Are Arlington Schools worth the huge mortgage I'm going to need?

[Anonymous]

Our mortgage will be at least $1600 more than it is now if we relocate to attend north Arlington schools. And our house will be small and not as nice as our current house. Everyone raves about North Arlington, but are they better than close-in Montgomery County schools? Does anyone have experience with both school districts and can offer perspective or comparison?

[Anonymous]

OP---where in close in MoCo? Bethesda/Chevy Chase or Silver Spring. Makes a difference.

[Anonymous]

What schools are you considering in each school district at the elem-middle-high levels? Have you looked at test scores for each school, as well as any other issues that matter to you (diversity, availability of foreign language or p.e. or gifted or special needs programs, etc.)?

Can your income absorb the higher mortgage? $1600/mo more is a big deal if you make $100K, it's not as big of an impact if you make $300K a year.

[Anonymous]

I'm thinking the B-C-C cluster of Montgomery County as a point of comparison. Our income can absorb the difference, but it's still a non-trivial hit on our finances.

[Anonymous]

B-CC is great. Unless you have some need to be in Arlington, or just like it better, stay in Bethesda or Chevy Chase. Moving to Arlington would be a horizontal move. Arlington offers the exact same options in IB and AP courses and the housing stock is fairly similar (but not the grand old 19th century mansions near Chevy Chase Circle). I love Arlington, and the schools are great, but don't move unless you have more compelling reasons. Enjoy the larger house in MD!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:B-CC is great. Unless you have some need to be in Arlington, or just like it better, stay in Bethesda or Chevy Chase. Moving to Arlington would be a horizontal move. Arlington offers the exact same options in IB and AP courses and the housing stock is fairly similar (but not the grand old 19th century mansions near Chevy Chase Circle). I love Arlington, and the schools are great, but don't move unless you have more compelling reasons. Enjoy the larger house in MD!

I'm 15:19. Love Arlington, love our neighborhood, love our school.

And I agree with the PP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:B-CC is great. Unless you have some need to be in Arlington, or just like it better, stay in Bethesda or Chevy Chase. Moving to Arlington would be a horizontal move. Arlington offers the exact same options in IB and AP courses and the housing stock is fairly similar (but not the grand old 19th century mansions near Chevy Chase Circle). I love Arlington, and the schools are great, but don't move unless you have more compelling reasons. Enjoy the larger house in MD!

I agree, but this works in reverse too. ie, there are some homes to be had in N. Arlington that are less expensive than some homes in lower MoCo (and not just the 30 homes near Chevy Chase Circle.).

Better question from OP is, where do you actually live now? I don't think you actually live in B-CC, do you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:B-CC is great. Unless you have some need to be in Arlington, or just like it better, stay in Bethesda or Chevy Chase. Moving to Arlington would be a horizontal move. Arlington offers the exact same options in IB and AP courses and the housing stock is fairly similar (but not the grand old 19th century mansions near Chevy Chase Circle). I love Arlington, and the schools are great, but don't move unless you have more compelling reasons. Enjoy the larger house in MD!

I'm 15:19. Love Arlington, love our neighborhood, love our school.

And I agree with the PP.

Another happy Arlingtonian agreeing with this.

[Anonymous]

There are more SFH choices on the market right now in North Arlington for under $950,000 than there are in Bethesda-Chevy Chase's boundaries. There are also more homes in N. Arlington for less than $800,000 than there are homes in BCC's boundaries for less than $800,000. I'm not sure you'll be spending more to move to N Arlington; it could be less than you'd spend to move to BCC.

[Anonymous]

I couldn't see moving to North Arlington if the B-CC area was an option. It's just a more interesting, visually attractive area, and the schools are better, too.

[Anonymous]

I think the schools are fairly equal - we picked Arlington because (a) better commute to work locations; and (b) we're assuming state school for college, and the VA state schools offer options that fit what we think will be our child's needs better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I couldn't see moving to North Arlington if the B-CC area was an option. It's just a more interesting, visually attractive area, and the schools are better, too.

I love our Arlington neighborhood and schools, but I agree that the B-CC area is more attractive and the schools are just fine.

[Anonymous]

We love Arlington. We live in S Arlington (gasp!!) and our children attend Campbell.

We could not be happier with the school and we love our neighborhood and neighbors.

Our house is pretty awesome, too.

[Anonymous]

Not sure if OP already lives in B-CC, but if not, good luck finding a house cheaper there than in N Arlington!

Agree with others posters that schools and neighborhoods in both locations are great. We ended up buying in N Arlington because it made our commutes almost 20 minutes shorter each way, plus we are also thinking about UVA someday. But, Bethesda is much more attractive on the whole (though my little enclave in Arlington looks pretty much like most of Bethesda).

[Anonymous]

We live in North Arl (Taylor, WMS, Yorktown) and love our neighborhood and commute. Both kids attended public through elementary. WMS was an awful fit for DS so he is now in a $$ private. DD is thriving at WMS luckily because I am not sure how we would swing the pricey mortgage and the 35k private. My advice is to make sure you have a cushion in your finances in case public school does not work for your DC.