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I'd prefer less politics in my life and more freedom. We are moving from a state that's getting very nasty to live in with all the taxes, etc.
Your local politics in that area of WV could be vastly different than the overall state politics. I mean most of that area of WV are people escaping DC, mostly due to housing costs, but bringing their politics with them.
It's like Denver controlling Colorado politics. Most of Denver it seems are people who fled CA but brought their politics with them.
Your local politics in that area of WV could be vastly different than the overall state politics. I mean most of that area of WV are people escaping DC, mostly due to housing costs, but bringing their politics with them.
It's like Denver controlling Colorado politics. Most of Denver it seems are people who fled CA but brought their politics with them.
The EP doesn't have that kind of political power at the state level, and is still very red on national political issues. I don't know what effect the transplants have had on local elections/issues. I am sure some posters from those counties can let us know.
Thanks for the responses. Luckily he would work from home 2 or 3 days a week and only commute in a couple days.
He typically starts his day early (at his desk by 6:30 / 7 am). What's considered peak in the Alexandra area?
Apologize for being late to the game with this but have been on extended holiday.
The 6:30- 7:00 am arrival time should definitely help (in particular 6:30) but a lot of people commute into DC area job centers from the Eastern Panhandle, Shenandoah Valley and western Maryland so the traffic volume does build really early. Afternoons are what I would be most concerned about as they always seem to be worse than the morning commutes for longer periods of time. Delays usually start building on the Beltway, 270, 66, etc by 2-230 and stay bad through at least 7 or 8 pm in most spots. Depending on where you are commuting from in the Panhandle it could be quicker to take the Dulles Toll Road/ Dulles Greenway out to Leesburg then head on out towards West Virginia but that those tolls are getting outrageous- Greenway is over $5 at rush hour one way and the Dulles Toll Road is over $3.
MARC will only get him to Union Station then he would have to transfer onto the Metro to Alexandria. On a side note- 'Alexandria' covers a large area and not all of it is Metro accessible. The earliest train on the Brunswick Line from Eastern Panhandle leaves at around 5-515 am and doesn't get to Union Station until after 7 - therefore he would not be to work until around 730 at the earliest when factoring in transfer to Metro. It's doable but quite a haul.
You could also look down towards the Fredericksburg/ Stafford/ Spotsylvania areas of Virginia. VRE (Virginia commuter rail) service goes to Alexandria or he could commute up I-95. I would highly recommend slugging if choosing to drive so he could be HOV-3 and not pay the tolls in the Express Lanes. 95 traffic in the main lanes between DC and Fredericksburg is otherwise miserable for solo or non HOV-3 commuters.
Apologize for being late to the game with this but have been on extended holiday.
Thank you! He would be working in Crystal City if that helps any. I think he wanted to take public transit so he could get done work done on the train.
Right now we live about 30 miles from his job and it takes him roughly 1.5 hours to get in or out.
Crystal City is in Arlington (close to Alexandria) and does have its own Metro station so yes it is very accessible. Not sure about wifi on MARC but he would go to Union Station, get on Metro's Red Line, go two stops to Gallery Place- Chinatown then transfer onto the Yellow Line south to Crystal City which is five stops away. Not terrible but again looking at around two hours on the MARC train plus add in another 25- 30 minutes or so on Metro (depending on transfer times) to Crystal City. If you look south of town in Virginia towards Fredericksburg, you will be on the VRE Commuter Rail Line which has a station stop in Crystal City. It's 1 hr 15 - 20 minutes transit time from Fredericksburg to Crystal City and no changeover on Metro. Something to think about.
I don't know what your budget is but housing in that part of DC Metro will be more expensive than Eastern Panhandle but still nothing compared to closer-in areas of Northern Virginia. The Eastern Panhandle is a nice area but a commute to Arlington via train or drive will be a hike. I'd say it would be a no brainer (to live in EP) if he were working in the Dulles Corridor or Tysons in Virginia or along 270 in Maryland but that is a hike.
Last edited by NOVAmtneer82; 08-01-2019 at 11:55 AM..
Honestly, I'd say try to live as close as you can to work, even if it means a smaller, more expensive condo instead of a house. You'd also be buying in a higher demand area, so you would probably get better price appreciation and it would be easier to sell.
I've heard several people talk about buying into the EP a decade or so ago and now they are completely priced out of the VA/DC area, so they couldn't even move if they wanted to. They also feel their career didn't grow as well as it could have since they spent so much time commuting and lacked the energy to go to the next level as a result.
I've done 45 - 60 min commutes and they suck. I can't even imagine 1.5 hours each way. 10 hour day and 3 hour commute? Assuming 8 hours of sleep, that's only 3 hours of "life" on those days (and I'd argue even less because I'm not factoring in time related to getting ready or prepping for work). Looking at waking hours during the week, that's easily 50%+ for work and travel. Just the straight 40 hours would only be 35%. You'll have to decide what 15% of "life" that you can't ever buy back is worth...
Honestly, I'd say try to live as close as you can to work, even if it means a smaller, more expensive condo instead of a house. You'd also be buying in a higher demand area, so you would probably get better price appreciation and it would be easier to sell.
I've heard several people talk about buying into the EP a decade or so ago and now they are completely priced out of the VA/DC area, so they couldn't even move if they wanted to. They also feel their career didn't grow as well as it could have since they spent so much time commuting and lacked the energy to go to the next level as a result.
I've done 45 - 60 min commutes and they suck. I can't even imagine 1.5 hours each way. 10 hour day and 3 hour commute? Assuming 8 hours of sleep, that's only 3 hours of "life" on those days (and I'd argue even less because I'm not factoring in time related to getting ready or prepping for work). Looking at waking hours during the week, that's easily 50%+ for work and travel. Just the straight 40 hours would only be 35%. You'll have to decide what 15% of "life" that you can't ever buy back is worth...
Absolutely EXCELLENT post and I say AMEN to what I put in BOLD!
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