Pregnant and looking to move - where to buy?

[Anonymous]

I'm currently pregnant with our first and looking to move to DC. I grew up in a rural area and am finding all of the info about lotteries, charters, etc to be quite a learning curve! I don't want to play the lottery and am hoping to buy in a place where we can be happy with the local IB school. My husband and I both like the feel of Capitol Hill and can afford (if we stretch to the top of our budget) to move in-bounds for Maury, which sounds like a great school. Is this a reasonable plan? We've also been considering Takoma Park. Any other locations we should consider? I'd like to live in a row home or SFH (not a condo) in a neighborhood where my family and I can know our neighbors. I'd like to live somewhere that feels more like a neighborhood (with trees and parks) and less like a loud, busy city. I'd like a small yard for our dog. My husband works near the mall, and I'll be working near Columbia Heights. Any suggestions or thoughts would be so appreciated

[Anonymous]

Mamor Park / Brighteood / Takoma DC. Literally everything you described. I'd recommend in bounds for Whittier Elementary, though Takoma is fine.

[Anonymous]

What's your budget?

You may want to get this moved to the Real Estate forum, unless your top priority is DC public schools.

[Anonymous]

Edgewood and the area near Whittier elementary are nice. Also Woodridge, Brookland, and Michigan Park.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What's your budget?

You may want to get this moved to the Real Estate forum, unless your top priority is DC public schools.

Thanks- I didn't think of this. A strong IB school option is definitely a top priority for us, but I'll post there too.

RE: budget, we're most comfortable under 750 but can stretch to 850ish if needed for the right fit

[Anonymous]

Do you want a school where you have a good zoned school through middle school, or are you willing to take your chances in the lottery?

Do you want a dual language school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you want a school where you have a good zoned school through middle school, or are you willing to take your chances in the lottery?

Do you want a dual language school?

I think we're far enough away from middle school that it's not a huge issue for us right now. Language immersion would be awesome but is not a requirement by any means. Thanks so much for your help!!

[Anonymous]

If you're not super concerned about middle schools than cap hill is a great option. Maury is obviously one of the best schools on the hill but they are all trending upward so I wouldn't be afraid to look in other areas since your money might get you slightly more in another part of the hill.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Do you want a school where you have a good zoned school through middle school, or are you willing to take your chances in the lottery?

Do you want a dual language school?

I think we're far enough away from middle school that it's not a huge issue for us right now. Language immersion would be awesome but is not a requirement by any means. Thanks so much for your help!!

On a $750K house, your transactions costs are $45K. Middle school is only 12 years away. All this goes by in a blink of an eye. Focus on where you can go inbound though high school.

[Anonymous]

OP where do you live now?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP where do you live now?

We're currently renting in Baltimore because I work here and my hours are long. I just accepted a new job in Columbia Heights.

[Anonymous]

Agree with PP. Focus on a good path through high school. We bought pre-kids and now are dealing with a move at not an ideal time. Boundaries occasionally change, and a charter that seems great on paper turns out not to be a great fit for your kid after all. The lottery can be stressful and nothing is guaranteed. If I had it to do over I’d have bought in an area with a solid DCPS pyramid.

Transaction costs are huge in DC and a move is hard.

[Anonymous]

What about Mt. Pleasant? Backs up to Rock Creek park, walkable to Columbia Heights, buses or metro to downtown. Bancroft - Deal - Wilson for school. Check boundaries carefully, though - you can do a search on Redfin with your preferred school, and also enter the address in the DCPS boundary finder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What about Mt. Pleasant? Backs up to Rock Creek park, walkable to Columbia Heights, buses or metro to downtown. Bancroft - Deal - Wilson for school. Check boundaries carefully, though - you can do a search on Redfin with your preferred school, and also enter the address in the DCPS boundary finder.

i like this idea, though a $850K rowhouse is hard to come by in Mt. P. Anything under or close to $1M flies off the market.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What about Mt. Pleasant? Backs up to Rock Creek park, walkable to Columbia Heights, buses or metro to downtown. Bancroft - Deal - Wilson for school. Check boundaries carefully, though - you can do a search on Redfin with your preferred school, and also enter the address in the DCPS boundary finder.

Thanks! As the other poster said, I think we are priced out of Mt Pleasant unfortunately. I'm surprised I should already be thinking about middle school at this point- definitely something I had not considered.