Maryland or Virginia?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:VA is best for instate college. However, all three of my kids refused to go to an instate college as wanted to "go away" to college not a place close by with a lot of kids from their HS.

It also depends where you work in DC. some parts DC easy to get to from VA some parts easy MD some parts same either way.

and people on DCOM miss if poor or lower income you want to live in high tax places. Why they have lots of services for lower income folks and you dont pay taxes anyhow.

Who cares what people with funds to pay for private colleges and private schools think, obviously in-state schools aren't as relevant for you if you have fat college savings you have to spend anyway. It's like people who have $$$ for private schools chiming in on which school district is better when it's hardly relevant to them beyond marginal difference in home values if that.

For people who have no option but to use state colleges due to costs (regardless where their kids "want" to go to college) VA wins. Is there a debate?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What areas/neighborhoods in Virginia are comparable to Bethesda, Potomac, North Bethesda, etc. in terms of great schools and somewhat close (commute) to DC?
(The above poster mentioned Arlington and Silver Spring, but I don’t think they are necessarily comparable??)

They are absolutely not comparable at all. Silver Spring doesn’t have near the amount of amenities, jobs, safety, and wealth as South Arlington, let alone North Arlington. Shirlington and Crystal City are MUCH nicer than Downtown Silver Spring, which has been circling the drain for 30 years.

This happened last night Silver Spring Metro. Four kids were stabbed in a mob attack. Bethesda Magazine is so craven for burying the lead in this story and representing this as a simple fight in the headline. It’s no wonder people don’t trust the media.

More than 20 juveniles involved in fight near Silver Spring Metro

https://bethesdamagazine.com/2026/02/09/silver-spring-stabbing/

County police said in a Monday night statement that officers were dispatched around 6 p.m. to a large fight with “more than 20 juveniles” near Wayne Avenue and Ramsey Avenue. Around the same time, MCFRS crews were dispatched to the Silver Spring Metro at 8400 Colesville Road for a report of injured people after “an assault/stabbing,” MCFRS spokesperson Pete Piringer posted on social media.

Additional MCFRS resources were added shortly after for a second patient, according to MCFRS radio transmissions that noted “one was hit in the head, and one was stabbed in the neck.” Minutes later, dispatch informed responders that there were four patients.

Crystal City? That hellhole? Oh, and there's plenty of crime going on there:

https://www.arlingtonva.us/About-Arlington/Newsroom/Articles/2025/Fashion-Centre-at-Pentagon-City-Evacuated-Following-Fights
https://wjla.com/news/local/boy-stabbed-fashion-centre-at-pentagon-city-mall-fight-arlington-virginia-south-hayes-street-juvenile-crime-police-investigation-arrest
https://www.arlnow.com/2025/12/17/police-man-beat-up-three-people-then-urinated-in-public-after-arrest/

+1. Most of South Arlington is not nice at all. You drive around, and the neighborhoods look horribly run down -- hoarding out in the open, chain link fences, overgrown shrubs and grass, houses that look like they haven't been maintained, and the list goes on. It looks like people have just given up. I know some people who live there, and the petty crime is awful -- constant car break ins, package theft, etc. And many people refuse to step foot in Pentagon City Mall, which has been the source of stabbings, huge fights, violent assaults, and even multiple murders. Silver Spring may not be perfect, but it's actually much nicer, especially Woodside.

Pentagon City Mall might be dangerous, but it has Nordstrom, Apple Store, J Crew and other desirable retail options. Downtown Silver Spring has Ellsworth Place with a TJ Maxx and a Ross. It is dangerous and depressing and dilapidated. At least Pentagon City Mall is nice.

As far as South Arlington, even if you don’t like South Arlington it is across the bridge from The Wharf and the National Mall and sandwiched between North Arlington and Del Ray / Old Town. It has so much more to do within a 5-10 minute drive that Silver Spring, which has Wheaton to the north and Langley Park to the east, two incredibly crime ridden areas that are much more dangerous than anywhere in VA that borders South Arlington.

Why would anyone in SS go to Langley Park. That's like saying that people in South Arlington visit the many dangerous parts of Alexandria for fun.

You omit that DTSS has very nice retail options in its walkable outdoor downtown area (uniqlo, h&m, whole foods, nike) and is right next to Chevy Chase and Bethesda (which have lots of high-end retail). DTSS also has a major concert venue, live theater venue, independent movie theater, community center with indoor pool, and hundreds of great restaurants and breweries. If you went to DTSS to spend time in the old indoor mall with TJMaxx and Ross, that's your own fault. I don't shop at TJMaxx and Ross, and every retail option I actually need is nice and within 10 minutes and all are infinitely better than taking chances at Pentagon City Mall.

South Arlington has its own crime ridden hellholes like Green Valley, and Alexandria has tons of incredibly dangerous parts. And South Arlington is so ugly. And eventually the time will come when Amazon has mostly exited South Arlington, as it continues firing people and replacing them with AI.

That’s why Silver Spring is more expensive than South Arlington, right? Because it’s so safe and desirable?

Hmm, there are lots of houses in South Arlington that are less than $1 million. And the desirable parts of Silver Spring are quite pricey, just like South Arlington:

https://www.redfin.com/MD/Silver-Spring/10012-Menlo-Ave-20910/home/10955826
https://www.redfin.com/MD/Silver-Spring/302-Ellsworth-Dr-20910/home/10966014
https://www.redfin.com/MD/Silver-Spring/749-Silver-Spring-Ave-20910/home/10967349
https://www.redfin.com/MD/Silver-Spring/2107-Ellis-St-20910/home/10947398

Maybe South Arlington has more at the extreme high end because of Amazon execs, but on the whole, they are comparable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We’ve done a lot of digging into the new income and investment tax proposals. They are likely to pass because they are being sponsored by leadership and/or heads of committees.

OP, if you don’t make $500K+, the new investment and income tax proposals won’t impact you. It’s 8% on $600K+ and 10% on 1M+, and 3.2% on investment income IF your HHI is over $500K.

So the top bracket is 13.2% and would apply to say someone making $1.5M with $300K of that being investment income (rental property, etc). This would be the highest rate in the country if passed.

If you’re below $1M, VA still has less taxes than MD or DC. At the $1M mark, it gets closer and if taxes were your only deciding factor, it’s basically the same across VA, MD, and DC.

Also remember MD has the county tax which adds up once you hit $500K+ too, and DC has a brutal tax on $1M+ income as well.

VA also has much higher job growth and a healthier economy than MD due to the # of corporations here but DCUM gets rabid over that fact (apparently people aren’t aware Google and BLS data exists?). OP you can easily Google the data and see for yourself.

Virginia resident here who is thrilled about these new taxes. If we can't eat the rich, let's tax them. If they don't like it, they should move. Don't let the door hit you in the way out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We’ve done a lot of digging into the new income and investment tax proposals. They are likely to pass because they are being sponsored by leadership and/or heads of committees.

OP, if you don’t make $500K+, the new investment and income tax proposals won’t impact you. It’s 8% on $600K+ and 10% on 1M+, and 3.2% on investment income IF your HHI is over $500K.

So the top bracket is 13.2% and would apply to say someone making $1.5M with $300K of that being investment income (rental property, etc). This would be the highest rate in the country if passed.

If you’re below $1M, VA still has less taxes than MD or DC. At the $1M mark, it gets closer and if taxes were your only deciding factor, it’s basically the same across VA, MD, and DC.

Also remember MD has the county tax which adds up once you hit $500K+ too, and DC has a brutal tax on $1M+ income as well.

VA also has much higher job growth and a healthier economy than MD due to the # of corporations here but DCUM gets rabid over that fact (apparently people aren’t aware Google and BLS data exists?). OP you can easily Google the data and see for yourself.

The issue I have is that this is a very blind sighted tax approach. Every state that raised taxes like this saw an out migration of high net worth people, which meant the taxes never generated the projected revenues. There's been a steady flow of the very wealthy out of MA and NY and NJ and MD to places like Florida. The very high net worth people in VA will just switch their residency to a Florida property as long as they spend six months minus day out of Virginia. Corp c-level and business owners will just move their families to Florida and fly in a few days a week. Which means eventually the state will need to go to the next group of people and in the long run those who really get slammed are the dual professionals UMCs who aren't as mobile. High taxes never stop with the rich, unfortunately.

I’m the PP you quoted and I don’t disagree. We’re at $800K now but my spouse is in a field with a high ceiling and we should hit $1M in 2-3 years and $2M+ within 6-10 years. We’ve actually already got a property in FL (it’s a shack but we could teardown and rebuild) so I could very well see us doing the 6 months + 1 day thing once HHI is well into 7 figures. Idk how we’d sort that out with schooling though - we’d have to see if privates in FL are less than the $ we’d save on taxes.

I do think we’ll see a flight of wealthy retirees who aren’t tied to school calendars.

The MA data is interesting too that the other PP raised. I do think MA is very different from nova in that the MA wealthy have been there FOREVER - basically since they got off the boat in the 1600/1700s. You know Brahmins and all that. Your average wealthy MA person was probably born and raised there. Those roots run wicked deep ; )

Whereas nova is VERY transitory. Your average wealthy person more likely than not moved here, made money, and can move again. So we’ll see…

Just...no.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A big factor is what industries you and your spouse work in.

Overall there are more job opportunities in NoVA than Maryland. In some industries, dramatically more.

I like living in Arlington and now Alexandria city because it’s easy for me to access job markets in Rosslyn, Tysons, DC and everywhere in between.

People live in relatively far out VA or MD and commute into DC all the time.

Not sure why a person can’t live in Bethesda (or better Glen Echo area) and work in Tysons or live in McLean and work at Marriott in Bethesda.

[Anonymous]

Can the Maryland boosters explain situations like this where a house in Potomac only appreciated $100 in 20 years? Stuff like this is not happening in comparable VA hoods like McLean, North Arlington, Vienna and Great Falls.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1314941.page

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We’ve done a lot of digging into the new income and investment tax proposals. They are likely to pass because they are being sponsored by leadership and/or heads of committees.

OP, if you don’t make $500K+, the new investment and income tax proposals won’t impact you. It’s 8% on $600K+ and 10% on 1M+, and 3.2% on investment income IF your HHI is over $500K.

So the top bracket is 13.2% and would apply to say someone making $1.5M with $300K of that being investment income (rental property, etc). This would be the highest rate in the country if passed.

If you’re below $1M, VA still has less taxes than MD or DC. At the $1M mark, it gets closer and if taxes were your only deciding factor, it’s basically the same across VA, MD, and DC.

Also remember MD has the county tax which adds up once you hit $500K+ too, and DC has a brutal tax on $1M+ income as well.

VA also has much higher job growth and a healthier economy than MD due to the # of corporations here but DCUM gets rabid over that fact (apparently people aren’t aware Google and BLS data exists?). OP you can easily Google the data and see for yourself.

Virginia resident here who is thrilled about these new taxes. If we can't eat the rich, let's tax them. If they don't like it, they should move. Don't let the door hit you in the way out.

Who then will give you all your "free" stuff?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A big factor is what industries you and your spouse work in.

Overall there are more job opportunities in NoVA than Maryland. In some industries, dramatically more.

I like living in Arlington and now Alexandria city because it’s easy for me to access job markets in Rosslyn, Tysons, DC and everywhere in between.

People live in relatively far out VA or MD and commute into DC all the time.

Not sure why a person can’t live in Bethesda (or better Glen Echo area) and work in Tysons or live in McLean and work at Marriott in Bethesda.

You absolutely can. It's merely a question of how lengthy and tedious a commute you personally can tolerate. Priorities....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A big factor is what industries you and your spouse work in.

Overall there are more job opportunities in NoVA than Maryland. In some industries, dramatically more.

I like living in Arlington and now Alexandria city because it’s easy for me to access job markets in Rosslyn, Tysons, DC and everywhere in between.

People live in relatively far out VA or MD and commute into DC all the time.

Not sure why a person can’t live in Bethesda (or better Glen Echo area) and work in Tysons or live in McLean and work at Marriott in Bethesda.

You absolutely can. It's merely a question of how lengthy and tedious a commute you personally can tolerate. Priorities....

I get it…but plenty of people have a longer commute to Tysons from somewhere else in VA vs someone commuting from Bethesda.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A big factor is what industries you and your spouse work in.

Overall there are more job opportunities in NoVA than Maryland. In some industries, dramatically more.

I like living in Arlington and now Alexandria city because it’s easy for me to access job markets in Rosslyn, Tysons, DC and everywhere in between.

People live in relatively far out VA or MD and commute into DC all the time.

Not sure why a person can’t live in Bethesda (or better Glen Echo area) and work in Tysons or live in McLean and work at Marriott in Bethesda.

Because of the roads leading between these 2 areas being extremely congested. There aren't many ways to commute. The distance itself isn't as big of a deal as the complications due to geography, having to cross the river and having limited ways to do so. 495 and chain bridge road are both slow unless it's smack in the middle of the workday.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can the Maryland boosters explain situations like this where a house in Potomac only appreciated $100 in 20 years? Stuff like this is not happening in comparable VA hoods like McLean, North Arlington, Vienna and Great Falls.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1314941.page

Really? Here's one I found quickly:

https://www.redfin.com/VA/Arlington/4109-N-Randolph-Ct-22207/home/22018528

Sold for less in 2025 than 2013. So it was negative appreciation in 12 years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can the Maryland boosters explain situations like this where a house in Potomac only appreciated $100 in 20 years? Stuff like this is not happening in comparable VA hoods like McLean, North Arlington, Vienna and Great Falls.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1314941.page

Really? Here's one I found quickly:

https://www.redfin.com/VA/Arlington/4109-N-Randolph-Ct-22207/home/22018528

Sold for less in 2025 than 2013. So it was negative appreciation in 12 years.

Oh, and in 2007, it sold for $2,474,292. So, 1% appreciation in 20 years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can the Maryland boosters explain situations like this where a house in Potomac only appreciated $100 in 20 years? Stuff like this is not happening in comparable VA hoods like McLean, North Arlington, Vienna and Great Falls.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1314941.page

Really? Here's one I found quickly:

https://www.redfin.com/VA/Arlington/4109-N-Randolph-Ct-22207/home/22018528

Sold for less in 2025 than 2013. So it was negative appreciation in 12 years.

Oh, and in 2007, it sold for $2,474,292. So, 1% appreciation in 20 years.

Some random house in a weird location does not represent all homes in Arlington.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can the Maryland boosters explain situations like this where a house in Potomac only appreciated $100 in 20 years? Stuff like this is not happening in comparable VA hoods like McLean, North Arlington, Vienna and Great Falls.

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1314941.page

Really? Here's one I found quickly:

https://www.redfin.com/VA/Arlington/4109-N-Randolph-Ct-22207/home/22018528

Sold for less in 2025 than 2013. So it was negative appreciation in 12 years.

Oh, and in 2007, it sold for $2,474,292. So, 1% appreciation in 20 years.

Some random house in a weird location does not represent all homes in Arlington.

Read above for the PP who tried to make exactly this point about Potomac. PP specifically asked why it hadn't happened in North Arlington. Turns out it did.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:VA is best for instate college. However, all three of my kids refused to go to an instate college as wanted to "go away" to college not a place close by with a lot of kids from their HS.

It also depends where you work in DC. some parts DC easy to get to from VA some parts easy MD some parts same either way.

and people on DCOM miss if poor or lower income you want to live in high tax places. Why they have lots of services for lower income folks and you dont pay taxes anyhow.

Who cares what people with funds to pay for private colleges and private schools think, obviously in-state schools aren't as relevant for you if you have fat college savings you have to spend anyway. It's like people who have $$$ for private schools chiming in on which school district is better when it's hardly relevant to them beyond marginal difference in home values if that.

For people who have no option but to use state colleges due to costs (regardless where their kids "want" to go to college) VA wins. Is there a debate?

UVA is great, but there have been plenty of WaPo articles about how your kid isn't going to get in, and W&M might be a stretch. So it doesn't matter that it's great.