living in the Watergate with children??

[Anonymous]

AAAAAAAARRRRGGGHHH. Again with the Arlington thing!!

If OP wanted a rowhouse in DC, she could no doubt afford a fair selection for the same price as a unit at the Watergate. But she inquired about a landmark building in a fairly central neighborhood and stated that she prefers a large apartment to a house. How do you go from there to a suburban "townhouse"?

I'm not the Arlington poster but this is not a bad suggestion.

A rowhouse in DC is going to cost much more than some of the units the Watergate. Look at the prices for units in Watergate East (not South), they are lower than any condo or townhouse. The 4 bedroom in east is only 799,000. Co-ops are less expensive than condos from a sale price but the co-op fee is much higher than a condo fee. Co-ops are very popular in DC and Baltimore. They are rarer around here so sometimes people have a hard time working out the financing with their banks.

I used to feel the same way about Arlington but if I wanted a larger apartment I might try around Courtyard or Clarendon. Rosslyn and Crystal City are just odd. Ballston is more suburban.

[Anonymous]

4 bedrooms will be hard. But if you could do with 3 bedrooms, I know of a few families that have been very happy at Alban Towers, across the road from the National Cathedral. It's a great area to bring up kids - Guy Mason Park, the cathedral grounds and Beauvoir playground on the weekends are great. Can easily walk to good restaurants and the Whole Foods in Glover Park. Plus the bus stop right out the front door.

[Anonymous]

I just looked one watergate condo up bc I was curios and do they really have fees of $3,000 a month for association dues. YIKES! That's insanity.

[Anonymous]

The only problem I have with Arlington is the attitude. All that attitude for nothing. Absolutely nothing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just looked one watergate condo up bc I was curios and do they really have fees of $3,000 a month for association dues. YIKES! That's insanity.

PP here whose mom lives in the WG. That's the thing about the WG--they take care of everything, but you pay a lot for fees. A 4 bdr can rack up $4K in monthly maintenance fees (which is probably close to the equivalent of the mortgage). Also, you need to have a substantial down-payment and considerable liquid assets to prove to the board that you are extremely financially solvent. Sounds like OP would rather use her assets for fees than to buy a house that she has to maintain. This is understandable if your family travels a lot, for example, and you don't want to deal with maintaining a home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I just looked one watergate condo up bc I was curios and do they really have fees of $3,000 a month for association dues. YIKES! That's insanity.

Yes, that's right. As previous poster mentioned, basic maintenance is included, and so is utilities. Watergate is not a condo, but a co-op, so you have to keep in mind that they don't pay property tax, which helps offset the high fee.

[Anonymous]

For $3k a month (assuming this is on top of their mortgage or whatever you call it with a coop) they better be making me dinner and cleaning my house everyday.

[Anonymous]

Another thing to consider about a co-op is that you don't own property, you own shares in the co-op. When we decided to move, the equity in our co-op could not be considered because it was not equity in property. Some people refinance or take out a second mortgage if they are comfortable with their equity and want to pay down more on their next house purchase or are building a house. We were fortunate that we didn't need this and qualified for what we needed without factoring in the co-op equity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The only problem I have with Arlington is the attitude. All that attitude for nothing. Absolutely nothing.

People have attitude because they live in ARLINGTON?!?! Well, that's a new one.

[Anonymous]

14:03- good question. Though that is what is meant by the "for nothing" part. Emphasis on "for nothing".

[Anonymous]

I'm sure the OP has her reasons for wanting to live at a place like the WG, but for the average family it sounds like a miserable place to pour your money down the drain.

[Anonymous]

CAn someone explain to me why you would want to be part of a co op? Seems to make no financial sense to me.

[Anonymous]

The Watergate is fugly and kids are not going to be crossing busy RockCreek Pkwy to play on one strip of land next to the dirty Potomac.

I lived in Gtown and my jogging route was on the path right by the Kennedy Center and Watergate. There's the crappy gas station and all those roads with traffic. It is very isolating.

It is not so green as ppl speak of...yes---I would choose one of the other locations orig. mentioned---georgetown, dupont, kalorama--at least you are in a 'city' and not in a fortress surrounded by roads and virtually sitting in VA.

I gotta laugh when Watergate is putting down Arlington when the Watergate is virtually sitting in Arlington with none of the benefits.

I wouldn't want to live there with or without kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:CAn someone explain to me why you would want to be part of a co op? Seems to make no financial sense to me.

I think ultimatly to keep certain kinds of people out. Financially, it makes no sense and often resale is terrible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. There is the waterfront literally steps, but your point is well taken. Would you also object to most of the other downtown neighborhoods? (ie Dupont, Georgetown, Kalorama)

OP, let's be real here. The kids playing on the "waterfront". This is not a beach in Chicago on lake Michigan.