Is there an alternative DCUM-like forum for non-rich?

[Anonymous]

I agree OP! Though I am convinced that at least half of the high income people on here are lying. The other half are obsessed with money, having more, not having enough, etc.

[Anonymous]

What I can't comprehend are the back-and-forth insults about zip codes!! Or the horrible comments about Hispanic people(one comment was, "I just hope you can deal with it when your daughter goes to prom with Juan!" to someone considering South Arlington), and about kids on reduced-price or free lunches at the schools. I am from lily-white Iowa, went to prom with Ricardo, and would have gotten a free lunch if it was available, by the way. Do these posters realize that essentially what they are saying is that unless you are white and wealthy, you're crap? And you don't dare let your kids go anywhere near kids who aren't rich and white, lest they end up on the road to ruin?

[Anonymous]

Hey - we make around $200K HHI and our house is assessed at $850K. We bought in late 90s though. Anyway, I find the comments about race, high incomes and the snooty-ism amusing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most of the people on this forum are not rich. They just act like they are. Fantasy life.

lmao, true

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What I can't comprehend are the back-and-forth insults about zip codes!! Or the horrible comments about Hispanic people(one comment was, "I just hope you can deal with it when your daughter goes to prom with Juan!" to someone considering South Arlington), and about kids on reduced-price or free lunches at the schools. I am from lily-white Iowa, went to prom with Ricardo, and would have gotten a free lunch if it was available, by the way. Do these posters realize that essentially what they are saying is that unless you are white and wealthy, you're crap? And you don't dare let your kids go anywhere near kids who aren't rich and white, lest they end up on the road to ruin?

agreed

[Anonymous]

I like the NoVA forum on CityData for a more middle class perspective.

[Anonymous]

OP, instead of bitching and whining about not being rich, why don't you do something about it?

Cut off cable, rent out a room, stop buying starbucks, offer $45 dollar hand-jobs in the Harris Teeter car park, and sell your kidney?

[Anonymous]

I think there are probably lots of us non-rich on here. My house is worth - get this - $200k! PG county, outside the beltway. But if you want to get a feel of how out of touch people can be about what is "normal," go hang out in the Private School forum. We've got a kid in private so I check that forum out, too...and its almost (almost) funny.

If I ended up moving back to the DC area, I would strongly consider buying in PG. There are some close-in areas with plenty of space. I could use the savings from housing to pay for private school if public schools didn't work for me (not to mention there are a handful excellent schools and charters). I also think there is a lot of room for real estate prices to grow as people get priced out of other close-in suburbs, making it a decent investment in the long run.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What I can't comprehend are the back-and-forth insults about zip codes!! Or the horrible comments about Hispanic people(one comment was, "I just hope you can deal with it when your daughter goes to prom with Juan!" to someone considering South Arlington), and about kids on reduced-price or free lunches at the schools. I am from lily-white Iowa, went to prom with Ricardo, and would have gotten a free lunch if it was available, by the way. Do these posters realize that essentially what they are saying is that unless you are white and wealthy, you're crap? And you don't dare let your kids go anywhere near kids who aren't rich and white, lest they end up on the road to ruin?

You must be also new to DCUM?

[Anonymous]

I bought two homes over the last 10 years.

I did not use DCUM AT ALL for anything real estate related. Though growing up in the area and renting for many years--I had a good idea of which neighborhoods I wanted.

I used Homedatabase.com and a realtor...the second time around franklymls.com was my best friend.

I wouldn't give too much weight to opinions on neighborhoods on this forum. You can definitely ask questions--but take answers with a grain of salt and get out and spend some time in those places yourself.

If you can narrow down some places on your own--search zips, get knowledgable, go to open houses and if you are still completely lost talk with a realtor.

[Anonymous]

There are plenty of us out here, OP. A couple of years ago I bought a house under $600K in North Arlington. I'm sure the sh*tshack poster would call it a sh*tshack. I love my house, though, and put up with it being older and not large because I like being closer to the city. I will never be able to afford new build, not anywhere I'd want to live, because I simply don't have $400K to knock my current house down and put up something else, and probably never will. I'm ok with that, though.

I hate that a couple of vocal new-build boosters here can overshadow the many of us who are perfectly happy with our older/renovated homes. They seem to think "new" is the way everyone lives, but when I read home magazines (like Better Homes & Gardens, not the super high-end ones), they showcase older homes with lots of character. Those homes are all over the country. All over the country, people are living happily in older, renovated homes. Some of the nicest, most desirable, most expensive neighborhoods in my Midwestern hometown are stately older homes, and the "cool" neighborhoods are also full of older homes. The new developments tend to be way out in the burbs there too.

And yes, if you do have a lower (compared to some) housing budget here, you do have to make sacrifices. For some, it means moving to Woodbridge for a big new house. For others, it means living in a smaller, older home in Arlington and doing work on it over the years. Life is all about compromises.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There are plenty of us out here, OP. A couple of years ago I bought a house under $600K in North Arlington. I'm sure the sh*tshack poster would call it a sh*tshack. I love my house, though, and put up with it being older and not large because I like being closer to the city. I will never be able to afford new build, not anywhere I'd want to live, because I simply don't have $400K to knock my current house down and put up something else, and probably never will. I'm ok with that, though.

I hate that a couple of vocal new-build boosters here can overshadow the many of us who are perfectly happy with our older/renovated homes. They seem to think "new" is the way everyone lives, but when I read home magazines (like Better Homes & Gardens, not the super high-end ones), they showcase older homes with lots of character. Those homes are all over the country. All over the country, people are living happily in older, renovated homes. Some of the nicest, most desirable, most expensive neighborhoods in my Midwestern hometown are stately older homes, and the "cool" neighborhoods are also full of older homes. The new developments tend to be way out in the burbs there too.

And yes, if you do have a lower (compared to some) housing budget here, you do have to make sacrifices. For some, it means moving to Woodbridge for a big new house. For others, it means living in a smaller, older home in Arlington and doing work on it over the years. Life is all about compromises.

The ones living in houses with charm posted here.
http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/355754.page

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm with you OP. This real estate board seems even more out of touch than others on DCUM. I've seen people say that if your budget is less than 700k, there's no point in living anywhere closer in than Fredricksburg unless you're looking for a condo. And the definition of sh*tshack is just ridiculous.

We're looking to buy at 400 or less and our HHI is about 200k, and no, we're not going for a condo. Right now, we're looking at Huntington or Hyattsville. Some of the public schools in Huntington seem okay, but for Hyatt, we'd definitely be looking at church-based private school. The few times I've posted on here, responses have not been helpful.

Glad to hear you are looking in Hyattsville. I live here. There is a great sense of community esp. If your children are younger, vine crawls, babysitting coops, game nights. Look for the schools to change some as time goes on, maybe not a 10 on great schools, but a 7-8.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, instead of bitching and whining about not being rich, why don't you do something about it?

Cut off cable, rent out a room, stop buying starbucks, offer $45 dollar hand-jobs in the Harris Teeter car park, and sell your kidney?

OK, you had me seeing red there for a minute...until your last two, when I realized you were being sarcastic.

[Anonymous]

speaking of houses under $500K: I like to see what is available in the more sought after school districts in the lower price ranges sometimes. I came across this one in Woodson, right around the corner from Olde Creek ES.

http://franklymls.com/FX8255521