Affordable home in good school district?

[Anonymous]

We're considering a move to Montgomery County and are looking to buy a home in a great school district but don't have a lot to spend. We'd prefer a single family house, but would consider a townhouse if it means a good district. Is it possible to buy a 3-br under $350K in a good school district in a neighborhood that's accessible to Metro (not expecting walking distance, just close enough to drive every day). Silver Spring? Wheaton? Takoma? Or is this merely a pipe dream?

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

It all depends. It depends what you mean by good district, because there are some who would say that the entire Montgomery County district is good, though average scores on standardized tests differ significantly in schools across the county, largely based on socioeconomic status. I would encourage you to look at the Montgomery County Schools website, where you can see the specific geographic boundaries for each school as well as the test scores and demographics of each school in the "at a glance" pdf page for each school. I can tell you that I live in a neighborhood where a 3-bedroom house would go for more like $450,000 and we are considered in the "poorer" part of the county, where student performance is average to a little below-average for the county. That said, we love our local school and our child is thriving, so being average in a very good school district may not be a bad thing at all. I'm just guessing here, but I would say that in order to get a 3-bedroom house in the areas with the best-performing schools in Montgomery County, you would be looking at more like $600,000+. I have no idea what the townhouse market looks like, so these estimates have been for single-family homes.

[Anonymous]

I would avoid the east side of the county. Basically use 270 as your barrier. If you choose the east side your schools might be Kennedy, Einstein, or Springbrook. Each is filled with thugs and not a day goes by without a big fight. Sometimes three or four a day.

There are many neighborhoods on the east side of the county where you are lucky to hear English spoken. Its not going to get any better and a lot of the homes are rentals.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would avoid the east side of the county. Basically use 270 as your barrier. If you choose the east side your schools might be Kennedy, Einstein, or Springbrook. Each is filled with thugs and not a day goes by without a big fight. Sometimes three or four a day.

There are many neighborhoods on the east side of the county where you are lucky to hear English spoken. Its not going to get any better and a lot of the homes are rentals.

The west side is no picnic either. It's full of people who would write posts like this.

signed,

happy, productive, English-speaking resident of the east side

[Anonymous]

The west side is a walk in the park compared to many sections of the east side. I know kids who go to Whitman, Churchill, and even Wootton who have never seen a fight at their schools.

[Anonymous]

Seems doable in Takoma Park according to Zillow.

http://www.zillow.com/homes/takoma-park_rb/#/homes/for_sale/Takoma-Park-MD/47942_rid/3-_beds/0-350000_price/0-1301_mp/39.009878,-76.895649,38.955569,-77.112285_rect/12_zm/

[Anonymous]

Not all of those are in Montgomery County and some are under contract, so only a dozen available in Takoma Park right now. Much more selection around the Wheaton and Glenmont Metros and some around Forest Glen, just check all the school stats carefully to see whether they will work for you.

PPs talking about staying west of 270 - those neighborhoods aren't very Metro-accessible.

[Anonymous]

There are plenty of homes in all those areas you mentioned. Get a real estate agent and start going to look and see what appeals to you then check the schools on the MCPS site. Or start at the MCPS site and look for houses in preferred school areas.

[Anonymous]

Please don't move to Wheaton - it is unsafe, our friends got their car stolen at gunpoint in broad daylight near Westfield mall/Metro station there (they had their young children with them, too!).

Kensington townhouse or rundown small 3 bedroom.
Silver Spring further out.
Takoma Park, but not the nicest side.

At the middle to high school level in the areas mentioned above, safety and quality of education become increasingly problematic.

Personally, and unless I could put down more money, I would rent in a better school district such as Bethesda-Chevy Chase, or buy further out west.

[Anonymous]

Oops, missed the part where you needed Metro.
I would rent in a good school district. The housing market won't inflate right away, so you can keep saving for a bigger downpayment while it stagnates.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would avoid the east side of the county. Basically use 270 as your barrier. If you choose the east side your schools might be Kennedy, Einstein, or Springbrook. Each is filled with thugs and not a day goes by without a big fight. Sometimes three or four a day.

There are many neighborhoods on the east side of the county where you are lucky to hear English spoken. Its not going to get any better and a lot of the homes are rentals.

I teach at Springbrook, and your use of "thugs" clearly oozes with racism. I work closely with administration, and I have yet to hear of "three or four" fights a day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The west side is a walk in the park compared to many sections of the east side. I know kids who go to Whitman, Churchill, and even Wootton who have never seen a fight at their schools.

Look, sure there are issues over here on the east side that the west side doesn't have. But this attitude isn't helpful and it's really an exaggeration. We live in Silver Spring in a nice house in a nice neighborhood, our kids go to Silver Spring schools and are getting a great education and have nice friends and have never been in or witnessed an altercation. They know kids who come from all sorts of backgrounds and they have seen some objectionable behavior, but this is life, right? They are comfortable in many situations and with many different types of people.

I am constantly surprised by this attitude though. Really, there are lots of us over here who make $200K+ and wouldn't move for the world. Maybe you don't have the tolerance for a more economically diverse area and that's fine -- your choice. But why perpetuate an exaggerated stereotype?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The west side is a walk in the park compared to many sections of the east side. I know kids who go to Whitman, Churchill, and even Wootton who have never seen a fight at their schools.

My kid is at Whitman and saw a fight in the first couple months. It happens in big schools. The bigger issue to look at is the level of engagement of the students. I think that is where the top high schools are different. The majority of kids are college bound, ambitious, etc.

[Anonymous]

Check out Tanterra in Brookeville, MD (zip 20833). The schools are excellent --- Greenwood Elem, Rosa Parks MS, and Sherwood HS. The homes have huge yards and the neighborhood has a great swim club. It's a nice neighborhood with police officers, fire fighters, teachers, nurses, etc. Very neighborly. The nice thing about Brookeville is that you have affordable, older neighborhoods all the way up to multimillion dollar homes. And no apartments in Brookeville --- just SFHs and some townhomes (not many).

[Anonymous]

Keep in mind that the property taxes in Takoma Park are significantly higher than most parts of MoCo.