Which neighborhoods to avoid in NoVa?

[Anonymous]

Hi all
Lots of threads about which are the best.... So I'm wondering which ones should we avoid while searching for a rental (we are a famy of four looking for a sfh/town/rowhouse). Ideally we want to be as close in as possible,eg Arlington. If you reply, please be specific as I'll be referencing maps.
Many thanks

[Anonymous]

What's your budget? That's going to be the biggest deciding factor.

[Anonymous]

Alexandria City (bad schools, lots of rentals have roaches)

Annandale inside the beltway (bad schools)

[Anonymous]

OP here
Our budget is $3500 max

[Anonymous]

Definitely avoid Herndon/Sterling, though you say you want to be close-in so those might not have ever been options.

[Anonymous]

Parts of Herndon (20171) are nice and with good schools and good neighborhoods, like the parts that feed into Oakton High. (I live here.)

[Anonymous]

We love Alexandria City, but I'd avoid Arlandria and focus on Del Ray/Rosemont/Beverley Hills/North Ridge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Definitely avoid Herndon/Sterling, though you say you want to be close-in so those might not have ever been options.

i don't live in Herndon, but last year it was voted by CNN/Money Magazine as a "best place to live." http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/bplive/2011/snapshots/PL5136648.html

but yeah, it's far out.

[Anonymous]

To answer your question definitively... all of them.

[Anonymous]

You could probably rent a decent (not luxury, but safe and functional) place on the budget in North Arlington. The only neighborhood I can think of that some might avoid would be Halls Hill, which has been renamed High Point Park or something similar. I wouldn't have a problem living there, but it is a historically black neighborhood which was once known for drug traffic and crime. (I think that's changed now but the perception lingers, and there are still some run down small apartment buildings there that house low income folks.) It's south of Lee Highway between George Mason and Glebe Road. But on your rental budget, you should be able to find a SFH north of Lee Highway, I would think.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You could probably rent a decent (not luxury, but safe and functional) place on the budget in North Arlington... But on your rental budget, you should be able to find a SFH north of Lee Highway, I would think.

I agree with these statements. If you want to be near Arlington, and are planning to send kids to public schools, I would only consider the areas that feed into Jamestown/Williamsburg/Yorktown or Taylor/Williamsburg/Yorktown. I would avoid the other areas, since you can afford to with that budget. We rent out our updated 3BR North Arlington house in these school districts to a family of 4 plus a dog well under your budget, so I imagine you can find others.

[Anonymous]

I would avoid Alexandria City because of schools. Love the area, but we're moving just because of that.

[Anonymous]

I would use http//www.greatschools.net to view test scores and demographics that feed that neighborhood

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You could probably rent a decent (not luxury, but safe and functional) place on the budget in North Arlington... But on your rental budget, you should be able to find a SFH north of Lee Highway, I would think.

I agree with these statements. If you want to be near Arlington, and are planning to send kids to public schools, I would only consider the areas that feed into Jamestown/Williamsburg/Yorktown or Taylor/Williamsburg/Yorktown. I would avoid the other areas, since you can afford to with that budget. We rent out our updated 3BR North Arlington house in these school districts to a family of 4 plus a dog well under your budget, so I imagine you can find others.

Are you very old or very out of date? There are no "bad" areas of North Arlington anymore. Even the area PP spoke of is being razed and luxury townhomes are being built everywhere there.

But I guess you're telling OP that "if you want to have your children go to school with only white people, go to these school pyramids" right?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You could probably rent a decent (not luxury, but safe and functional) place on the budget in North Arlington... But on your rental budget, you should be able to find a SFH north of Lee Highway, I would think.

I agree with these statements. If you want to be near Arlington, and are planning to send kids to public schools, I would only consider the areas that feed into Jamestown/Williamsburg/Yorktown or Taylor/Williamsburg/Yorktown. I would avoid the other areas, since you can afford to with that budget. We rent out our updated 3BR North Arlington house in these school districts to a family of 4 plus a dog well under your budget, so I imagine you can find others.

This is good to know. Thank you