Looking to buy SFH in good neighborhood. Seeking recommendations. New Job is in Gaithersburg, MD

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some people love the Kentlands. If possible drive thru and see for yourself. I get the appeal but I need more space! Also it would not be the school district I would choose. Several new restaurants in the Kentlands area and lots of community spirit.

I personally would look in 20878. In your price range, you are probably looking to the areas north of Travilah elementary to the west and east of Muddy Branch. You could get a SFH in that price range. That would also put you in Wootton which draws a premium in real estate and is a good school but a bit of a pressure cooker. Other homes nearby may zone to quince orchard high school which does not score as high test wise but is a bit more relaxed. Both are good schools and part of MCPS. There has been some talk of redistricting but I haven’t heard many updates lately - maybe on hold because of Covid. If you wanted more land you could go south in 20878 or 20854 for bigger lots, but probably not in your price range.

What's wrong with the school district? It's no worse than the rest of MCPS or the other local districts.

Also, we have pretty large (5,000 sqft) SFHs in Kentlands. Even the townhouses can be 3,000 sqft.

Also, do you realize Kentlands is in 20878? Hilarious ...

Why so defensive about Kentlands?
Let me be clearer - my suggestion (which you can agree with or not) would be the parts of 20878 that zone to Wootton. I also made it clear that QO is less of a pressure cooker if that’s a better fit for OP.

Not being defensive -- just pointing out the inaccuracies in your post.

Also, there's a long trend in this forum of being anti-Kentlands and pretending there's a quality difference between Wootton and QO, when there really isn't.

I disagree with this. From the community involvement in my area opposing the Board of Education considering rezoning some of the area we’ve mentioned from Woottoon to QO, I am not alone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Clarksburg is the most diverse neighborhood in the county, and safest. You can get a new construction home for less than 750k.

OP asked for something close to an urban center. Clarksburg is way way out there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Greenbelt. Takoma Park. Glen Echo. Frederick.

? traffic would be a nightmare. You would be going with traffic on 270, and 495 would be horrible, too. You could take 200 toll road I suppose.

Someone coming from Cupertino is going to want their neighbors to be smart, quirky, and probably liberal. They are going to appreciate heritage homes. They are used to a certain type of green space. People who work at AstraZeneca in G'burg live in all of these cities. Especially with WFH options.

[Anonymous]

What about Olney? You can get a really nice house for that price.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some people love the Kentlands. If possible drive thru and see for yourself. I get the appeal but I need more space! Also it would not be the school district I would choose. Several new restaurants in the Kentlands area and lots of community spirit.

I personally would look in 20878. In your price range, you are probably looking to the areas north of Travilah elementary to the west and east of Muddy Branch. You could get a SFH in that price range. That would also put you in Wootton which draws a premium in real estate and is a good school but a bit of a pressure cooker. Other homes nearby may zone to quince orchard high school which does not score as high test wise but is a bit more relaxed. Both are good schools and part of MCPS. There has been some talk of redistricting but I haven’t heard many updates lately - maybe on hold because of Covid. If you wanted more land you could go south in 20878 or 20854 for bigger lots, but probably not in your price range.

What's wrong with the school district? It's no worse than the rest of MCPS or the other local districts.

Also, we have pretty large (5,000 sqft) SFHs in Kentlands. Even the townhouses can be 3,000 sqft.

The lots in the Kentlands are too small for me, not the houses. It’s a nice area - but it’s not for everyone.

DP.. trust me.. lot sizes in Cupertino aren't very big, either. About 5000sqft

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Greenbelt. Takoma Park. Glen Echo. Frederick.

? traffic would be a nightmare. You would be going with traffic on 270, and 495 would be horrible, too. You could take 200 toll road I suppose.

Someone coming from Cupertino is going to want their neighbors to be smart, quirky, and probably liberal. They are going to appreciate heritage homes. They are used to a certain type of green space. People who work at AstraZeneca in G'burg live in all of these cities. Especially with WFH options.

You don't know Cupertiono. That area is not quirky or have any heritage homes, nor does that area have much green space, for the most part.

-former Sunnyvale/Cupertino resident

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some people love the Kentlands. If possible drive thru and see for yourself. I get the appeal but I need more space! Also it would not be the school district I would choose. Several new restaurants in the Kentlands area and lots of community spirit.

I personally would look in 20878. In your price range, you are probably looking to the areas north of Travilah elementary to the west and east of Muddy Branch. You could get a SFH in that price range. That would also put you in Wootton which draws a premium in real estate and is a good school but a bit of a pressure cooker. Other homes nearby may zone to quince orchard high school which does not score as high test wise but is a bit more relaxed. Both are good schools and part of MCPS. There has been some talk of redistricting but I haven’t heard many updates lately - maybe on hold because of Covid. If you wanted more land you could go south in 20878 or 20854 for bigger lots, but probably not in your price range.

What's wrong with the school district? It's no worse than the rest of MCPS or the other local districts.

Also, we have pretty large (5,000 sqft) SFHs in Kentlands. Even the townhouses can be 3,000 sqft.

Also, do you realize Kentlands is in 20878? Hilarious ...

Why so defensive about Kentlands?
Let me be clearer - my suggestion (which you can agree with or not) would be the parts of 20878 that zone to Wootton. I also made it clear that QO is less of a pressure cooker if that’s a better fit for OP.

Not being defensive -- just pointing out the inaccuracies in your post.

Also, there's a long trend in this forum of being anti-Kentlands and pretending there's a quality difference between Wootton and QO, when there really isn't.

I disagree with this. From the community involvement in my area opposing the Board of Education considering rezoning some of the area we’ve mentioned from Woottoon to QO, I am not alone.

Umm ... people opposing their kids going to QO (because, let's be honest, they don't want their kids going to school with poor brown and black kids) doesn't mean there's any real difference in quality between the schools.

It means people are racist. Let's be frank about that.

[Anonymous]

I'd recommend my neighborhood (Wildwood), near Walter Johnson HS. It would be a reverse commute and is really close to 270, so probably 15-20 minutes, tops.

[Anonymous]

Not Urbana too far and schools are not diverse.

Frederick same no. Commute will not be pleasant.

Kentlands is nice but schools are having some boundary changes and just ok. Kentlands is a planned community very nice, but construction on homes iffy. But there are playgrounds, pools, easy walking to shops. Lots of people love it , I’d do private school. Main HS is Quince Orchard, which is ok.

Rockville, North Potomac both fine. Even older parts of Potomac near Cold Spring elementary. Look for Wootton, Churchill, Richard Montgomery High School-clusters. Yes these can be over the top (pushy parents)but for public education all good.

No to NW high school or Seneca Valley and Montgomery Village.

Yes I’m biased I own that. Education one thing no one can ever take away.

Parts of Gaithersburg now called North Potomac. That gets a little confusing, which is why you should look up high school clusters and see where lower schools feed into.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some people love the Kentlands. If possible drive thru and see for yourself. I get the appeal but I need more space! Also it would not be the school district I would choose. Several new restaurants in the Kentlands area and lots of community spirit.

I personally would look in 20878. In your price range, you are probably looking to the areas north of Travilah elementary to the west and east of Muddy Branch. You could get a SFH in that price range. That would also put you in Wootton which draws a premium in real estate and is a good school but a bit of a pressure cooker. Other homes nearby may zone to quince orchard high school which does not score as high test wise but is a bit more relaxed. Both are good schools and part of MCPS. There has been some talk of redistricting but I haven’t heard many updates lately - maybe on hold because of Covid. If you wanted more land you could go south in 20878 or 20854 for bigger lots, but probably not in your price range.

What's wrong with the school district? It's no worse than the rest of MCPS or the other local districts.

Also, we have pretty large (5,000 sqft) SFHs in Kentlands. Even the townhouses can be 3,000 sqft.

Also, do you realize Kentlands is in 20878? Hilarious ...

Why so defensive about Kentlands?
Let me be clearer - my suggestion (which you can agree with or not) would be the parts of 20878 that zone to Wootton. I also made it clear that QO is less of a pressure cooker if that’s a better fit for OP.

Not being defensive -- just pointing out the inaccuracies in your post.

Also, there's a long trend in this forum of being anti-Kentlands and pretending there's a quality difference between Wootton and QO, when there really isn't.

I disagree with this. From the community involvement in my area opposing the Board of Education considering rezoning some of the area we’ve mentioned from Woottoon to QO, I am not alone.

Umm ... people opposing their kids going to QO (because, let's be honest, they don't want their kids going to school with poor brown and black kids) doesn't mean there's any real difference in quality between the schools.

It means people are racist. Let's be frank about that.

We’ll agree to disagree. Test scores don’t lie. IMO Wootton students are much more competitive, focused and stressed, it’s both good and bad but there are differences.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some people love the Kentlands. If possible drive thru and see for yourself. I get the appeal but I need more space! Also it would not be the school district I would choose. Several new restaurants in the Kentlands area and lots of community spirit.

I personally would look in 20878. In your price range, you are probably looking to the areas north of Travilah elementary to the west and east of Muddy Branch. You could get a SFH in that price range. That would also put you in Wootton which draws a premium in real estate and is a good school but a bit of a pressure cooker. Other homes nearby may zone to quince orchard high school which does not score as high test wise but is a bit more relaxed. Both are good schools and part of MCPS. There has been some talk of redistricting but I haven’t heard many updates lately - maybe on hold because of Covid. If you wanted more land you could go south in 20878 or 20854 for bigger lots, but probably not in your price range.

What's wrong with the school district? It's no worse than the rest of MCPS or the other local districts.

Also, we have pretty large (5,000 sqft) SFHs in Kentlands. Even the townhouses can be 3,000 sqft.

The lots in the Kentlands are too small for me, not the houses. It’s a nice area - but it’s not for everyone.

DP.. trust me.. lot sizes in Cupertino aren't very big, either. About 5000sqft

But we’re not in Cupertino. So no need to buy a small lot unless that’s what you like.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some people love the Kentlands. If possible drive thru and see for yourself. I get the appeal but I need more space! Also it would not be the school district I would choose. Several new restaurants in the Kentlands area and lots of community spirit.

I personally would look in 20878. In your price range, you are probably looking to the areas north of Travilah elementary to the west and east of Muddy Branch. You could get a SFH in that price range. That would also put you in Wootton which draws a premium in real estate and is a good school but a bit of a pressure cooker. Other homes nearby may zone to quince orchard high school which does not score as high test wise but is a bit more relaxed. Both are good schools and part of MCPS. There has been some talk of redistricting but I haven’t heard many updates lately - maybe on hold because of Covid. If you wanted more land you could go south in 20878 or 20854 for bigger lots, but probably not in your price range.

What's wrong with the school district? It's no worse than the rest of MCPS or the other local districts.

Also, we have pretty large (5,000 sqft) SFHs in Kentlands. Even the townhouses can be 3,000 sqft.

The lots in the Kentlands are too small for me, not the houses. It’s a nice area - but it’s not for everyone.

DP.. trust me.. lot sizes in Cupertino aren't very big, either. About 5000sqft

But we’re not in Cupertino. So no need to buy a small lot unless that’s what you like.

? But OP is coming from Cuptertino which has small lots, and OP didn't say OP wanted large lots. Some people don't like large lots because it means more maintenance.

I like my large lot, but I know not everyone does.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not Urbana too far and schools are not diverse.

Frederick same no. Commute will not be pleasant.

Kentlands is nice but schools are having some boundary changes and just ok. Kentlands is a planned community very nice, but construction on homes iffy. But there are playgrounds, pools, easy walking to shops. Lots of people love it , I’d do private school. Main HS is Quince Orchard, which is ok.

Rockville, North Potomac both fine. Even older parts of Potomac near Cold Spring elementary. Look for Wootton, Churchill, Richard Montgomery High School-clusters. Yes these can be over the top (pushy parents)but for public education all good.

No to NW high school or Seneca Valley and Montgomery Village.

Yes I’m biased I own that. Education one thing no one can ever take away.

Parts of Gaithersburg now called North Potomac. That gets a little confusing, which is why you should look up high school clusters and see where lower schools feed into.

+1
Decide what schools you want first and go from there.

[Anonymous]

"We’ll agree to disagree. Test scores don’t lie. IMO Wootton students are much more competitive, focused and stressed, it’s both good and bad but there are differences."

Show me evidence that white and Asian kids at Wootton do better than white and Asian kids at QOHS.

The reality is they don't. The reason the overall test scores are lower at QOHS is because it's 20% FARMS.

You can delude yourself all you want, but that's the reality.

[Anonymous]

BayAreatoMD wrote:Took a job in Gaithersburg. We're moving from Cupertino CA and looking to buy SFH. We have 2 kids in elementary school so desired neighborhood will be safe, good public school, diverse, suburban(close to urban center) and not more than 30 min commute. My spouse works from home. We're thinking not more than $750k. We've read good things about Kentlands, North Potomac and Rockville. Your recommendations are greatly appreciated.

You heard right. This may be a good time to buy.

- Germantown resident.