Moving to DC area with 4 year old--help with places to live/schools
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Anonymous
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HELP! Moving to DC area around Sept 1 and need a crash course in neighborhood/school options.
Some details: * will rent, not buy * rent up to $4K/mo OK * have small dog * spouse working in DC (near WH, Lincoln Memorial) * would like to limit commute to less than 1 hr each way, door to door * looking for family-oriented neighborhood--lots of parks, pools, other kids, etc. On school, 4 YO DD has been in a Montessori program and is doing well. Would like to continue with Montessori, but have some concerns: * Availability of spaces for Sept 1-15 start * Must be friendly/warm environment (not a "cold" Montessori program) * Will attending a private school for her 4-year old year cause problems in getting admitted to another K or 1st grade program in a few years? Any help appreciated! Neighborhood and school recommendations/thoughts would be great! TIA. |
Anonymous
| I've heard good things about Northeast Stars Montessori in my neighborhood, Capitol Hill. You could try to lottery into Cap Hill Montessori next year, though there are no guarantees. But living right in DC is great, especially for your spouse. |
Anonymous
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Your budget is enough to live pretty much anywere you want, so don't worry about that part. The dog will be tricky though. Most landlords are reluctant to rent to pet owners.
You'll get better advice on the school issue in the School Forums on this site than in the Real Estate Agent, Er, Real Estate Forum, though. Good luck. |
Anonymous
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Forget DC - only about 500,000 people live in DC (it's teeny tiny). 4 Million people live around the beltway - you want to live inside the beltway to have a commute under an hour.
Are good public schools important? If so, consider bethesda/chevy chase Maryland, or almost anywhere in Northern virginia except for Arlington, Alexandria, or Annandale (the 3 A's!). McLean is wonderful - that would be my top pick, followed by maybe Bethesda. The commute would be shorter on the metro if living in VA too because the WH is on the orange and blue line - from MD (montgomery county) - that's the red line. |
Anonymous
| Arlington County is under an hour commute easily, either by bus, car or metro. Arl Co has a county Montessori program and I believe it is free for K kids. I hear good things about it and it is not cold. You have to pay if you are 3 and 4. Google Arlington County, VA public schools. Also has several private Montessori schools. Look for homes near neighborhood parks or in a walkable area. You could get a house for this price. In fact, saw a cute one for rent on the corner of Madison and 19th in 22205, but couldn't find it on Zillow. |
Anonymous
| Are you looking for an SFH or a condo or a townhome? Do you want to have a nice outdoor space and are you willing to maintain it? Are you looking for urban neighborhood, to be able to walk everywhere and take PT or more of a suburban setting and don't mind to drive? Most areas with good schools are in the suburbs, but if you are here temporarily and are only interested in public elementary schools, there are more urban neighborhoods to choose from. As far as amenities for kids, you don't need to go into the suburbs for that, but if you desire more privacy, larger space and a yard, you'd need to look in nearby suburbs in VA and MD, preferably on metro line. Is you DH near Foggy bottom metro stop? |
AroundTheBlock
Member Location: Washington DC Area
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Member Location: Washington DC Area
Offline
| Check out McLean, Falls Church, North Arlington and Alexandria (Old Town). There are great rental options for your family and all have excellent schools including Montessori. I would avoid living in DC, but depending on your life style it may suit. |
Husband & Father
Anonymous
| I recommend Evergreen School (Montessori) in Silver Spring! |
Anonymous
| Many many good schools inside the beltway. ARLINGTON is good (North Arlington is generally ranked higher than South Arlington), as is McLean, Falls Church City, Bethesda. Hopefully we can help the OP and this will not devolve in another school fight. |
Anonymous
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+1 for Evergreen (there is another good one in Bethesda, name isn't coming to me.) On that budget you can get into a good SFH in a neighborhood in SS or Bethesda. Most privates intake is in K, so no issues there. Bethesda and SS both get you into good ES programs in Montgomery County, Bethesda would be a better bet long term for public schools.
Commute to WH is about 30 minutes by car from either location. |
Anonymous
| Palisades Montessori is still accepting applications, you could totally rent for the price range, and the public elementary in that neighborhood (Palisades neighborhood, Key School) is awesome should you decide to change. Commute would be less than 30 min to the WH. Why unnecessarily prolong the commute? Keep it easy. |
Anonymous
Not that easy - what metro stop is there??? Mclean is near the orange line, which is a straight shot to work for DH (to mcpherson square from west falls). The palisades blow - its all residential around there. It's like noman's land inside the DC limits - sort of like north 16th street. just forget DC OP. That's my opinion. |
Anonymous
| If you want an apartment check out woodley park. Good public Es, short commute, Aidan Montessori is right there |
Anonymous
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Thank you all so much! Please keep the ideas coming!
Here's some additional info for those who asked: * prefer SFH instead of townhome * prefer "suburban" to "urban" feel, though it would be nice to have some places to eat and amenities in walking distance * really would like yard/outdoor space * closest Metro stop will be Farragut West * pools, parks, tennis opportunities all very important to us--private club OK if not too pricey * will probably choose private schools initially, but would like to be in good public school area in case we stay long-term |
Anonymous
The OP did not mention needing metro, did she? Palisades has a supermarket, restaurants, dry cleaners, cafes, shops. You can walk or bike in to Georgetown or along the canal, and the D busses go downtown. It also has an excellent public elementary school and easy access to top privates, should she consider them. Oh, and the local Montessori is still accepting applications. Easy access to both MD and VA, although that's hardly necessary. Avoid the burbs if you can. DC traffic is a nightmare. |