Examples of “nice homes” in NoVa

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/9433-Ferry-Landing-Ct-Alexandria-VA-22309/168095964_zpid/

the digital renderings are beautiful until.... you see the real life photos and realize this modern oasis is hemmed in by ugly cookie cutter trash on all sides.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/9433-Ferry-Landing-Ct-Alexandria-VA-22309/168095964_zpid/

the digital renderings are beautiful until.... you see the real life photos and realize this modern oasis is hemmed in by ugly cookie cutter trash on all sides.

You should share what your neighborhood looks like, I’m sure it’s spectacular

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mansion Drive in Alexandria. If I had the budget I’d live on this street: https://redf.in/tmA7Ar

It’s not bad, but it needs color, warm wood trim and floors, wallpaper. Too much white. Needs landscaping in the front. So, it would need work. But it has some great details!

"Warm wood"..wallpaper...that's so 80's. That would be the first thing people update!

It's perfect the way it is.

DP.
Nah. warm wood and wallpaper back big time because too much white does not feel cozy or personal.
That said, this house is great not just because of the cosmetic updates but because the rooms aren’t overly large or open. Human scale rooms and well defined spaces just feel better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mansion Drive in Alexandria. If I had the budget I’d live on this street: https://redf.in/tmA7Ar

Wow that is beautiful!

Agreed. Thanks for sharing!

And it is one of the smaller/less well done houses on the street. There are also gorgeous houses on bishop lane in Alexandria. The last few good ones have sold off market so no photos.

[Anonymous]

Saw this one on another thread: https://www.homes.com/property/3412-3rd-st-n-arlington-va/d2chppbhss655/

This house is designed custom by an architect, which likely accounts for the higher end finishes. Makes me wonder why more folks with higher budgets aren’t custom building with an architect instead of choosing a spec design

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Arlington is SO UGLY and it kills me because the convenience can’t be matched and we love the amenities. CCH is the exception but there’s a bunch of awful new builds popping up there too that are killing the feel of the neighborhood. I don’t get it because the average new builds in Vienna and Alexandria are 10x more charming. Why?? The only thing I can find is the Arlington builders tend to be different from the Vienna ones and so on.

so, true, bestie. sadly, the rest of the DMV is hardly any better save for some pockets of old money. colonial style homes, while functional, are so ugly. give me more cape cod style, more craftsman, more split level, even. even more sadly, im not a fan of the souped up $2M+ McFarmHouses in Vienna. they just look plain weird in a suburb. they belong, as the name says, in a farm. even in the more urban area of arlington, not enough cutesy townhomes as in Logan Circle

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Arlington is SO UGLY and it kills me because the convenience can’t be matched and we love the amenities. CCH is the exception but there’s a bunch of awful new builds popping up there too that are killing the feel of the neighborhood. I don’t get it because the average new builds in Vienna and Alexandria are 10x more charming. Why?? The only thing I can find is the Arlington builders tend to be different from the Vienna ones and so on.

The central parts of Ashton Heights and Lyon Park have a tremendous number of older beautiful houses and thoughtfully designed new builds, starting at Jackson and radiating outwards a few blocks either way. A big chunk of Lyon Village has very nicely designed older homes too even if on smaller lots. Besides here around Clarendon, it’s pretty much Country Club Village part of Arlington for nice looking homes.

Ehh I haven’t been impressed with any of the new builds in Ashton Heights, Lyon Park, and Lyon Village since they moved on from the mid 2010s styles. There’s a ton of new build inventory above $3M in Ashton Heights just sitting and it’s all either ugly or way too big for the lot. Jackson St is a prime example of this.

The charming homes in this neighborhood are generally the older homes that have been thoughtfully renovated, not the new builds.

There's one cape cod with a cottage garden that I've always loved. It sold recently and I worried it would be torn down but walked by recently and saw a young family living in it. So glad it escaped the developers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Saw this one on another thread: https://www.homes.com/property/3412-3rd-st-n-arlington-va/d2chppbhss655/

This house is designed custom by an architect, which likely accounts for the higher end finishes. Makes me wonder why more folks with higher budgets aren’t custom building with an architect instead of choosing a spec design

High end finishes???? Truly funny. I have the exact same bathroom (home depot) and the light fixtures are all amazon / wayfair!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Arlington is SO UGLY and it kills me because the convenience can’t be matched and we love the amenities. CCH is the exception but there’s a bunch of awful new builds popping up there too that are killing the feel of the neighborhood. I don’t get it because the average new builds in Vienna and Alexandria are 10x more charming. Why?? The only thing I can find is the Arlington builders tend to be different from the Vienna ones and so on.

so, true, bestie. sadly, the rest of the DMV is hardly any better save for some pockets of old money. colonial style homes, while functional, are so ugly. give me more cape cod style, more craftsman, more split level, even. even more sadly, im not a fan of the souped up $2M+ McFarmHouses in Vienna. they just look plain weird in a suburb. they belong, as the name says, in a farm. even in the more urban area of arlington, not enough cutesy townhomes as in Logan Circle

I'm not either but they are 100 times better than the ugly box contemporaries going up.

[Anonymous]

I'm sure plenty of people here would decry it all as "hideous!!!" but if I could be anywhere, it would be in a MCM in Hollin Hills.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Mansion Drive in Alexandria. If I had the budget I’d live on this street: https://redf.in/tmA7Ar

Wow that is beautiful!

Agreed. Thanks for sharing!

I don't love it, but I get why y'all do.

[Anonymous]

I'm not either but they are 100 times better than the ugly box contemporaries going up.

Preach. I just don’t think that style fits the area.

[Anonymous]

https://www.redfin.com/VA/Arlington/3412-3rd-St-N-22201/home/11256702

I posted this one in another thread. Designed by a real architect instead of a builder. Very high quality.

Unfortunately the old house next door just got torn down and a new McMansion is going up so that's a bummer. Ashton Heights doesn't have huge lots but it's a great neighborhood. Love being a short walk from both Ballston and Clarendon.