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[quote=Anonymous]From the midwest also.  You totally need to change your "commute" point of reference.  I still have family in Michigan, where a cousin would constantly complain about her husband's AWFUL commute.  And it was awful - by their standards.  He had to drive *just over an hour* each way.  In his own car, during "rush hour."

I did the same commute while in law school.  Bear in mind, in Michigan, even during "rush hour", you can go from one city and its suburbs, through country, to another city and its suburbs.   His car would keep moving the whole time - and he probably drove 75 miles for his commute each way.

Here, my 20 mile commute (Loudoun to Arlington) takes me that same amount of time.  But people in the part of Michigan I grew up in would never consider living 20 miles from work on purpose.  Until they can find another option, maybe, but not for the long term.  Here, that's considered a reasonable distance to get housing that is affordable.  In contrast, the idea of being in my own car (alone) that moves the whole time I'm driving (vs. stop for 10 minutes for no apparent reason with 1000 of my new closest friends) sounds like heaven.  And I do take metro - though the train/train/bus combination I need takes longer and costs more than carpooling, so the solo drive sounds great.

So, OP - if you're looking at housing that's 0-10 miles from your proposed office location, that's your problem.  Expand that search to 20-30  - or even 30-40 - miles and you'll probably find something more affordable.  Just remember to add at least an hour on either end of your work day for commuting, because that's "normal" here.[/quote]

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