Well, I don't think you can go wrong buying in a good school district, as it will keep resale value up. I hope you are able to fill your home with the children you desire.

We did the same, but ended up in S Arlington because we discovered that we both wanted Catholic or private schools for our children. Low and behold we are 3 years later and no children in site. Just starting to consider adoption and DE. Glad we didnt get sucked into stretching our budget to live in N Arlington for the schools. Even if I got miraculously pregnant today, which I won't, we would still have 5 more years before needing to consider schools, that plus 3 we have already lived in in our home equals 8 years. Do what is best for you but make sure you are making the decision best for you and your finances. We also bought a small home- 1330 sq feet if you count the finished basement. It is a lot easier to clean and furnish. We like the small home except when family comes for the holidays! Our decision has also benefitted us financially as we go through this very expensive journey I never dreamed I would be on....

Anonymous wrote:When I was ttc, which was a very long road, we specifically bought a house that we could afford on my husbands income alone in case I did decide to SAH. (husband had the higher paying job thus I would be the SAH parent, no digs to SAH dads!) That translated to a very small home in an excellent school district. It's all worked out though, I don't personally mind living in 1200 sq foot and we like our neighborhood so much we have just decided to adapt a minimalist lifestyle instead of move.

Same here! (I wonder if we live in the same neighborhood?) I love living in a small house (except when in laws visit for a week) and it is well worth it not to feel overwhelmed by astronomical mortgage payments. there are actually lots of babies on our block (attracted by the affordability + good schools I guess) so even if it is a smaller choice than most other people in this area, I feel like it is a good fit.

When I was ttc, which was a very long road, we specifically bought a house that we could afford on my husbands income alone in case I did decide to SAH. (husband had the higher paying job thus I would be the SAH parent, no digs to SAH dads!) That translated to a very small home in an excellent school district. It's all worked out though, I don't personally mind living in 1200 sq foot and we like our neighborhood so much we have just decided to adapt a minimalist lifestyle instead of move.

Buy where you are happy...your children, when they come, will benefit from that too!

It's so tough to know where and what to buy. Does it matter what schools are like? How big is the yard? How busy is the street? How many bedrooms? This is the pits.