Just posted, sorry, I didn't realize the original post was a year old as the dates are almost the same. I also just read the OP's follow-up. OP - welcome to the neighborhood. I'm in Kensington Estates so right next to Parkwood although I view it as one big neighborhood. Glad you are enjoying it here!

I live in Kensington so I am biased but we looked all over Silver Spring, Bethesda, Kensington and Northern VA before buying and for us, Kensington made the most sense. I actually commute to DC via the MARC train from Kensington. It is a 20 min ride to Union Station, with only one stop at Silver Spring. Free parking. Bathrooms and you can eat and drink on the train. I'm not sure where you will be working in the city but I love my commute. My husband works in Georgetown which is much harder to get to but he drives some times (apx 40 mins) or takes the red line - you can go to Medical Center or Strathmore. Love the neighborhood. Tons of young families close to Bethesda and Rockville. The originial homes are small but families often stay in the same neighborhood and just buy bigger houses or renovate as their familes grow because they like the location so much. Good luck!

I'm glad the OP likes where she ended up in KP. I see that that was the only part of Kensington she wanted to buy in.

It does make me a little sad to see everyone on DCUM warning people to avoid the other side of Kensington, where we actually have a wonderful community.

I am the original poster! I am sorry for not having provided an update earlier!!! I have not been on this site in a long time...

First, thanks for all the amazing feedback. I have not reviewed all of it and can't address each point, but I can provide an update.

My thoughts so far are just my opinion and entirely rooted in the few people we have met in our short time here! So, please keep that in mind.

Honestly, we probably would have been fine in either neighborhood in terms of community feel, but in the end, we focused our search on Kensington-Parkwood. Although we found a lovely house on a great street in Woodmoor, in the end, we decided to wait for a good fit in Kensington because it met other factors, which we decided were higher priorities. It took longer to find something that worked for us, but we are pleased. Folks who are looking to decide, may wish to rent a place (I have seen a few rentals) to get a sense for the area.

Reasons we made that decision to go for Kensington:
- Schools
- Smaller house/less yard/closer together was okay for us
- Public transportation commute for my husband (Farragut North or Dupont Circle) was shorter (about 10-15 minutes less time needed).
- Investment (cross fingers for everyone on this!)
- As my kids get older, I would feel less nervous allowing them to walk to library and town. In Kensington, kids would have to cross Knowles or Connecticut to go to some places, but the intersection has lights and traffic is generally slower. We realized that travel from Woodmoor to nearly any location (except shops in the Woodmoor mall) would require crossing University, Colesville or the Beltway bridge. During visits to Woodmoor, I'd see HS kids bolt from the Starbucks or McDonalds across University or Colesville to Blair HS, which scared me...but I am a bit of a spaz about traffic and walking safety.

Now having been here for 6+ months, here is my current perspective:
- All of the above holds true
- Commute for husband turns out to include a quality of life factor as he experiences less "transfer" stress b/c he rides his bike along a path (not busy roads) to the metro. He rarely rides the bus because his bike ride is not stressful, which he says makes for a nicer commute. A neighbor rides along Capital Crescent Trail/Rock Creek Path nearly all the way into his work near Georgetown).
- Not tons of economic diversity as far as I can see. (probably not so different than Woodmoor)
- It feels like a nice small neighborhood (from what we have heard, absolutely true of Woodmoor)
- The immediate neighborhood is great - lovely neighbors and other school parents (not stodgy, stuck up or too conservative) as was my concern. We have meet very open minded and lovely people. (This is based in no actual knowledge, but I get the sense that that there is more of a liberal mindset in Woodmoor.)
- We had been impressed with what we have seen at Kensington-Parkwood school so far. We like the arts integration. Great after care program too (probably true of Woodmoor as well). I can't say anything yet about MS or HS, except the neighbor kids at the HS seem on the ball, thoughtful and unique.
- The school is not very diverse, but there is diversity of parents in terms of perspectives, degree of conservatism/liberalism and work background (DC based workers, NIHers, nurses, construction types, local store-owners). Some ethnic and racial diversity.
- Traffic flows are nice. Traffic does not feel as hectic.

Seriously, OP, why keep us all waiting???

where did you buy...I am obsessed with both and haven't taken the plunge yet because of exactly the cons mentioned...but still prefer both those neighborhoods over my current one....for many reasons...would love to hear where you picked?

Incidentally, there was recently a series of posts on the Woodmoor listserve regarding the schools - many parents posted to say what a good experience their children had in the public schools at all levels. Granted, they are biased, but still, it's not like every parent in the neighborhood is fleeing the public schools. Also curious what OP decided.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in North Chevy Chase, just south of Kensington but fairly close to SS as well. I would buy in Kensington in a heartbeat, preferably in a Rock creek Hills (BCC district) but possibly also KP. Woodmoor has a huge fan club, particularly on this board, and for good reason. But elementary school comes more quickly than you'd think, and if you can afford a great public option such as KP or Rosemary Hills (for the Rock Creek Hills part of Kensington), it truly seems insane to choose a neighborhood that doesn't have a good public school? Besides whatever higher score Woodmoor might get on the warm and fuzzy quotient, there's no discernible advantage, and the lack of a good public school in Woodmoor (both at elementary and at HS levels) makes the choice easy. Plus it's not like Kensington is a miserable place -there's the quaint downtown, the MARC, the community activities (4th of July parade etc)

Just to clarify: Are you saying that Montgomery Blair isn't a good public high school? I assume Woodmoor kids go to Blair. . . .

I am also interested. It seems people on here are obsessed with the BCC cluster and anything else is not an option besides private of course.

Yes. I live in Silver Spring and have two middle schoolers. Just this weekend, someone at a party in Bethesda commented to me that we'll be needing to move in another year or so.

Um, no.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in North Chevy Chase, just south of Kensington but fairly close to SS as well. I would buy in Kensington in a heartbeat, preferably in a Rock creek Hills (BCC district) but possibly also KP. Woodmoor has a huge fan club, particularly on this board, and for good reason. But elementary school comes more quickly than you'd think, and if you can afford a great public option such as KP or Rosemary Hills (for the Rock Creek Hills part of Kensington), it truly seems insane to choose a neighborhood that doesn't have a good public school? Besides whatever higher score Woodmoor might get on the warm and fuzzy quotient, there's no discernible advantage, and the lack of a good public school in Woodmoor (both at elementary and at HS levels) makes the choice easy. Plus it's not like Kensington is a miserable place -there's the quaint downtown, the MARC, the community activities (4th of July parade etc)

Just to clarify: Are you saying that Montgomery Blair isn't a good public high school? I assume Woodmoor kids go to Blair. . . .

I am also interested. It seems people on here are obsessed with the BCC cluster and anything else is not an option besides private of course.

Anonymous wrote:I live in North Chevy Chase, just south of Kensington but fairly close to SS as well. I would buy in Kensington in a heartbeat, preferably in a Rock creek Hills (BCC district) but possibly also KP. Woodmoor has a huge fan club, particularly on this board, and for good reason. But elementary school comes more quickly than you'd think, and if you can afford a great public option such as KP or Rosemary Hills (for the Rock Creek Hills part of Kensington), it truly seems insane to choose a neighborhood that doesn't have a good public school? Besides whatever higher score Woodmoor might get on the warm and fuzzy quotient, there's no discernible advantage, and the lack of a good public school in Woodmoor (both at elementary and at HS levels) makes the choice easy. Plus it's not like Kensington is a miserable place -there's the quaint downtown, the MARC, the community activities (4th of July parade etc)

Just to clarify: Are you saying that Montgomery Blair isn't a good public high school? I assume Woodmoor kids go to Blair. . . .