DCFan wrote:Hello future friends and neighbors, I'm one interview away from landing my dream job in the Tyson's Corner/Falls Church area and, being cautiously optimistic, I'm looking at the logistics of relocating from the west coast. I think I need some help though, primarily on real estate/traffic/ground-rules for the area. I'm coming in from Northern California but I'm still hitting a bit of sticker shock, no surprise. I'm doing wayyyy too much research (zillow.com, city-data.com, dcurbanmom.com, etc.) but there's only so much that the Internet can tell you from +2,000 miles away. I am very interested in your input on where the good/bad, viable/impossible places are and perhaps helping me tamp down my initial expectations (though, hopefully, not tooooo much?
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Criteria:
1) Travel time - The same as everyone, I guess. I'm trying to stay 30-40 miles from the workplace but the real goal is less than an hour commute (which currently means driving, I'm still looking into the public transit options)
2) A house (vs. condo, townhouse, apartment) - While it is just me (single, 45 yr old, no family/kids, not dating), I'm not terribly interested in sharing a wall with neighbors (spoiled, maybe, have been living in standalone houses for 20 yrs... and there's all this furniture...)
3) Re-sale value (eventually) - I'd like to buy something large enough to have solid resale value in 5-10 years (when either I'm done or I'm moving up but otherwise, 10 yrs is a tad arbitrary). Area plays a key role so I've been looking at schools, price trends, etc.
4) Neighborhood - Should be nice enough for family (nieces/nephews) to come visit and feel safe, close enough for anyone that wants to visit DC to stay, etc.
Limitations:
Not too many, I hope....
1) I'm targeting 400-500K price range, may drift a tad higher but I think the 800K+ is out of my range, so I'm okay with looking at a greater distance (If it is cost vs. distance, cost wins because I don't want to get up to my eyeballs in debt)
Current areas I've been looking at (and would like your thoughts on, please)
1) Bowie, MD - Lots of great new house options but I'm told the area is not as safe as I would like. The commute may be a bit long as well?
2) Bethesda,MD - Smaller houses within the price point, can't tell about the neighborhoods. Traffic may be okay though?
3) Gainesville/Centreville, VA - Similar to Bowie in the houses, maybe a better area but I can't tell whether traffic is an issue...
4) Ashburn/Broadlands/Sterling - May be beyond my price range and again, traffic stories seem to be bipoler: no problem vs. nightmare-every-day. Still, looks like the best option so far?
In general, my sense is that anything inside the beltway is too expensive (for a standalone), the northwest areas are too expensive, as are the south west areas. The eastern sides are affordable but they may not be okay traffic/area wise?
Okay, enough rambling. If I've left key things out, please remind me and I will fill in the blanks as quickly as possible.
Thank you all in advance for whatever help/insights you can offer. I should know in the next 45 days whether I've put the cart before the horse but.... if not, I'll have to be ready to act quickly.
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