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I have arrived Northern Va last year after getting a job there. I live in Alexandria with my Family; my wife and 3 years old son. But over the past year we didn't like the place. We feel like if you don't live in U.S.Solitude in one word. Till now we almost no nothing about American culture. And because my job is with my same ethnic group, i rarely speak English. So..WE decided to change our life! ...I started to preparing for some languages exams and started my graduate application in some universities. Hopefully I get acceptance from one by August. That is the main reason that brought me to U.S in the first place.
Now. as I also think about leaving Alexandria and get closer to D.C My and my wife started to think about the possibility of living with American family. I guess that would be so nice. Would give us a chance to get closer to the American culture and improve our language. I searched so many websites about "home stay" but i noticed that families offer one bed with sharing bath and stuff like that, which don't fit a family of three like us.
Welcome to America! I commend your desire to learn our language and culture. I think it may be hard to find someone willing to rent out part of their home to a family. As you have discovered, what is most common is to offer an entire house for rent to one family (with the landlord living elsewhere) or to rent out a room to one person.
What you might consider is to move into a neighborhood with other young families. In DC, that would be Capitol Hill. Or you could look at Del Ray in Alexandria or various places in Northern Virginia. That way you would run into other parents (and their kids) at the playgrounds, at school, in the parks, etc. I think this will be the easiest way to interact with others.
I realize this is an old post but I wanted to reply to say welcome and I am excited to see what you are looking for. As a DC resident who would love to see more community (especially for families) in the city, I am so happy there are people like you moving in. While I can't help finding the type of arrangement you are looking for, I have conversations with my husband, family, and friends around here who would also love more shared housing for families or multi-family units. It would be a huge help for families to be able to pool some resources or just share common yards. I think it's a great idea to build community and increase quality of life in the district. If you do move here, don't be shy about talking about what you're looking for. Zoning and dealing with existing structures makes it difficult for these types of creative housing solutions to start, but it seems to me like there is plenty of demand for it.
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