Where to buy in Fairfax County with $400k budget

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where is the job? NOVA is a big place.

Tyson's. but I'll have to commute back to College Park until I can find a new job.

I would look in Alexandria south of the Beltway. 22310 would be probably easiest for both your commutes. I would research the schools in that area though; they can be a bit of a mixed bag.

22310 to College Park is going to be an awful commute, even if it is short term! Can you rent something close to Tyson's until you find a job in NOVA? You still have a year before your oldest starts school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yikes ... I don't think you're going to get a single family with good schools under 400. A 3 bedroom townhome, sure. Look in the West Springfield area (22152, parts of 22153 but keep an eye on what school pyramid you're in), or maybe Vienna if you can stretch your budget to 450ish. If you're willing to sacrifice on schools a bit you could try 22310/22315/parts of 22079 - Hayfield ES and Island Creek ES are good, Clermont is also good, but Hayfield Secondary and Edison HS are average, but Hayfield at least does have AP. But if you move before middle/high school it's not a problem, and there's nothing inherently wrong with Hayfield/Edison, they're just not GREAT high schools. That area is nice and convenient with lots of shops you don't have to travel far to get to. Best of luck.

Edison has IB.

That's right, Hayfield is the only one with AP in that area. Edison, Lee, Mt. Vernon, I dunno what all else is over there but they all have IB. South County has AP too but that's a little far for OP.

[Anonymous]

Agree with PPs. You won't find what you're looking for in Falls Church for $400K unless you're willing to look at 22042, which--right or wrong--has a reputation as a less desirable school district. Your best bet will probably be points further south, like Burke or West Springfield.

[Anonymous]

http://www.redfin.com/VA/Alexandria/5920-La-Vista-Dr-22310/home/9757241

http://www.redfin.com/VA/Springfield/5512-Inverchapel-Rd-22151/home/9742634

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where is the job? NOVA is a big place.

Tyson's. but I'll have to commute back to College Park until I can find a new job.

I would look in Alexandria south of the Beltway. 22310 would be probably easiest for both your commutes. I would research the schools in that area though; they can be a bit of a mixed bag.

22310 to College Park is going to be an awful commute, even if it is short term! Can you rent something close to Tyson's until you find a job in NOVA? You still have a year before your oldest starts school.

The commute to College Park from Tysons would be worse!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We're currently in MoCo zoned for the DCC and I want out. Also husband works in N. Virginia and I hope to eventually, so we'd like to make the leap to the other side of the river before our kids start school (our oldest will start in 2015). Where can we find a 3BR SFH for $400k? Could potentially go a bit over depending what we get for our current house, but not much. Priority is good schools and a yard for kids to play in. Also not too far out as I need to commute back to MD for a while. Was thinking Falls Church- any particular neighborhoods we should keep an eye out for? Or other suggestions?

Whats a DCC?

[Anonymous]

PP here, nevermind.
Downcounty Consortium.

Seems like a good idea? Is it bad or something?

"The Downcounty Consortium includes five high schools and their feeder middle and elementary schools—Blair, Einstein, Kennedy, Northwood, and Wheaton. Each DCC high school offers distinctive academy programs designed to capture students’ interest, incorporate rigorous academic course work, explore possible career pathways, and bring real world relevance to students’ education."

[Anonymous]

What if we could go up to $500k? Just found out our neighbors house sd for way more than I would have guessed.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, you won't be able to find a SFH in West Springfield or Burke for under 400k. Annandale might be an options.

[Anonymous]

http://www.redfin.com/VA/Springfield/8551-Groveland-Dr-22153/home/9801793

Great school pyramid with a wonderful elementary!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, you won't be able to find a SFH in West Springfield or Burke for under 400k. Annandale might be an options.

Under 400K? You are really not giving yourself a lot of options for a SFH.

[Anonymous]

If you go up to $500k, here is a SFH in the Hayfield pyramid (22315) that PP mentioned earlier:

http://www.redfin.com/VA/Alexandria/7605-Hayfield-Rd-22315/home/9786889

[Anonymous]

This one needs work but is in a good school district with a yard.

http://m.trulia.com/property/3160441561-6403-Charnwood-St-Springfield-VA-22152

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The range of schools you will get for that price range in Fairfax are similar to that of the DCC, but you will get a lot less house.

BTDT in our search a year ago.

Where did you end up buying? Or did you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have been looking in that price range, and $400K is not going to get you very far in Falls Church. There's houses in the Annandale HS pyramid for that price, or if you want to go out farther towards Burke/ West Springfield you can get a townhome in that range.

PP here, another thought is in the southern part of Kingstowne you can find townhomes in this range zoned for Hayfield.

If you really want a SFH, you're not going to find much in that price range (as I said, we've been looking for a while). We're actually focusing on PG County now because we couldn't find a decent SFH in FFX. If you go a lot further outside the beltway it might be doable, but that wasn't an option for us due to commutes.

+1 My husband and I are doing the same!