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First off, I'm not a professional...I'm just a very regular person...who always works, but never gets paid a lot. I am college-educated, actually M.A. as well, but never had good-paying jobs ever in my life, and my education is from mediocre schools.
ANYWAYS...I'm also white...with asian wife..and a son.
Basically, I'm a huge OBAMA fan...I've lived in Asia for years, and SF and NYC...and I love cool cities. I've visited DC before, but just for two days.
I originally drove around Northern Virginia...I read many Asians were moving there, thought it would be an interesting area...visited all of them, and hated all of them. I've never cared for predominate car-culture at all.
I also went into Maryland...and it was a little bit better, but not much.
The District of Columbia was very cool. But very hit and miss. Seemed to be either INCREDIBLY WEATLHY (i.e. Georgetown) or just run-down all over the place, which was unfortunate. But did have cool architecture and a general vibe/feeling which I kinda liked, but as great as say NYC or SF.
Anyways...IF someone like me WERE to go to live IN D.C. itself...where would someone recommend might be an area for someone like me to look into? Remember I can't afford a Georgetown area, but with a family, I don't exactly want to live in an affordable area with crime being its main problem.
Are there places imbetween the two...and IN the D.C. city itself?
You say you cant afford a "Georgetown area" but dont want to live in an 'affordable' area with crime being a problem. Perhaps if you give a specific price range we might be able to better serve you.
Having said that, only a few affordable, family "friendly" areas come to mind when I read your post: Takoma Park, Brookland, and the area just east of Capitol Hill (North of Penn Ave and South of E. Capitol Street). There are several middle class and older, established families living in these neighborhoods, and, although these areas tend to be very spotty, crime isnt a huge concern. I get the sense that the racial make-up of a neighborhood is also a factor in your decision. These neighborhoods have, in years past, been all black. That is changing in parts of Brookland, and I'm not really sure about Takoma Park and Hill East.
Depending on your price range, you may also want to check areas like Glover Park, Ledroit Park, Columbia Heights, Mt. Pleasant, and parts of Southwest.
Depending on your price range, you may also want to check areas like Glover Park, Ledroit Park, Columbia Heights, Mt. Pleasant, and parts of Southwest.
Regarding Southwest, my particular neighborhood (Waterfront) is very mixed (racially and socio-economically). It's also pretty safe and has great access to public transportation and amenities (no need to have a car). We moved here because we're right by our workplaces and downtown (the Mall is 4 blocks away), but it's a lot quieter than other places like U Street, Gallery Place, or Adams Morgan. It's worth looking into.
Not sure how big of a living space you are looking for, or if you are buying/renting. I like Logan Circle area. It's NW near downtown DC. Close to metro stations but still has parking on the street. Lots of apts here for rent, and now I see lots of places for sale as well.
I've lived almost all of my life in either the Bay Area or the DC area and I happen to like SF much, much more than DC. The problem with DC is that it's really two seperate cities: one that is full of poverty, violence and one that is really rich, safe and unafordable. There really aren't many places for middle class people, at least not ones that are safe. If I were you, I'd check out the Takoma area of DC or Takoma Park Maryland, which is just on the other side of the Maryland state boarder. Although I'm not all that familiar with the area, I've heard alot of good things about it, and I've heard people make comparisons between it and Berekley, which isn't San Francisco but it's a pretty cool place as well in my opinion. Anyway, I hope you like the area and are able to find something within your means.
whatever you do stay out of the south. areas like anacostia and the highlands are real bad, like the worst on the east cost, if not in the whole country. the columbia heights are getting better, but its still not that great there. i would recommend somewhere in fairfax county, alexandria and arlington can be pretty bad if you dont have too much money, but pretty good if you can afford some of the nicer areas.
whatever you do stay out of the south. areas like anacostia and the highlands are real bad, like the worst on the east cost, if not in the whole country. the columbia heights are getting better, but its still not that great there. i would recommend somewhere in fairfax county, alexandria and arlington can be pretty bad if you dont have too much money, but pretty good if you can afford some of the nicer areas.
didn't you read the guys post; he doesn't want to live in the suburbs. Also, both Arlington and Alexandria have below average crime rates.t The most dangerous part of Alexandria is along Richmond Hwy between the beltway and Ft. Belvoir, which is in Fairfax county, not Alexandria city. I was actually thinking about recomending some of the more working class areas of Arlington or Alexandria, but I didn't because the guy doesn't want to live in VA or MD.
There really aren't many places for middle class people, at least not ones that are safe.
This is very true. For the most part, you have to head quite a ways outside of the city to find a safe, affordable area. There are a couple of exceptions--some parts of eastern Montgomery County, and parts of NE--but even those areas are dicey.
There really aren't many places for middle class people, at least not ones that are safe.
Actually I found this statement rather ironic coming from someone praising San Francisco. If there was ever a city more ill suited for middle-class salaries ...
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