Bowie rocks! Why isn't it more popular?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a very interesting thread. I'm looking to relocate and I'm looking at redfin. What part of Bowie is a good? Above 50? Below? Point me to a house on the map and I can work my way around. Budget, 500K max, but ideally 300-400.

If you have the mindset of the MoCo posters, then you want north of US-50. Traditionally, the part of Bowie north of US-50 tends to be more white and the area south of US-50 tends to be more AA. That was a much more distinct difference up through the 90's but the last 20 years or so, the areas have blended much more, but there still tends to be a larger ratio white to minority north of US-50 and vice versa south of US-50.

You're painting MoCo with a pretty broad brush. Let's not forget some areas of MoCo are majority minority with very happy residents of all backgrounds.

You mean like those posters who are painting the entire PG county as high crime even though the high crime area is about 10-15% of the county inside the beltway? The parts of PG county outside the beltway have comparable crime statistics with the majority of MoCo and yet are labeled high crime whereas MoCo is low crime. Go back and look at the statistics posted on page 7 which show that Bowie itself is safer from violent crime than Bethesda and Arlington and significantly below the average rate of both Virginia and Maryland.

Like those people who paint the entire PG county as not a good real estate investment because housing prices are lower, even though the ROI of PG county is higher than most of the rest of the county excluding the period of the recession from 2008-2011.

There are many who label and paint PG county with unfair labels based on a few statistics. If it works for PG, it should work for MoCo, but we know why it doesn't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

It's hard to compare the two cities based on only the above stats, because Rockville is almost like a tale of two cities itself. For example, Rockville has nearly double the number of people with graduate degrees as Bowie (28% vs 15%), but Rockville also has a higher number of people with no high school diploma (11% in Rockville, 6% in Bowie). For those living in the wealthiest parts of Rockville, their experience is more like those in Bethesda/Potomac, while those on the other end are closer to the experience of Silver Spring/Aspen Hill, but with higher rated (perceived better) schools. So it seems that Rockville has a bigger spread of socioeconomic groups than Bowie does, which would account for the lower average HHI in the above stats. Also, the location of Rockville is quite different from that of Bowie, in terms of proximity to several metro stops, jobs (right off 270 tech corridor) and closer to Tysons, etc., which I believe plays a role in the price of the homes as well.

http://www.infoplease.com/us/census/data/maryland/rockville/social.html
http://www.infoplease.com/us/census/data/maryland/bowie/social.html

Intersting because people on this thread are making assumptions about Bowie based on the county it is in without having information other than it is minority majority ( 48% vs. 41%). Also, I dont see people here automatically dismissing other counties. The stats above show that people who live in Bowie have similar income, education, commutes, students who test above state average in English and Math (despite others always saying how bad the schools are), and safety as parts of MoCo. I hope it makes people pause and think about the true reasons they say they would never live in Bowie.

The key words here are "PARTS of MoCo". The people you are referring to would likely want a specific part of MoCo (west of 270?), which is a very different place from Bowie. They probably wouldn't choose to live in Bowie even if it were all white, because it is not as wealthy and prestigious of an area. The people east of 270, who are already in a majority minority area, are probably basing their choice on school ratings (i.e., "better" schools because they are in closer proximity to mass wealth) or job location.

Well those wealthy and presigious areas weren't included in the top 50 places to live list so I have no stats to compare. I'll end my participation in this thread by saying I'm grateful to live in a country where I can choose to live wehere I want for whatever reason I want. I believe this conversation has opened some eyes and given people the opportunity to share their thoughts as well as facts. While Bowie may not be popular on DCUM I choose to live in Bowie and it rocks!

The wealthiest areas were probably not included on the Money mag list because that list tends to look at cost of living/affordability as a metric. I agree that it's great we live in a day and place where we have the freedom to choose where we live. DCUM is never satisfied (even if it's a $3 million house people will argue about city vs suburb), so no worries about that!

[Anonymous]

I lived in Bowie for 10 years. Lived in Riverdale and Lanham too. I was raised in PG County! Of those three cities I liked Bowie the best. I liked the convenience of everything, I liked my neighborhood, which was not just white it was diverse. Bowie is a great place to live. I did commute into Arlington from Bowie and the commute after 2 years was getting to be too much for me. I moved to Fairfax County. I really enjoyed living in Bowie!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is a very interesting thread. I'm looking to relocate and I'm looking at redfin. What part of Bowie is a good? Above 50? Below? Point me to a house on the map and I can work my way around. Budget, 500K max, but ideally 300-400.

If you have the mindset of the MoCo posters, then you want north of US-50. Traditionally, the part of Bowie north of US-50 tends to be more white and the area south of US-50 tends to be more AA. That was a much more distinct difference up through the 90's but the last 20 years or so, the areas have blended much more, but there still tends to be a larger ratio white to minority north of US-50 and vice versa south of US-50.

You're painting MoCo with a pretty broad brush. Let's not forget some areas of MoCo are majority minority with very happy residents of all backgrounds.

You mean like those posters who are painting the entire PG county as high crime even though the high crime area is about 10-15% of the county inside the beltway? The parts of PG county outside the beltway have comparable crime statistics with the majority of MoCo and yet are labeled high crime whereas MoCo is low crime. Go back and look at the statistics posted on page 7 which show that Bowie itself is safer from violent crime than Bethesda and Arlington and significantly below the average rate of both Virginia and Maryland.

Like those people who paint the entire PG county as not a good real estate investment because housing prices are lower, even though the ROI of PG county is higher than most of the rest of the county excluding the period of the recession from 2008-2011.

There are many who label and paint PG county with unfair labels based on a few statistics. If it works for PG, it should work for MoCo, but we know why it doesn't.

You can't compare places way far out, that are not metro-accessible, with places like Bethesda and Alexandria. People will pay a premium to live inside the beltway, even if it means having a slightly higher rate of crime. So that's why people dismiss PG as "high crime", because yes, they are focusing on the areas with good commutes, and the inside the beltway areas of PG are just too high in crime for many. For many people who can't afford closer in, if they have to commute an hour, then they expect a trade off of great amenities, metro accessible, great schools, etc...which the website previously referenced on pg 7 does not rate Bowie high on. It would be a better question, in my mind, to ask why a person chooses an area like Germantown or Montgomery Village over Bowie.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am so confused by people who are like there are too many colored ppl in PG who act like DC wasnt majority black until like 2 years ago. It's like when they denounce PG county schools but ignore the really shitty dc schools [no charters do not count]. It's a weird cognitive dissonance.

Yes, this! I am white and I told my white friend I was considering moving to Bowie or Greenbelt. She immediately advised against it because of the schools, suggesting I look into places like eastern Montgomery County and DC instead. I was like... you know those schools are worse right??

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Haha, yes because google maps says it's 45 minutes NOW. At 8pm on a Sunday. You know that means 75 minutes there and 90 minutes home during the week. Awful to give up that much of your life.

I dont have a dog in this fight, i live in VA, but yiur claim seemed a bit dramatic.

830pm on a Thursday night says 36min. And it's raining

[Anonymous]

People are always under cutting their commute time when they move far out to try and make it seem not so bad. Facts are facts. There is no way it's door to door 30 minutes from Bowie to downtown. Just not ever going to happen. Because if it was really 30 minutes more people would live there and it would be more expensive.

[Anonymous]

As an Ashburn VA resident, I find this commute fight amusing.

I just google mapped with traffic right now Bowie to Downtown (16th) the map says 22mi and 40min.

I then googled Ashburn to the same location, but it's 34mi and 45min.

What is the problem with infrastructure from Bowie to DC that it takes only 5min longer to travel from Ashburn when Downtown is a full 12 miles farther from Ashburn?? 12miles in this town might as well be another planet ,but that 12 miles would only cost me 5min at this time.

[Anonymous]

I love living in Crofton, I love Bowie, and I'm more than fine that lots of snobs poo-poo this area. Fewer people at Wegman's, more affordable, wonderful homes for us to choose from!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:People are always under cutting their commute time when they move far out to try and make it seem not so bad. Facts are facts. There is no way it's door to door 30 minutes from Bowie to downtown. Just not ever going to happen. Because if it was really 30 minutes more people would live there and it would be more expensive.

It is conceivable if you work on the orange/blue line and metro is operating normally.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People are always under cutting their commute time when they move far out to try and make it seem not so bad. Facts are facts. There is no way it's door to door 30 minutes from Bowie to downtown. Just not ever going to happen. Because if it was really 30 minutes more people would live there and it would be more expensive.

It is conceivable if you work on the orange/blue line and metro is operating normally.

The metro is in New Carrollton. Just driving to the metro station from bowie is going to take 20 minutes, then the first stop in DC is at least 15 minutes from New Carrolton. On the other hand, if you live near the marc train and work by union station, that commute is easy peasy and possibly 30 minutes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As an Ashburn VA resident, I find this commute fight amusing.

I just google mapped with traffic right now Bowie to Downtown (16th) the map says 22mi and 40min.

I then googled Ashburn to the same location, but it's 34mi and 45min.

What is the problem with infrastructure from Bowie to DC that it takes only 5min longer to travel from Ashburn when Downtown is a full 12 miles farther from Ashburn?? 12miles in this town might as well be another planet ,but that 12 miles would only cost me 5min at this time.

I don't think your times are accurate. I have driven from DC to Ashburn and from Bowie to DC and the trip to Ashburn is so, so much worse. I don't know what google map is talking about, Virginia is much more congested. Plus bowie is on the marc train.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:People are always under cutting their commute time when they move far out to try and make it seem not so bad. Facts are facts. There is no way it's door to door 30 minutes from Bowie to downtown. Just not ever going to happen. Because if it was really 30 minutes more people would live there and it would be more expensive.

It is conceivable if you work on the orange/blue line and metro is operating normally.

The metro is in New Carrollton. Just driving to the metro station from bowie is going to take 20 minutes, then the first stop in DC is at least 15 minutes from New Carrolton. On the other hand, if you live near the marc train and work by union station, that commute is easy peasy and possibly 30 minutes.

I know what the metro station is. I did that drive for like 5 years...from AA county. I mean, I guess it depends on exactly where in Bowie but it is definitely conceivable that your drive to new Carrollton is 5-10 minutes. There are addresses in Bowie walking distance to largo/town center. So like I said it's "conceivable." But given traffic and the metro these days, 45 minutes more average.

[Anonymous]

Bowie sucks- far from DC area (and I mean area- not considered a suburb). Hicktown. Prices low due to where you are and what cultural/education etc. is there- not so much. If you don't care about a basic good education and as a bonus an advanced education - then yea- it rocks! Go for it. This really isn't the forum to embrace Bowie. I am sure there are other places - Anyway- welcome

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:As an Ashburn VA resident, I find this commute fight amusing.

I just google mapped with traffic right now Bowie to Downtown (16th) the map says 22mi and 40min.

I then googled Ashburn to the same location, but it's 34mi and 45min.

What is the problem with infrastructure from Bowie to DC that it takes only 5min longer to travel from Ashburn when Downtown is a full 12 miles farther from Ashburn?? 12miles in this town might as well be another planet ,but that 12 miles would only cost me 5min at this time.

a general location from each town won't be very definitive but i don't think it's 30 mins from bowie to downtown....wait maybe it...i think i've driven from downtown to bowie after work for something and it was about 30 mins. i now remember being surprised.