Fairfax vs Arlington

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP - if you're concerned about schools, look at the school forums here. Everyone I know in Arlington County has been really unhappy with the schools. I know so many people who switched to private schools over the past two years because they are locked into low interest rates and love the location but hate the schools. I would never buy in Arlington right now - you can get much more for your money with the same, if not better, schools in Fairfax County.

+1. You really need to factor in the cost of private schools right now in Arlington. You may end up being fine with the public schools, but things are trending in the wrong direction, so it's best to budget for private schools just in case.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Speaking from personal experience as someone who had ES aged children in a townhouse -- I would NOT choose a new construction townhouse over a dated single family home. NEVER. First, your kids won't have any friends in those neighborhoods. The people buying are either young couples without children or investors who are going to rent them out to young couples without children. You'll likely have a revolving group of neighbors living in a group house situation. Second, you can EASILY find SFHs in that price range zoned to those schools or similarly rated schools. Buy an SFH in an established neighborhood so your kids can have neighborhood friends and a yard to play in. We just moved out of our townhouse into a SFH and it has made a HUGE difference in my children's lives. They go outside all the time now. The fresh air alone is worth it.

I think the townhouse situation you describe (primarily childless couples, high percentage of rentals, etc.) is more common in certain areas like along the orange metro line in Arlington. I know that a significant percentage of the $650-900K townhouses around the Ballston, Clarendon, and Rosslyn metros are owned by investors who rent them.

I see a lot of families with younger kids in townhouse communities in Fairfax and outside the areas alluded to above. In DC, obviously the vast majority of school-aged kids live in townhouses or row homes.

Moreover, I don’t think investors are buying new $900+K townhouses away from metros as rental units. At current interest rates, no sensible investor is going to spend that much money on a rental unit unless they like lighting money on fire.

If OP is going to live in a townhouse, she should move into a community that has amenities (like a pool) - those are the ones that attract families. OP - check out the townhouses near Jefferson Golf Course off of Lee Hwy/29. There are so many families in that community, that they have to send 2 school busses.

Strongly disagree with buying into a community with a pool. A pool means lots of noise, people inviting outsiders over all the time, and perhaps most importantly much higher fees due to maintenance and insurance. Townhouses without pools have fees of around $100-$150/month. So if you're looking at a townhouse with a common pool, check how much more the fee is and decide if the added cost is worth it to you.

Agreed. Townhouse communities with pools can have fees well in excess of $150/mo (up to and exceeding $300/mo), and there are plenty of community pool options that are full of kids every weekend, especially in Fairfax.

In Arlington, most of the community pools have 3-5 year waiting lists, but in Fairfax, there are a bunch of excellent community pool options with 0-2 year waiting lists. Fairfax also has one of the few year-round indoor community pool options, although it is pricey and currently has a 3 year waiting list.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Remember the the gs rating of the elementary school and poverty levels directly correlate to the neighborhood and people who live next to you so watch out for that.

Also know that Arlington rezones almost annually, so be aware of surrounding schools and don't count on your in bounds schools staying the same.

I agree with the earlier poster to buy as far north of Route 50 as possible. Anything close to Route 50, even if currently zoned for good schools, is at risk of being rezoned to lower performing schools. Pretty much all the schools in the northernmost parts of Arlington are good.

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I agree with getting as north as possible from Rt 50, but because the school age population is growing in South Arlington (but not North Arlington), it's much more likely that the kids from the south will be bussed north. I can't see the reverse happening but I do agree with your advice.

I don’t even know that north of Washington is safe.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://redf.in/qh3Uinh
https://redf.in/1nyfy4

2002, so older but great location.

Saw this one in person, it does not show well.

This has been on market for 130 days!! Something is amiss…

Weird. I lived there almost 15 years ago and sold for about that price. That is one of the smaller units with only a 1 car garage and it might be on the courtyard with the walkthrough to the shops.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Remember the the gs rating of the elementary school and poverty levels directly correlate to the neighborhood and people who live next to you so watch out for that.

Also know that Arlington rezones almost annually, so be aware of surrounding schools and don't count on your in bounds schools staying the same.

I agree with the earlier poster to buy as far north of Route 50 as possible. Anything close to Route 50, even if currently zoned for good schools, is at risk of being rezoned to lower performing schools. Pretty much all the schools in the northernmost parts of Arlington are good.

.

I agree with getting as north as possible from Rt 50, but because the school age population is growing in South Arlington (but not North Arlington), it's much more likely that the kids from the south will be bussed north. I can't see the reverse happening but I do agree with your advice.

I don’t even know that north of Washington is safe.

Safe from what? In N Arlington, neighborhoods will just move between WL and Yorktown high schools, and Swanson, Kenmore, Dorothy Hamm and Williamsburg middle schools. Nothing terribly controversial. Cardinal, Ashlawn, Glebe, Taylor ES, etc., boundaries will likely change. No schools will close. Boundary changes happen, and this is because families in the far north of the county abandoned the public schools during and right after the pandemic. So those schools are emptying out. And schools in the south are growing.

The Arlington townhouses OP is interested in is located in one of the neighborhoods in S Arlington that is growing the most.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Remember the the gs rating of the elementary school and poverty levels directly correlate to the neighborhood and people who live next to you so watch out for that.

Also know that Arlington rezones almost annually, so be aware of surrounding schools and don't count on your in bounds schools staying the same.

I agree with the earlier poster to buy as far north of Route 50 as possible. Anything close to Route 50, even if currently zoned for good schools, is at risk of being rezoned to lower performing schools. Pretty much all the schools in the northernmost parts of Arlington are good.

.

I agree with getting as north as possible from Rt 50, but because the school age population is growing in South Arlington (but not North Arlington), it's much more likely that the kids from the south will be bussed north. I can't see the reverse happening but I do agree with your advice.

I don’t even know that north of Washington is safe.

Safe from what? In N Arlington, neighborhoods will just move between WL and Yorktown high schools, and Swanson, Kenmore, Dorothy Hamm and Williamsburg middle schools. Nothing terribly controversial. Cardinal, Ashlawn, Glebe, Taylor ES, etc., boundaries will likely change. No schools will close. Boundary changes happen, and this is because families in the far north of the county abandoned the public schools during and right after the pandemic. So those schools are emptying out. And schools in the south are growing.

The Arlington townhouses OP is interested in is located in one of the neighborhoods in S Arlington that is growing the most.

Safe from being rezoned. Yes, north families have abandoned public schools, and I think I’ll be one of them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - if you're concerned about schools, look at the school forums here. Everyone I know in Arlington County has been really unhappy with the schools. I know so many people who switched to private schools over the past two years because they are locked into low interest rates and love the location but hate the schools. I would never buy in Arlington right now - you can get much more for your money with the same, if not better, schools in Fairfax County.

+1. You really need to factor in the cost of private schools right now in Arlington. You may end up being fine with the public schools, but things are trending in the wrong direction, so it's best to budget for private schools just in case.

The thing with Arlington is that there aren't many non-denominational private schools that go through 12th grade, unless you have your kid commute to DC

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP - if you're concerned about schools, look at the school forums here. Everyone I know in Arlington County has been really unhappy with the schools. I know so many people who switched to private schools over the past two years because they are locked into low interest rates and love the location but hate the schools. I would never buy in Arlington right now - you can get much more for your money with the same, if not better, schools in Fairfax County.

Strongly disagree with this as someone that actually lives in Arlington County. The boards here at dcum absolutely do not reflect my experience or the experience I hear from our neighbors. The vast majority of our neighborhood goes to APS. There isn't one kid in private school on my street, and I only can think of one in our neighborhood generally that is a hold out from COVID and is planning to come back to APS next year. This is just a ridiculous statement that you need to factor in private school costs if you want to live in Arlington. Maybe for a few "elite", especially in 22207 but it is not the experience of the majority. No schools are perfect but I prefer sticking away from the AAP stuff and am happy here and rarely hear others at our school or in our neighborhood saying differently.

[Anonymous]

Sorry it was the pp after that said you need to factor in private school costs. Responded to the wrong post but still, I just do not see this reality in my neighborhood at all and it often seems the people commenting about Arlington on these boards don't actually live here.

[Anonymous]

I would do the one feeding into fairfax HS. I feel like that school is the sweet spot - some diversity, decent ratings, not a pressure cooker, not too far out. I looked at houses feeding into carlin springs and kenmore and both were a hard pass for me. My previous house fed into Jackson and FCHS and I wasn't super comfy with that either since FCHS is pretty low in the fairfax county rankings.

[Anonymous]

All but two of the kids on our block (arlington 22207) go to public schools. (The two go to catholic schools and always have.) There are a ton of kids at each bus stop, and a constant stream of kids walking to the MS and the HS. We've been very happy with the schools from K-9th so far. The downside is that our neighborhood is very expensive. So yes, people are using private schools but its certainly not everyone all over the county.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Remember the the gs rating of the elementary school and poverty levels directly correlate to the neighborhood and people who live next to you so watch out for that.

Also know that Arlington rezones almost annually, so be aware of surrounding schools and don't count on your in bounds schools staying the same.

I agree with the earlier poster to buy as far north of Route 50 as possible. Anything close to Route 50, even if currently zoned for good schools, is at risk of being rezoned to lower performing schools. Pretty much all the schools in the northernmost parts of Arlington are good.

.

I agree with getting as north as possible from Rt 50, but because the school age population is growing in South Arlington (but not North Arlington), it's much more likely that the kids from the south will be bussed north. I can't see the reverse happening but I do agree with your advice.

I don’t even know that north of Washington is safe.

Safe from what? In N Arlington, neighborhoods will just move between WL and Yorktown high schools, and Swanson, Kenmore, Dorothy Hamm and Williamsburg middle schools. Nothing terribly controversial. Cardinal, Ashlawn, Glebe, Taylor ES, etc., boundaries will likely change. No schools will close. Boundary changes happen, and this is because families in the far north of the county abandoned the public schools during and right after the pandemic. So those schools are emptying out. And schools in the south are growing.

The Arlington townhouses OP is interested in is located in one of the neighborhoods in S Arlington that is growing the most.

Safe from being rezoned. Yes, north families have abandoned public schools, and I think I’ll be one of them.

No one in Arlington is 100% safe from being rezoned. The question is whether you are likely to be rezoned for a school that you consider to be unacceptable. (And what schools you're willing to accept is a personal decision.).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - if you're concerned about schools, look at the school forums here. Everyone I know in Arlington County has been really unhappy with the schools. I know so many people who switched to private schools over the past two years because they are locked into low interest rates and love the location but hate the schools. I would never buy in Arlington right now - you can get much more for your money with the same, if not better, schools in Fairfax County.

+1. You really need to factor in the cost of private schools right now in Arlington. You may end up being fine with the public schools, but things are trending in the wrong direction, so it's best to budget for private schools just in case.

The thing with Arlington is that there aren't many non-denominational private schools that go through 12th grade, unless you have your kid commute to DC

+1. If you want private schools (except perhaps Catholic schools), don't live in Arlington. Move somewhere else.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - if you're concerned about schools, look at the school forums here. Everyone I know in Arlington County has been really unhappy with the schools. I know so many people who switched to private schools over the past two years because they are locked into low interest rates and love the location but hate the schools. I would never buy in Arlington right now - you can get much more for your money with the same, if not better, schools in Fairfax County.

Strongly disagree with this as someone that actually lives in Arlington County. The boards here at dcum absolutely do not reflect my experience or the experience I hear from our neighbors. The vast majority of our neighborhood goes to APS. There isn't one kid in private school on my street, and I only can think of one in our neighborhood generally that is a hold out from COVID and is planning to come back to APS next year. This is just a ridiculous statement that you need to factor in private school costs if you want to live in Arlington. Maybe for a few "elite", especially in 22207 but it is not the experience of the majority. No schools are perfect but I prefer sticking away from the AAP stuff and am happy here and rarely hear others at our school or in our neighborhood saying differently.

+1

I’m in 22207 and most people in the neighborhood send their kids to public school.

I think it’s a little more complicated than Fairfax good, Arlington bad. If your kid is truly gifted (and not just a kid from a UMC background) then AAP might be a real draw…but what is the benefit for your child if they won’t be in it? Elementary class size is smaller in Arlington. And APS is better if you have a SN child that can be mainstreamed. I think Fairfax county is better for high school though because Arlington seems like they haven’t actually resolved the needing another high school in a decade thing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP - if you're concerned about schools, look at the school forums here. Everyone I know in Arlington County has been really unhappy with the schools. I know so many people who switched to private schools over the past two years because they are locked into low interest rates and love the location but hate the schools. I would never buy in Arlington right now - you can get much more for your money with the same, if not better, schools in Fairfax County.

Strongly disagree with this as someone that actually lives in Arlington County. The boards here at dcum absolutely do not reflect my experience or the experience I hear from our neighbors. The vast majority of our neighborhood goes to APS. There isn't one kid in private school on my street, and I only can think of one in our neighborhood generally that is a hold out from COVID and is planning to come back to APS next year. This is just a ridiculous statement that you need to factor in private school costs if you want to live in Arlington. Maybe for a few "elite", especially in 22207 but it is not the experience of the majority. No schools are perfect but I prefer sticking away from the AAP stuff and am happy here and rarely hear others at our school or in our neighborhood saying differently.

+1

I’m in 22207 and most people in the neighborhood send their kids to public school.

I think it’s a little more complicated than Fairfax good, Arlington bad. If your kid is truly gifted (and not just a kid from a UMC background) then AAP might be a real draw…but what is the benefit for your child if they won’t be in it? Elementary class size is smaller in Arlington. And APS is better if you have a SN child that can be mainstreamed. I think Fairfax county is better for high school though because Arlington seems like they haven’t actually resolved the needing another high school in a decade thing.

Regarding a new high school, various neighborhoods pushed back on and blocked potential locations while other neighborhoods wanted all the facilities like a football stadium and pool despite site limitations: So after years of meetings, APS compromised and (with community input) decided on a large STEM option high school, now under construction. The size (student population) of the APS high schools will continue to compare favorably with those in FCPS. FCPS and APS will both have large high schools going forward, so APS is not an outlier. And unlike FCPS, APS will continue to offer two popular smaller option high schools: Arlington Tech and HB Woodlawn.

Re OP’s search for housing with strong schools, there are other new townhouse communities in Arlington. The ones near the Westover neighborhood are quite popular and walkable to schools: Cardinal and Swanson.