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relocating to dc area
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Anonymous
I half agree/half disagree with this poster. I wouldn't count out finding a nice decent-size home in North Arlington that is move-in ready for around $600K. I know because we sold one a couple of years ago when the market was just on the edge of starting to drop that in my opinion was a gem (a 2500 square ft. four bedroom cape in great condition with nice amenities and a big yard). We priced it to sell because we were relocating and didn't have the luxury of sitting on it for a while - plus we were already happy with what we were going to make on it and didn't feel the need to get overly greedy. So, you never know what you'll find. I do agree though that they likely won't be plentiful but they are out there. I also agree with the concept of renting for a while before buying. That's what we did when we relocated out of DC and it was a really smart move instead of just jumping into something in an area we didn't really know yet. |
Anonymous
| Sure, just those 2 homes posted were teeny tiny and one badly in need of cosmetics When people say a house "just" needs cosmetic work, that cosmetic work adds up real fast. Honestly, your mortgage on one of those homes would be so much higher than renting the same thing. I certainly would not buy in this market, I think we are still headed south. I just could not imagine living in a house that cramped needing that much work and paying over half a million dollars for it. |
Anonymous
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OP--Ignore the unpleasant tone of many of these posts. People get highly emotional around here when it comes to anything to do with real estate. I agree strongly with the advice to rent first. With your budget, you will be able to find something that suits your needs, but it will necessarily involve some tradeoffs. I would rent somewhere and then really spend time looking at homes and neighborhoods and finding out what those tradeoffs will be. Find a great realtor to help you. The close-in neighborhoods, such as Arlington and Alexandria, have many desirable qualities. I live in Arlington, where the schools are great, the neighborhoods have a real family feel, and there is a lot of pedestrian life and big trees, if that makes sense. However, in your price range, you will have to buy a small house, maybe on a larger or busy street and not in walking distance to the Metro. MANY people choose to make that tradeoff because they like ths shorter commute and all of the feel of the community. Others decide that they prefer to live farther out and have more space. Also a legitimate choice. And then there are neighborhoods that I consider to be sort of in-between, like along the West Falls Church metro, which are starting to feel more urban and are still inside the Beltway, but don't have the same feel as the closer-in neighborhoods. The point is, that for your money, you have so many very different choices that I think it is wiser not to rush into anything. You also need to consider how long you plan to stay. For example, if you think a relocation is a strong possibility, the close-in neighborhoods that are metro accessible are far more likely to hold their value.
IN any case, best of luck. This is a great place to live, really! |
Anonymous
I am the pp who posted the house listing in Arlington and I also agree with this poster. I think it really depends what you are willing to live with. We bought in fall 2006 in N. Arlington. We paid $595,000 for a 3BR 1.5 bath house about 1 mile from the metro. We are in walking distance to shops, restaurants and a playground. While we did end up doing some work to the house (refinished floors, new tile in the kitchen and basement, painting of most of the rooms), it was definitely all cosmetic and we could have easily lived in it without doing anything. While I agree that renting might be a good idea to help you get a feel for what is out there before buying, I do think you could definitely find something decent (and some might even say nice!) in N. Arlington for $600,000. |
Anonymous
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Those houses were priced about right overall. If you go further west, you will find prices come down a bit (Waverly Hills is pretty expensive).
You won't find a perfect house in Arlington for $600k. Move off the metro and prices come down. Move over the border to Falls Church, and prices come down. Arlington is very expensive. |
Anonymous
South Arlington is not, eg Shirlington. |
Anonymous
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Not to hijack the thread (okay - I'm hijacking but just a little bit):
Approximately same parameters but no dogs AND my husband will work in Bethesda and I will work PT near the Ballston metro stop. Where will be most convenient for us both keeping in mind that we would like to remain a 1 car family? Thanks! |
Anonymous
tough one, so many possibilities so the choices will be very personal. i'd definitely rent a condo (since you don't need a yard for dog) in either bethesda, arlington, or nw dc (in the middle) first to figure things out. he needs red line, you need orange line, changing trains is no fun for your destinations. |
Anonymous
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I second the idea of renting first, look around, get to know the suburban neighborhoods and then buy. We rent a condo in Reston, VA, where the prices are lower than in Arlington. The commute take about 35 min. if traffic is good, but during rush hours it takes us an hour using the toll road (267) and the GW pky. Avoid R.66!
Welcome to the area! |
Anonymous
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We live in Reston and love it. There are definitely nice SFH for around 600K. Also - Reston is very family focused and always seems to have some festival or other activity going on. There are plenty of parks and lots and lots of trails. Also, some small lakes within Reston.
My husband commutes to Crystal City every day and takes the bus. The commute is less than an hour normally and he loves not fighting traffic. Fairfax county has a great bus system for commuters and there are a couple of free park 'n' ride parking lots in Reston. I'm due with out first child next month and we're really glad we moved to Reston a few years ago. There is so much to do as a family. |
Anonymous
| Poster 11:46 here. Completely agree with above restonian poster. I moved to Reston when I was single, my boyfriend used to say that R was far away, but after several trips he started to like it and...yes, we moved together as a married couple to another condo. I'm due with our first child in three months and I look forward to leaving in a house. |
Anonymous
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To the Bethesda - Ballston family:
We had a setup like that as a one-car family and found it too stressful. Whoever had the car (me) had to do all the errands, and I inevitably got home to a house with no milk. In the end, we bought a cheap second car that was good enough for backup. Saved the marriage. To the OP: If you are a city girl, and are even thinking about down town, I think Reston is not for you. It is lovely there, but it is an outer suburb. Like Bridgewater or Bethpage are to NYC, or Lake County is to Chicago. F-A-R |
Anonymous
This isn't accurate. There are some really great public schools in the City of Alexandria. Admittedly, there are some that aren't great, but I thought the ones in Del Ray were pretty good. |
Anonymous
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Hi OP,
Look, I just found two more homes meeting your broad requirements (none walkable to metro tho)... http://franklymls.com/AR6904071 2/1/1 Colonial, 6,250 sf @ $600K (i personally think it's insane but whatever, it's just a number) http://franklymls.com/AR6880691 5/2/0 Cape Cod, 5,000 sf @ $600K (down from $650K, but again whatever) BTW, this home that was listed @ $529K couple days ago, is now $509K! It's got 'distressed' written all over it so I'm pretty sure you can knock another $20K off IN ADDITION TO getting $5K-10K closing help: http://franklymls.com/AR6895210 good luck! (i think by now it's pretty clear that i do nothing but surfing RE sites most of the day...) |