apartments cost Washington Apartments for Rent | Washington, DC Rentals - Apartments.com
Thanks for the link! My next question was going to be what websites people use to find apartments in DC. In New York, we predominately use Craigslist, but I didn't want to assume that was the same for other cities.

Quote:
Originally Posted by DistrictSonic View Post
This is why I suggested Hyattsville. In DC it might be a bit of a struggle to find a place in his price range and metroing from one of those communities may literally be painful exercise, but in Hyattsville, most apartments are in his price range and it's a ten to fifteen minute drive to his work in Landover. If he could get something in something like the art's district I think he would be fine. There is also a large stock with nicer apartment buildings that are not insane on rent. Nobody is going to say "don't move to Hyattsville" right now. It's a great community and many young professional people are moving there precisely because it inexpensive compared to the district and has decent amenities.

College park is another option, but he may want to escape the college kids. Hyattsville is a bit more grown up.

Considering it is a 10-15 minute drive to work, and not on the insane highways in the DC area, it's probably his best choice.
There is some great communities close to where he works.
Cool! I'll add that to my list. If there's one thing I know, commuting on the Beltway is no fun!

I'll update the thread when I get back from visiting-- thanks everyone!
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Old 02-03-2014, 06:29 AM
 
22 posts, read 22,607 times
Reputation: 11
Craigslist is the #1 site down here too.
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Old 02-03-2014, 06:53 AM
 
22 posts, read 22,607 times
Reputation: 11
In DC look at:

Petworth, Brightwood, Brightwood Park, Takoma, Brookland, Edgewood, Eckington, Kingman Park, or hell, I'd even look East of the River at Minnesota ave (near the orange line) and Benning road (near the blue line station). The only reason IM recommending the latter is because you are black, IM black myself and the area around there is like 95% black and you won't stick out... plus it's affordable over there.

Now in MD, look at Takoma Park, Silver Spring, Wheaton, PG Plaza/Hyattsville. I live in Silver Spring and rent out a 1 bedroom apartment for $875+electric.

Honestly you may be able to find an apartment in Columbia Heights in an older building for $1300 or less, look on craigslist and Barac Co.. (google it).
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Old 02-03-2014, 06:55 AM
 
22 posts, read 22,607 times
Reputation: 11
BARAC Vacancies
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Old 02-03-2014, 06:57 AM
 
Location: DMV
10,125 posts, read 13,938,653 times
Reputation: 3222
Quote:
Originally Posted by bigjretrac View Post
Hey there, Long Islander here.

So I'm looking at a potential job in Landover, Maryland-- it's right off the New Carrollton station on the Orange Line.

I'm going down to the office this week, and wanted to drive/walk through some neighborhoods to get a sense of what's out there.

I've been to the DMV several times, but not to look for apartments, so I'm trying to ascertain what the rental climate is. I know I'm not being terribly descriptive, but I guess I'm just wondering how far $1200/month would get me. I could possibly bump it to $1300, but that's about as high as I'd like to go.

I'm used to long commutes-- my issue is just having to make lots of transfers. If it's one or two lines for about an hour, I'm fine.

Basic info:
- Single, no kids
- Mid-20s young professional
- Black (not that I think that matters...)
- Have a car, but can leave it if I'm in DC (if MD, then I'd probably keep it)
- While I prefer walkable areas, I understand that may not be possible on my budget
- Would prefer to do without roommates (too many bad experiences), but will explore the option

Again, any neighborhood preferences or general advice would be much appreciated

If you need more information, please let me know.
There are two apartment complexes in Landover that are in your price range that would be a great fit for you. Both (Ivy Club and Cameron Pointe) are gated. The surrounding areas around them are so-so, but inside the communities are generally nice and they both have attract a lot of young professionals such as yourself. Both are somewhat in walking distance of the Metro station (Morgan Blvd.), but you would also be able to drive. Only major downside, which may or may not be a big deal, is that it's near FedEx Field where the Redskins play so during football season but that is only about 10 times a year and will just require you to take some side roads if you need to go out during the times they are playing.

By the way if you look these places up, they will say that they are in "Hyattsville". Let me tell you, that it is only called Hyattsville because of the postal code. There is a big difference between Hyattsville the actually city and Hyattsville postal area. The two can be confusing, but trust me when I say, no matter what the address says, both places are in Landover.
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Old 02-04-2014, 05:30 PM
 
Location: Prince Georges County, MD (formerly Long Island, NY)
1,558 posts, read 2,714,656 times
Reputation: 1651
Quote:
Originally Posted by pgtvatitans View Post
There are two apartment complexes in Landover that are in your price range that would be a great fit for you. Both (Ivy Club and Cameron Pointe) are gated. The surrounding areas around them are so-so, but inside the communities are generally nice and they both have attract a lot of young professionals such as yourself. Both are somewhat in walking distance of the Metro station (Morgan Blvd.), but you would also be able to drive. Only major downside, which may or may not be a big deal, is that it's near FedEx Field where the Redskins play so during football season but that is only about 10 times a year and will just require you to take some side roads if you need to go out during the times they are playing.

By the way if you look these places up, they will say that they are in "Hyattsville". Let me tell you, that it is only called Hyattsville because of the postal code. There is a big difference between Hyattsville the actually city and Hyattsville postal area. The two can be confusing, but trust me when I say, no matter what the address says, both places are in Landover.
So I had to abbreviate my trip because New York got hit with snow last night, and we're in for another one late tonight (followed by yet another one this weekend!). Basically, I left NY this morning at 4:30am, and I'm just getting back.

I drove past Ivy Club and Cameron Pointe. The apartments seemed really nice from the outside, and I liked that it was gated. It also seems that the area is served by bus (I think the F17?). The area surrounding it was sort of desolate (I approached it coming through Fedex Field from the Beltway). On my way out, I went another way towards US 50, and it was slightly nicer (I believe it was Bell Haven Drive > Columbia Park Rd > US 50).

Does anybody know where I can find a neighborhood map of DC? I saw this one section I really liked-- the main drag of Connecticut Avenue NW in the vicinity of Military Rd NW. I Googled some of the buildings I saw there, and it looks like I could get into a studio for my price point. I really liked the neighborhood, but Google says it'd be an hour and change to my potential job. I'm personally fine with that, but I'm curious if there are similar areas closer to the Orange Line.

Thanks again for all your help, everyone!
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