This is going to shock you: there are more Jews in Northern Virginia than Maryland suburbs. Go for Virginia, for many reasons.

https://www.shalomdc.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/DCJewishCommunityStud-ExecSum032218.pdf

Anonymous wrote:Too many bigots, elitists and racists in Bethesda. I choose Mclean

That's rich coming from someone who lives in McLean.
The delusion!

Anonymous wrote:Maryland has a $2 billion budget deficit. VA has a $2 billion surplus. MD has been going downhill economically for a while. NoVA has been booming the past 10 years. Be careful which horse you choose to hitch yourself to. There are a lot more places to go in VA when you live in McLean. Every place you go in MD will not be as nice as Bethesda.

There are lots more nicer places in MD than VA.

Anonymous wrote:Too many bigots, elitists and racists in Bethesda. I choose Mclean

Anonymous wrote:Mclean or GF, anyway. Don't even think about Bethesda unless you want to get screwed over taxes within next 3-4 years.

MD is going broke and these counties will increase taxes

This

Anonymous wrote:Maryland has a $2 billion budget deficit. VA has a $2 billion surplus. MD has been going downhill economically for a while. NoVA has been booming the past 10 years. Be careful which horse you choose to hitch yourself to. There are a lot more places to go in VA when you live in McLean. Every place you go in MD will not be as nice as Bethesda.

This is what I am saying and that's why new neighborhoods will never become high end anytime in the future.

Mclean or GF, anyway. Don't even think about Bethesda unless you want to get screwed over taxes within next 3-4 years.

MD is going broke and these counties will increase taxes

Too many bigots, elitists and racists in Bethesda. I choose Mclean

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why live in McLean instead of FCC? Better schools in FCC, closer to various retail options, and closer to Arlington and DC. Plus, downtown FCC keeps getting nicer.

McLean is better if you want a country estate feeling and more privacy / less community.

mclean has better schools than FCC and lower taxes bigger homes and it is right next to it. https://www.usnews.com/education/best-high-schools/virginia/rankings

And there’s zero community, very opposite to FCC. I would pick falls church as the best overall option

That's crazy. McLean has a very nice community center with activities for kids and also adults. There's an annual McLean Day in the spring and also a winter holiday parade. Individual neighborhoods have community associations and get togethers. And Langley and McLean High Schools foster a sense of community as well. Langley is primarily the northern part of McLean and Great Falls. McLean is primarily the southern part of McLean and the nearby areas in Falls Church (including Temple Rodef Shalom).

Also, because the commercial area for McLean is off the main roads (unlike in FCC and Vienna, where the commercial areas are on major commuter routes - Routes 7 and 123), the businesses really do cater to the local residents.

The main difference with FCC seems to be politics. Because FCC is its own jurisdiction, everyone seems to know someone running for some local office, and you'll always see a ton of signs come election season. McLean is part of the larger county and people just aren't as invested in the local elections.

Maryland has a $2 billion budget deficit. VA has a $2 billion surplus. MD has been going downhill economically for a while. NoVA has been booming the past 10 years. Be careful which horse you choose to hitch yourself to. There are a lot more places to go in VA when you live in McLean. Every place you go in MD will not be as nice as Bethesda.

Anonymous wrote:Why live in McLean instead of FCC? Better schools in FCC, closer to various retail options, and closer to Arlington and DC. Plus, downtown FCC keeps getting nicer.

McLean is better if you want a country estate feeling and more privacy / less community.

FCC and Mclean both have residential and denser parts. Mclean has multifamily housing and tons of TH communities too, not just estates. But I think OP should look into specific communities and lifestyle comfortable for her. Maybe also look at Arlington?

It's not a terrible budget at all unless you insist on a brand new construction home or an older mcMansion and want 6000+ sq.ft. You can get an older remodeled home anywhere in DC for this price except maybe Gtown And in some parts a new house, but OP won't like the areas.

Why not NW DC?

Bro, your budget is $2M and you complain about Maryland taxes? It’s not that big of a difference.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:$2m is a tough budget. If you are Jewish and not vapid, I think the falls church area around temple Rodef Shalom is great. It’s a wonderful Jewish community there.

But Rodef Shalom is in McLean.

Rodef is a few blocks from the Arlington border and 50% of the membership actually lives in Arlington (I’m one of them).

OP, I think any of the areas you’re looking at are nice places to live, and the only reason I live in VA over MD is due to commute. But there are plenty of Jews in NoVA (even though MD has more), so don’t let that be the determining factor.

They are all fine options.