What you'll afford in Alexandria will limit you school-wise

Pimmit Hills isn't happening for $375k, not unless OP wants a home that's a teardown or on a four-lane road.

We loved Fairlington and it has pools tennis courts. I am not sure what the monthly fees are. We rented. Commute to DC was fine (I bused to Pentagon and then metroed).

Pimmit Hills?

Anonymous wrote:OP again,

Thanks for all of the ideas. We have been looking at some of these areas, like Alexandria and Winter Hill (in Falls church). Anyone know any great neighborhoods in Alexandria?

There are some tiny homes for sale in Falls Church here and there, some go to Pine Spring elementary I think though, and I'm not sure that is okay for us.

I should consider Oakton/Vienna I suppose. I just hate Rt. 66 west or 123 SW in rush hour. It can be tough.

You won't be able to buy in any of the great Alexandria neighborhoods. I say this as someone whose budget isn't that much higher than yours.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where do you live now? What is your tolerance for commute (i.e. what is the max time you would consider commuting?) Finally, are you open to a townhome?

We live in Tysons now (renting a condo).

My tolerance for a commute each way (to downtown) is 1 hour max.

Townhomes are okay, but no condos - I'm so sick of being in a condo!!

WRT some other PPs, we personally would prefer not to be in Burke due to the commute or in Springfield due to some bad experiences with places we saw there (mold/rodent piss so bad the agent got a headache).

Hold it. Your tolerance is an hour each way but you've ruled out Burke? Seriously? There is always a lot of debate about how much time a commute from Burke to DC really is but it is definitely under an hour. I don't think people really know where Burke is!

Also, just because one home in Springfield was gross doesn't mean they all are. I'm sure there are some really gross places in Tysons too!

Sounds like you've already ruled it out, but when we were looking in your budget we saw many really nice townhomes in West Springfield/Springfield. Try to stick with the 22152 zip code or homes that feed to West Springfield HS or Lake Braddock HS. You may have looked in Springfield close to the the mall which is a very different scene. We both commute to Capitol Hill from a subdivision off of Rolling Road and it never takes more than 45-50 minutes during rush hour unless there's a seriously major incident. In the middle of the day or after evening rush or before 6:30 am it takes 20-25 min to get to capitol Hill.

Anonymous wrote:OP again,

Thanks for all of the ideas. We have been looking at some of these areas, like Alexandria and Winter Hill (in Falls church). Anyone know any great neighborhoods in Alexandria?

There are some tiny homes for sale in Falls Church here and there, some go to Pine Spring elementary I think though, and I'm not sure that is okay for us.

I should consider Oakton/Vienna I suppose. I just hate Rt. 66 west or 123 SW in rush hour. It can be tough.

Not to be rude, but why is it not OK for your kids to attend school with other children whose parents may have finances and housing budgets similar to yours? The neighborhoods in Falls Church/22042 are pretty nice. Not fancy, but generally well-maintained.

Anonymous wrote:Look at townhouses around Vienna metro in 22031- my old community (Covington) was close to metro and the elementary school was decent, though the junior high and high school weren't top-tier. I sold my place last summer for $335K and it had 3 BR/2.5 BA and was renovated. HOA fee was reasonable and it wasn't condo ownership. There isn't much on the market right now, but spring will be better.

In Arlington, you're going to be limited to townhouses in the southern parts of South Arlington.

Great idea - my agent said the same, we checked it out, and my only hang up was that the family rooms were smaller than I'd have liked. Places were going from about $350 - $370 there this summer I think.

OP again,

Thanks for all of the ideas. We have been looking at some of these areas, like Alexandria and Winter Hill (in Falls church). Anyone know any great neighborhoods in Alexandria?

There are some tiny homes for sale in Falls Church here and there, some go to Pine Spring elementary I think though, and I'm not sure that is okay for us.

I should consider Oakton/Vienna I suppose. I just hate Rt. 66 west or 123 SW in rush hour. It can be tough.

It depends on when OP is going downtown, Burke is not terribly far out but Old Keene Mill can be a beast, 395 is no picnic,and the "back ways" are full too. We lived there for 10 years and coming home was better than mornings but if she consistently wants an under hour commute, Burke may not be the best choice.

Did OP ever say where in NOVA her hubby worked? I'm guessing Tysons.

Your best bet would be the cluster of THs on the north side of the Vienna Metro. It's about a 10 minute walk to the Metro there and a bearable drive to Tysons. You should be able to find a 3BR + family room place for under $400k -- there is one on Sweet Mint Drive for $369k.

Reston might work if you can tolerate a long car commute until the Silver Line opens.

Look at townhouses around Vienna metro in 22031- my old community (Covington) was close to metro and the elementary school was decent, though the junior high and high school weren't top-tier. I sold my place last summer for $335K and it had 3 BR/2.5 BA and was renovated. HOA fee was reasonable and it wasn't condo ownership. There isn't much on the market right now, but spring will be better.

In Arlington, you're going to be limited to townhouses in the southern parts of South Arlington.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where do you live now? What is your tolerance for commute (i.e. what is the max time you would consider commuting?) Finally, are you open to a townhome?

We live in Tysons now (renting a condo).

My tolerance for a commute each way (to downtown) is 1 hour max.

Townhomes are okay, but no condos - I'm so sick of being in a condo!!

WRT some other PPs, we personally would prefer not to be in Burke due to the commute or in Springfield due to some bad experiences with places we saw there (mold/rodent piss so bad the agent got a headache).

Hold it. Your tolerance is an hour each way but you've ruled out Burke? Seriously? There is always a lot of debate about how much time a commute from Burke to DC really is but it is definitely under an hour. I don't think people really know where Burke is!

Also, just because one home in Springfield was gross doesn't mean they all are. I'm sure there are some really gross places in Tysons too!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where do you live now? What is your tolerance for commute (i.e. what is the max time you would consider commuting?) Finally, are you open to a townhome?

We live in Tysons now (renting a condo).

My tolerance for a commute each way (to downtown) is 1 hour max.

Townhomes are okay, but no condos - I'm so sick of being in a condo!!

WRT some other PPs, we personally would prefer not to be in Burke due to the commute or in Springfield due to some bad experiences with places we saw there (mold/rodent piss so bad the agent got a headache).

Hold it. Your tolerance is an hour each way but you've ruled out Burke? Seriously? There is always a lot of debate about how much time a commute from Burke to DC really is but it is definitely under an hour. I don't think people really know where Burke is!

You could definitely buy a winter hill townhouse in the heart of Falls Church city for that price - http://www.redfin.com/VA/Falls-Church/114-S-Virginia-Ave-22046/home/40482450 If your DH is in Tysons and you are commuting downtown that would be a good location for you.

OP- you are going to have to make some tradeoff decisions- which do you value more 1) "newness" 2) short commute 3) space etc.

For instance- when you say you don't like condo's- what is it that you don't like? Don't like collective decision making, then can't help you- don't like people walking on top of you- then get a townhouse style condo (winter hill and fairlington are all townhouse style condos).

I also saw a bunch of listings for less than 400 in the greater falls church area, some of these might be a possibility for you.

You can get small SFH and TH in the Alexandria and Springfield areas which would give you decent commutes.

http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-search/22312/price-na-375000