Moving to DC from Brooklyn-- where should we live? Buy/rent?

[Anonymous]

OK OP, I have consulted with my Brooklyn born-and-bred husband and we have determined that you should move to Mt. Pleasant. This way you could go through Rock Creek Park to Colesville Rd./Rt. 29. Rt. 29 will take your DH straight into Columbia or he could hop onto the Beltway on the other side of Silver Spring if that is more convenient.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:yeah, that's not silver spring. And Takoma Park would feel preettyy small town. The problem with the DC area is TRAFFIC. It makes LA natives blanch. Try the commute for a bit... then see what you think. My husband and I have lots of friends and fun in DC but we would rather live in Baltimore. It's cooler, really. And the houses are awesome! Great housing stock.

Much of Baltimore's housing stock is deteriorating to the point of no return.

Ignore this buffoon. He/she will say the same about anything in the District.

http://www.businessinsider.com/baltimore-has-decided-some-neighborhoods-just-arent-worth-saving-2012-2?op=1

Suck on that, you fucking moron.

[shirirb]

No ad hominems on my thread, please!

Thanks for the hope, 21:57. What about MARC from Union Station (and living near there)?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you don't have a job - rent in Columbia at first.

I think its kind of strange that you are considering a 35 mile commute TO Columbia.

I agree with this. Any 35-mile commute in the DC area is usually more than an hour. Hell, my 4-mile commute from N Arlington to Farragut is 30 minutes!

OP, I think you really have to compromise on urban feel or short commute -- it sounds like you will lean towards compromising on the commute (so it will be longer) but with a 2-year-old I would compromise on the urban feel. You can always move in closer after you get a feel for where you might be working.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are you looking for a house or an apartment? We moved from the UWS last year and now live in AU Park and love it. DC is at one of the schools you mentioned and it is so much better than NYC. Not sure what the commute is like from Friendship Heights to Columbia, but the other aspects fit.

I live in Friendship Heights and my brother lives in Columbia. It's doable if you take Western to Rock Creek Park into Silver Spring.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OK OP, I have consulted with my Brooklyn born-and-bred husband and we have determined that you should move to Mt. Pleasant. This way you could go through Rock Creek Park to Colesville Rd./Rt. 29. Rt. 29 will take your DH straight into Columbia or he could hop onto the Beltway on the other side of Silver Spring if that is more convenient.

This is a great answer. Best yet.

There is no "NYC in DC," and as Op found from previous threads, you shouldn't even try. BUT. The rowhouse blocks of Mt. Pleasant will help OP feel comfortable, assuming you like the look of Park Slope, etc.

[Anonymous]

shirirb wrote:REALLY REALLY? I have to give up and move to the suburbs? There's no reasonable alternative in DC metro?

There are lots of great areas in DC, but DC isn't 35 minutes from Columbia.

Columbia is an exurb. It's not 35 minutes from DC.

[Anonymous]

OP, I actually moved to DC from Park Slope, but that was years ago. I was single, so it was easy to move to the then-hip (and not so much any more) adams morgan.

At any rate, the thing with dc is the so-called cool neighborhoods sometimes don't have the amenities of the more suburban/ dare I say "less cool" neighborhoods. You have a child. Preschool is fine, but you really need to think about school districts if you are going to stay any longer than three years.

Some of the neighborhoods suggested are great for singletons, but not so great for kids.

I do, however, recommend that you try renting for at least six months to you. Rates could go up, but there are only so many fed decision days a year and it's really unlikely that any drastic upwards movement would happen during that short of a time frame. Plus, buying a house a year after you move would really mean starting to look six months after you move.

You need to get a feel for DC and the pros and cons of each neighborhood before making a big decision.

I have a lot of friends who bought their first house in cap hill only to move out a few years later (once the kids arrived) to places like chevy chase dc or forest hills to take advantage of better school districts and safer neighborhoods.

[Anonymous]

I agree that Mount Pleasant is probably the best option mentioned here in terms of location and neighborhood feel.

If you're looking longer term for neighborhood public schools, you might also want to consider Chevy Chase DC. The parts closest to Conn. Ave. are walkable, and it's a quick shot over Military to Georgia Ave., then Colesville Road/29. We drive from CCDC to Columbia a few times a year on weekdays, and it takes 35-45 minutes. You can get a 3BR/2BA semi-attached house in CCDC for $800K.

(You might also want to add Temple Sinai Nursery School to your list; it's in CCDC and is a really lovely school, generally compared favorably to the Gan.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Downtown Silver Spring is what I think would work best for you.

Glover Park seems like the worst suggestion-- not sure if that was meant for another thread because AFAIK it's not close to metro or to walkable commercial areas and would be terrible for a commute to Columbia.

Glover Park is not close to Metro and would be a terrible commute to Columbia, but WTH do you mean about no walkable commercial area? What is Wisconsin Avenue from Calvert to M Street? It is not Fort Greene or any neighborhood in BKLYN, but NO DC neighborhood is like BKLYN. I used to spit out my coffee when folks would suggest Adams Morgan - really?

OP, you have to let go. Make a list of what is important to you, then start hunting after that. I would seriously get real on how horrible the traffic is here. You are not going to find any place in DC proper that allows for a 35ish minute commute between the District and Columbia. It is just not possible. I value many of the things on your list, having lived in three cities, including NYC, before I settled in DC. But I would never swap a one-way hour commute (2 hours/day!) - or ask it of my DH - for replicating the amenities of my last home.

[Anonymous]

another vote for columbia heights. Look I'd at some of the nicer parts of the area. You'll be close to downtown if you work in DC, and it's an interesting and fun neighborhood.

[Anonymous]

Mt. Pleasant + long commute, or Baltimore. done!

[Anonymous]

Columbia? I'd find a new fucking job.

[Anonymous]

yeah, I'm dying to know what sort of job in *Columbia* would compel a New Yorker to leave NYC. I mean, I'm sure they exist, I just can't think of what compelling companies are there.

To OP, the area where Mt. Pleasant and Columbia Hts. intersect might be perfect for you. The PP was right about the logic of the commute using Rock Creek roads.

[Anonymous]

Besides a longer commute, and nightmare traffic, what does Columbia Heights offer that Silver Spring doesn't? Columbia Heights has just as many chain stores and restaurants as downtown Silver Spring.