Unanticipated Move to DMV - we have 7 y/o and need school advice

[Anonymous]

Hi All, we just found out we are relocate to the DMV for my employment. While I’ll be in DC, my husband is remote. We aren’t committed to a location, but I am hoping to gain insight on good schools since our child is entering 2nd grade. I’ve noticed we missed the registration/application period and I’m not sure what to do. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

What’s your budget?

[Anonymous]

Do you prefer private schools or public schools?

[Anonymous]

+1. You need to provide a lot more information. Where exactly are you commuting to. What is your housing budget (rent or own). What are other criteria (walkable, large yard, garage, etc.).

[Anonymous]

Where in DC? Would you prefer to take public transit or drive?

[Anonymous]

If you want private schools, try posting in the Private/Independent Schools forum. This is for more general school issues. OR click the "Report" button in the bottom right corner and ask Jeff to move the post.

[Anonymous]

I would look for a neighborhood where you have a by right public school that you like. The quality of life difference in having a close by school is huge and here are good options in the area for a range of budgets. I would definitely choose no commute for my child over no commute for me. Knowing your budget, what you want in a house or apartment, and where you are commuting to would help.

[Anonymous]

I’ll be based in downtown DC. We prefer a public school, but are open to the right private school. Our preference would be DC or Virginia. I don’t mind driving. As far as a budget, we haven’t thought about it as we just found out Thursday we are moving. We are coming from the Midwest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ll be based in downtown DC. We prefer a public school, but are open to the right private school. Our preference would be DC or Virginia. I don’t mind driving. As far as a budget, we haven’t thought about it as we just found out Thursday we are moving. We are coming from the Midwest.

Congrats on the move, I think it will be very hard for folks here to give you helpful advice without a budget. Especially coming from the Midwest things are going to be more expensive so some sort of sense of budget would help a lot to give helpful advice

[Anonymous]

Also are you looking to rent or buy? Condo/apartment or SFM?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’ll be based in downtown DC. We prefer a public school, but are open to the right private school. Our preference would be DC or Virginia. I don’t mind driving. As far as a budget, we haven’t thought about it as we just found out Thursday we are moving. We are coming from the Midwest.

Congrats on the move, I think it will be very hard for folks here to give you helpful advice without a budget. Especially coming from the Midwest things are going to be more expensive so some sort of sense of budget would help a lot to give helpful advice

+1 Is your budget in the $1.5 mil, $1 mil or $500k range, for example? Or are you going to rent?

[Anonymous]

Commute is a big deal in this area. A trip that takes 15 minutes off-peak can take an hour in rush hour. Moving here is usually a balancing act between budget/commute/schools/house size.

[Anonymous]

We will need to rent for the first year. Commute I would prefer no more than 30 min commute to work. For rent we are thinking $3500-4000.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We will need to rent for the first year. Commute I would prefer no more than 30 min commute to work. For rent we are thinking $3500-4000.

You are looking at a super small radius then. I wouldn’t go further out than Arlington unless you are commuting at super off hours.

[Anonymous]

Which metro stop is closest to your work? Commutes vary a lot based on metro lines.

Are you planning to be here for a long time? Will you buy a home? Even if you are renting to start, you may want to focus on areas where you may buy in the future so your kid doesn’t have to change school again.