HELP - Moving to DC and KNOW N O T H I N G

[Anonymous]

what do the nice townhouses cost in the area near Fairfax Corner Shopping Center? I cannot imagine they are much more than 2500-3000/month?

[Anonymous]

OP, we're renting a small house in a GREAT school boundary with a front and back yard and tons of kids in the neighborhood for $2500 in North Arlington. The house was built in the '50s. Commute to the White House area is about 20 minutes for 8am start time. The neighborhood is not exactly walkable, though I guess we could walk to the East Falls Church metro that's a mile away. Don't let everyone freak you out. You won't be living in as luxurious a house as (it sounds like) you're living in now, but it's definitely doable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Also, you when you hear people on this forum talk about this "preschools" most are talking about expensive hard-to-get-in preschools. I send my 3 year old to a daycare/preschool and there was not a huge wait list. So, you can certainly find "daycare" that I feel can be just as good as preschools, without that much trouble. But, it is expensive that's for sure. My son's daycare costs $1300/month, but it full day.

I live in Falls Church, near the metro. It's a fantastic place to live and you could probably find something to rent in your price range. Excellent schools and a new daycare just opened up a couple of months ago. I don't know much about it, except it's close to my pediatrician's office! Good luck and welcome!

What new daycare are you referring to? I'm a new poster but I'm in the market for a new daycare.

[csabdalla]

Okay, for the PP who said I should stay in Detroit and suck it up with the inlaws. I have sucked it up with the inlays for more than 10 years, I live with them and live within a 1 mile radius of the rest. My husband is the youngest but the go-to guy for his whole family and I am S I C K TO D E A T H of it. At this point, moving to the other side of town isn't far enough. I need to move us somewhere that's more than just a simple car ride away, not just for me but so they all can cut the damn umbilical cord and his focus can be just on our little family. THAT'S why we are not staying or else I feel like I will truly go mad. The only thing that's keeping me going is finishing up this graduate program next May and MOVING.

Okay, if I gave up the yard for a short commute would that be better? These stories of monster traffic i believe and experienced when we visited friends in Fairfax, VA. The only thing is I do NOT want to live in an apartment with 2 young boys. Know what I mean?

[Anonymous]

csabdalla wrote:Okay, for the PP who said I should stay in Detroit and suck it up with the inlaws. I have sucked it up with the inlays for more than 10 years, I live with them and live within a 1 mile radius of the rest. My husband is the youngest but the go-to guy for his whole family and I am S I C K TO D E A T H of it. At this point, moving to the other side of town isn't far enough. I need to move us somewhere that's more than just a simple car ride away, not just for me but so they all can cut the damn umbilical cord and his focus can be just on our little family. THAT'S why we are not staying or else I feel like I will truly go mad. The only thing that's keeping me going is finishing up this graduate program next May and MOVING.

Okay, if I gave up the yard for a short commute would that be better? These stories of monster traffic i believe and experienced when we visited friends in Fairfax, VA. The only thing is I do NOT want to live in an apartment with 2 young boys. Know what I mean?

look at rentals in Vienna. Not a bad commute by car (relatively speaking). Metro there already and metro coming to Tysons soon. Lots of decent houses though small. Walk and bike friendly if you are in the "town" of vienna. Great schools.

[Anonymous]

I work at the Pentagon. I've been here 4 years. I started out in Woodbridge. A 3000 sq ft home on 2 acres of land for $2500/month. Commute was draining the life out of me, though.
So we moved to Springfield. 4000 sq ft home, 1/2 acre, lawn maintence included, $3100/month. Commute was a lot better, with options. I could pick up slugs and get on the HOV, or use the Springfield metro. Nice neighborhood, but no nearby stores (not walkable, unless your talking an evening stroll watching the sunset).
The owners decided to sell the home, so we moved even closer in. Alexandria City, Cameron Station in particular. $3000/month for a 2200 sq ft townhome, patio for a backyard, but across from a park, 3 playgrounds in walking distance, community fitness center and pool. Super easy commute, shuttle to metro if I don't want to drive. I can walk to 3 restraurants, gymboree, home dept...I love it.
As far as preschools, the ones with super long wait lists are the elite ones. Others do have a waitlist, just not incredibly long, so get on them now so you have options when it comes time to choose. Full time preschool will run you $1000-$1500/month (not talking about the elite ones). Ours was $303/week.
On this board, you will read people bash Alexandria schools. I recommend looking at the websites and test scores. They are broken down by race and gender. You will find that test scores do not vary much between schools once you account for race. The schools that have the best scores do not have a large enough African American population to even have a category for them. I'd rather have my child go to a diverse school with mediocre scores than a lily white school with high scores.
For your budget, I'd look at Kingstowne (Alexandria, VA - but Fairfax County). The west side is near Springfield Mall (which isn't the best but ok), and the Springfield metro. Homes here are older and cheaper. The east side is closer to the Van Dorn metro station, and all the newer shops & restraurants. Homes are nwere but cost a little more. Almost all neighborhoods in Kingstowne have a pool and multiple playgrounds. Schools are Fairfax County and generally good.
You can also try Mt. Vernon area. Their schools get a bad rap too, but they are not as bad as the talk is. Most homes are older, but have nice yards. You can easily commute up GW parkway or metro from Huntington metro station. In general, the closer to Mt. Vernon proper and the water, the nicer the neighborhood. We almost bought there, so we tried the commute. It was 25-30 minutes from just south of Mt Vernon actual to the Pentgaon using GW Parkway leaving at 7:30 AM.
As other PPs have written, fed offices are all over the place. So you need to figure out exactly where in order to make the best decision for your family.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you're comfortable with a condo/apt rental then you could find something closer-in (e.g. Courthouse, Rosslyn etc.), but if you're looking for a TH/SFH then check out the last two stops of the Blue or Orange lines in VA and see if you can get something with shuttle/bus distance from the metro.

Driving in from the further 'burbs into central DC is a nightmare.

Check out Courthouse Hill in Courthouse. Great townhomes right next to the metro which are fairly cheap to rent given the area. They are brick townhomes. The public schools are pheomenal and so many great parks, restaurants, shops, etc. I would also look at rentals in "Lyon PArk' and "Ashton heights". I think people woudl be surprised what they could get as a rental. We rented a home in Lyon Village (which is the most expensive in this location) and we got a nice big 2 bedroom, renovated for right at 3k....so you could definitly find somethign in the $2k-2.5k/month range.

Don't write off an area based on these responses. Some ppl are definitely confusing 'cost to buy' vs 'cost to rent'. Some of these ppl don't have a mortgage on these expensive homes anymore and look for quality of renter over insane rental $.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you're comfortable with a condo/apt rental then you could find something closer-in (e.g. Courthouse, Rosslyn etc.), but if you're looking for a TH/SFH then check out the last two stops of the Blue or Orange lines in VA and see if you can get something with shuttle/bus distance from the metro.

Driving in from the further 'burbs into central DC is a nightmare.

Check out Courthouse Hill in Courthouse. Great townhomes right next to the metro which are fairly cheap to rent given the area. They are brick townhomes. The public schools are pheomenal and so many great parks, restaurants, shops, etc. I would also look at rentals in "Lyon PArk' and "Ashton heights". I think people woudl be surprised what they could get as a rental. We rented a home in Lyon Village (which is the most expensive in this location) and we got a nice big 2 bedroom, renovated for right at 3k....so you could definitly find somethign in the $2k-2.5k/month range.

Don't write off an area based on these responses. Some ppl are definitely confusing 'cost to buy' vs 'cost to rent'. Some of these ppl don't have a mortgage on these expensive homes anymore and look for quality of renter over insane rental $.

Also--- craigslist is one of the best rental resources. WE own a home in NW that we rent and we use craigslist to find all of our tenants. FWIW, you can get a w bedroom in Georgetown rental for $3500...and that is the most expensive neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Hi Cherine,

You mentioned that you're looking for a laid-back place to live near the water. Reston is an area you might want to check out. It's an older, planned community with a lot of trees, walking trails and several lakes. To drive to DC, you can take the toll road, 267.

I don't see any waterfront 3-bedroom rental properties on the market under $2,500/month, but I see a townhouse listed for $2,300 near the water.

Monica Florio, Realtor
Licensed in Virginia
Long & Foster Fair Oaks Office
13135 Lee Jackson Highway, Suite 100
Fairfax, VA 22033
[phone]

[Anonymous]

Agree with the pp who says you really need to know where you'll be working - federal agencies has locations all over the area, so you could work for HHS and be downtown (w/in walking distance of the metro), in Rockville, or Silver Spring, for example. DOE, you could be downtown or in Gathersburg.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hi Cherine,

You mentioned that you're looking for a laid-back place to live near the water. Reston is an area you might want to check out. It's an older, planned community with a lot of trees, walking trails and several lakes. To drive to DC, you can take the toll road, 267.

I don't see any waterfront 3-bedroom rental properties on the market under $2,500/month, but I see a townhouse listed for $2,300 near the water.

My sister lived in Reston for years and loved it. But her husband worked in Reston. I personally like Reston, its really well planned. However, there are no mass transit options, and the commute will be hellish.

[Anonymous]

OP - are you and your husband actually being relocated to DC for your jobs, or are you just choosing DC because of the fed govt presence and potential job options? Do you work for the feds now? I guess what I'm getting at is, "why DC" over another city that would be more affordable and closer to your current lifestyle. For example, what about Chicago?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Also, you when you hear people on this forum talk about this "preschools" most are talking about expensive hard-to-get-in preschools. I send my 3 year old to a daycare/preschool and there was not a huge wait list. So, you can certainly find "daycare" that I feel can be just as good as preschools, without that much trouble. But, it is expensive that's for sure. My son's daycare costs $1300/month, but it full day.

I live in Falls Church, near the metro. It's a fantastic place to live and you could probably find something to rent in your price range. Excellent schools and a new daycare just opened up a couple of months ago. I don't know much about it, except it's close to my pediatrician's office! Good luck and welcome!

What new daycare are you referring to? I'm a new poster but I'm in the market for a new daycare.

I don't know anything about it except that it is full day but for over two years of age. This is the number [phone]. It's called Falls Church Preschool and Daycare and it is on Virginia Avenue (it's pretty close to Northern Virginia Pediatrics).

[Anonymous]

Federal Agencies can be all around the DC metro area - DC, NOVA, and MD. You want to find out where you will be working before finding a place to live. You don't want to move to Reston and find out your office is in Beltsville.

Your wish list is the same as everyone else and you can surely get it all - of course you need to your HHI.

Preschools in Arlington are hard to get into not because they are "elite" but because there are so many kids that want to go and not enough spaces. (Keep in mind that child care centers that have a preschool room are not the same as actual preschools in the area in terms of admissions and space available)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Hi Cherine,

You mentioned that you're looking for a laid-back place to live near the water. Reston is an area you might want to check out. It's an older, planned community with a lot of trees, walking trails and several lakes. To drive to DC, you can take the toll road, 267.

I don't see any waterfront 3-bedroom rental properties on the market under $2,500/month, but I see a townhouse listed for $2,300 near the water.

My sister lived in Reston for years and loved it. But her husband worked in Reston. I personally like Reston, its really well planned. However, there are no mass transit options, and the commute will be hellish.

metro will be in Reston in a year.