The negatives are all subjective and I mean no disrespect to anyone from the area. These are my observations:

The majority of people who live here were born and raised here, went to a VA state college and moved back - same as their parents. I think that breeds a limited world view. There are a lot of older people (65 and up) who are very southern. They seem to be adapting to the influx of people from the North and West Coast, and they are very friendly, but you can't help but notice the stark differences.

There is big class divide. We live in an affluent area and it took me some time to find "real" people. Also, if you move to a suburb you have to actively seek out the rich cultural experiences that are the norm in a city like DC or SF.

There are a few good restaurants and an emerging culinary scene, but I have been largely unimpressed with the restaurants. You'll find every chain restaurant but no Thai food, mediocre Vietnamese, and Mexican food is joke. I wouldn't touch the sushi. Korean and Middle Eastern food are rare. Indian cuisine is here but not in abundance. The thing that surprises me is that some places will have 4-5 stars on yelp and then you eat there and its terrible. Regional cuisine seems to be the best bet.

Richmond is very conservative, especially coming from DC - which I thought was really conservative when I came from NYC. I don't feel like there is blatant intolerance, but this is not a "PC" place. Boys are boys and girls are girls. Parenting seems to be geared toward perpetuating gender norms. Boys are expected to be rowdy, throw things and play football. Girls should like pink and princesses and not want to play with boys "because they're too rough". It's been a shock for me and my very young daughter who is used to playing with boys and girls. I would say this is the biggest negative.
As a side note: We received a "how to stay safe with guns in the house" comic book at the local library during a children's workshop. Small things like this crop up where I say out loud, where the hell am I living?

All that being said, it is a very nice life. We have a beautiful home with low taxes in a great public school zone with extra money for all the enrichment activities we'd ever want our child to experience. We could never afford this in the NYC or DC area. We've been welcomed in the warmest ways despite my preconceived notions about being a non-white northern family living in South. We are healthier b/c there is more time to workout since there is no traffic and gym memberships are so inexpensive. I'd recommend Richmond to anyone who has an open mind and can see themselves slowing down in a small southern town. I've heard from a few people that the Richmond area is changing fast. I suspect in 5-7 years it will get younger and more diverse.

Anonymous wrote:You should consider Richmond suburbs. It is a very nice standard of living with great public schools and friendly people. Housing prices are relatively low and you get a lot of bang for your buck. My family relocated here in the last year and I have met at least two other families from California. People seem genuinely happy so they are very nice and neighborly. This isn't a melting pot, but there is enough diversity for my mixed race family to feel comfortable. I'm still shocked by how inexpensive it is for activities like museum memberships, gyms, and kid activities. Plus, traffic is almost non-existent! Another plus for you is the drive to Fredericksburg is pretty close; about an 45 mins or so. It's 2 hours to DC and about and an hour to Charlottsville.

I could also tell you the negatives if you're interested.

yes, negatives please

You should consider Richmond suburbs. It is a very nice standard of living with great public schools and friendly people. Housing prices are relatively low and you get a lot of bang for your buck. My family relocated here in the last year and I have met at least two other families from California. People seem genuinely happy so they are very nice and neighborly. This isn't a melting pot, but there is enough diversity for my mixed race family to feel comfortable. I'm still shocked by how inexpensive it is for activities like museum memberships, gyms, and kid activities. Plus, traffic is almost non-existent! Another plus for you is the drive to Fredericksburg is pretty close; about an 45 mins or so. It's 2 hours to DC and about and an hour to Charlottsville.

I could also tell you the negatives if you're interested.

OP,

I happen to know that Ferry Farm Elementary has a great gifted teacher and wonderful pullout programs starting in kindergarten. Whereas, some of the "chichi" areas here in the DC area do not do as much for gifted kids in elementary.

So, you never know . . .

I live in DC and am embarrassed to say I have not even heard of Fredericksburg.
I know Charlottesville though and it seems pretty nice.
I think you should stay in CA or possibly move to Charlottesville if you really must move.

I think it also depends where in CA you live and what you like about it.

Living in CA for the last 6 years and wish I could move back to VA. The cost of living where I am is obscene (even compared to DC proper). It takes an hour to drive 10 miles. There is no public transportation. I will never be able to afford a home. The things I love (eg. hiking) are not easily accessible in my area.

In addition, I live in a heavily republican area. Not all of CA is liberal. Yeah, there aren't confederate flags, but I have to listen to people make derogatory remarks about Mexicans (They're ruining our country! They're lazy! They're criminals!) and Iranians (Why couldn't they just stay where they are if they wanted to dress like that?) on a near daily basis.

The public schools in my area are good, but not so good they'd keep me here. Unfortunately, my current job is non-transferable.

I would consider Western Loudoun county or Charlottesville instead of Fredericksburg.....just my 5 cents.

I split my time between DC and LoCo and my opinion of F-burg is such: chain stores everywhere and horrible traffic. The downtown is cute, but nothing extraordinary. 95 is hell and VRE train is not great--your commute will be long and horrible, unless you'll find work in F-burg. Tons of crime in F-burg to include SA gangs; they are known to place rivals on VRE tracks for assassinations....Awesome...Eh!

You will be surrounded by better crowd in LoCo.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Check voting patterns. Are these your people?

Right, because you should only live near your people. No wonder this country is so divided.

+1,000

Anonymous wrote:Check voting patterns. Are these your people?

Right, because you should only live near your people. No wonder this country is so divided.

Nice place to live. Centrally located. If you like to shop you will love Central Park.

I graduated from UMW recently. I loved the F'burg area. I lived in an adorable historic house that I shared with friends. We could walk downtown to restaurants and art, and there's a lot of really good biking/walking paths and parks.

There were a fair amount of Confederate flags about. It's a small community, so sometimes people can be nosy and gossipy. A lot of downtown housing only has off-street parking and it can be tough, depending on what street you live on.

The people are generally nice. History is everywhere, and you're close to two cities (D.C. and Richmond) as well as close to all kinds of nature.

I don't know if I'd move back, but I didn't mind it while I was there.

Anonymous wrote:OP, these threads are a completely wrong place to ask. Too many hateful people exhausted by the cost of living and hellish commutes. Take their angry opinions with a grain of salt.

This. You know, you could probably find a Fredericksburg-specific board on citydata.

Anonymous wrote:OP, these threads are a completely wrong place to ask. Too many hateful people exhausted by the cost of living and hellish commutes. Take their angry opinions with a grain of salt.

op here. what do you recommend?

OP, these threads are a completely wrong place to ask. Too many hateful people exhausted by the cost of living and hellish commutes. Take their angry opinions with a grain of salt.

Anonymous wrote:NP. Richmond native. I lived in Fredericksburg for 5 years before relocating to the far western DC suburbs. I have no "political" opinions of the Fredericksburg locals (I'm a moderate, middle-of-the-road conservative myself, if such a thing exists anymore). I'm also a bit of a home-body. No "exciting urban lifestyle" here, even before I married/had kids. Here's my opinion...

Pros:
- City of Fredericksburg = charming downtown area
- Historic regions/sites nearby
- close proximity to DC (not accounting for traffic)...driving to DC for museums/theater/concerts/dinner/sporting events is doable. Not necessarily pleasant, but doable.

Cons:
- Local traffic. Not just getting to/from DC along the 95 corridor, but just all over the region in general. When I lived there (10 years ago), there was a massive growth in development that was not similarly paced by a growth in infrastructure. I lived 5 miles from Central Park (major shopping area). That drive could take me 10 minutes, or it could take 45. The road situation down there is better these days, but Rt. 3 is still stoplight city.
- Schools. I did not have children at the time, but it was very obvious that the school systems were not of the same caliber as those in the DC area. Nor were they comparable to what I was accustomed to in parts of the Richmond area.
- Culture shock, depending on where in CA you currently live.
- General vibe to the area. I can't really put my finger on it, but I never felt "welcome" there.

OP, are you set on living in the immediate Fredericksburg area? You could easily live in Charlottesville or in the Richmond area and be within an hour or less of family in Fredericksburg. I would move back to Richmond in a heartbeat (something I would not have said 15 years ago). I would not consider a move back to Fredericksburg.

thank you! could you tell me a bit about richmond? i'm seeking a peaceful, scenic area, and worry richmond would be too urban?