Relocating to DC....
 

I'm relocating to the DC area at the end of the month and would appreciate any advice. I'm moving from L.A. and have only been to DC once before. I'll be working in Alexandria but I'm not sure if thats a nice area to live or not. I'm young and single so I'm not extremely picky but I don't want to unknowingly move into a really bad area. Someone suggested that I'd like Arlington better than Alexandria but I don't know how the commute is. (I'm used to L.A. traffic but i don't want to sit in my car for 4 hours a day.) Also, when I first move I won't have a car so I'd like to know how public transportation is. Any tips or advice is appreciated. Thanks.

My in-laws live in Reston VA and my father0in-law works in DC, so it is a fairly short commute for him (except for the traffic). You did not mention price wise where you want to be. It is quite pricey in that area (or anywhere near DC for that matter). Being that you mentioned you were single though I would not recommend living IN DC! It is a very dangerous place for anyone, but especially the single people! Arlington is a nice area as well, though I have only been there twice. Good luck!

Is your new job close to a Metro station? Public transit in the DC area is pretty good. If you're near a Metro station you could probably live without a car altogether.

Thanks for your responses. I'd like to spend less than 1200/1300 a month for rent. I'm guessing that like L.A. there are pretty decent places to live for less than $2000/month. If I have to I'm willing to pay $1500 but I'd rather not. My new job is near a Metro stataion so at first I'd like my new apt to be near a station as well.

DC dangerous *especially for single people?* WOW. Really not true and a pretty funny statement considering you're moving from LA. Like any city, you need to research neighborhoods carefully. I would say that DC has the majority of single people and that it is the best place to live if you want to meet other single people. As a young single female, I lived in my own apartment for several years and was never afraid of the big bad dangerous city.

Some of my fave neighborhoods in DC: Glover Park, Dupont Circle, Cleveland Park.

In Alexandria, you could do okay with Old Town, but I still prefer DC. DC far surpasses any of the outer 'burb areas for variety of nightlife, housing, and overall vibe.

Welcome to DC - you will love it.

Erika_Joan --

Do you know which metro line your job is on? (red, yellow, blue, orange, green)

Given your price range, another area came to mind -- Silver Spring. It's in MD but on the red line and has enjoyed recent renovations making it a really nice place to be.

Response to beanweb...I said that DC is dangerous because I was once there and experienced some dangerous things personally and I am not even single. I had my children with me at the time and it was not a nice "welcome" from DC for me. It is just my opinion though. I am from NYC so I know about dangerous and I am not one to put myself into a situation or live there if I know it is not a healthy environment for me or my family. Maybe DC is fine if you are a single person, but not for me!

Lisa -- I'm sorry you had one bad experience in DC. I think bad experiences are prevalent in any part of the country - in the years I lived in Montgomery, AL, I encountered far more danger than any year I spent in DC....and I'm willing to bet that people generalize AL as part of the gentle South. Your chances for encountering danger depend on the part of the city you're in, but it also depends on who is around you...anywhere. There are no guarantees *anywhere* about safety or danger. But to label a city as dangerous ("especially for single people") based on one bad experience is a disservice to the city and to newcomers to our area.

I work with many young females. They prefer Arlington, especially between Roslyn - Clarendon and between Wilson and Columbia Pike to Alexandria. Alexandria is nice but not as happening a scene for singles as Arlington. In their opinion, outside the beltway is too far out. They also would (and many have) live in DC. Traffic from Arlington to Alexandria will be easy, basically you are against traffic. A commute from DC will also be easy.

If you are going to work in Alexandria and not have a car, I would make a few suggestions:

- in Arlington, I wouldn't live any further out than Ballston. Your commute gets long after that. There are plenty of single people all along the Orange and Blue lines in places like Ballston, Virginia Square, Clarendon, Courthouse, and Rosslyn. There are also plenty of apartments in Crystal City (which is becoming more lively).

- price may be your biggest challenge. One option may be to live on the southern end of Columbia PIke. While not on the Metro, it has the most buses in Virgnia with quick access to Pentagon and Pentagon City metro stations.

If I were young and single, I'd love to live in DC. If the schools were better, we'd likely be raising our son there now.

Sorry, for lisalaw's ``dangerous things'' -- whatever they might be, but that seems a little flimsy on which to base a recommendation or proclaim a city ``a very dangerous place for anyone.'' Just a wee bit of hyperbole, I'd say.

I don't live that far from the DC line and I can say that I had more ``dangerous things'' happen near my homes in the Far West and Midwest (all in ``nice neighborhoods'') than I've had here.

Alexandria is known for the Old Town. It is an exclusive area with high priced real estate. However, Alexandria has grown recently and there is a lot of new development in the Kingstown area. This may an area to look at in the future.

You may want to look around Springfield Mall as it is a large mall, it has a metro station right there and apartments are within walking distance. However, I would not say it is a great place for your social life as you would have to go elsewhere. I expect this would be convenient for living and working.

I would not consider living in Maryland as it is too far from your job.

I live in North Arlington and can certainly Sprin2 and MikeT's general comments.

I also disagree that DC surpasses all other areas for so-called "vibe" etc., since we have no idea what kind of "vibe" you are looking for. I'm sorry, but the usual "the suburbs can't possibly be as hip as the 'city' " cliche just doesn't hold true here.

What does hold true is that the services you get from the city/government you live under DOES vary a great deal here...which is one of many reasons a lot of us have chosen not to live in the District.

Oh my gosh, DC is a great place to live if you're single. I spend a lot of time there for work and have several friends who live there. It's also an expensive city so I'm not sure if you would be able to live in DC proper on your budget but if you can make it work the areas to be are, Dupont Circle, Adams Morgan, Georgetown or Foggy Bottom. These areas are perfectly safe and have plenty to do at night. Please avoid SE Washington.

I also like Old Town Alexandria, full of cute shops and restaurants and bars. If you can't afford to live in Old Town though, I'd skip Alexandria and live in Arlington. The Rosslyn area is great, near the Metro, full of singles and just over the bridge from DC. The only issue I see is the no car thing. Alexandria doesn't have a lot of Metro stops so I'm not sure how you would get to work without a car.

Sorry, Intrepid1, for the vibe comment. A little clarification -- I moved from DC to Ashburn. DC has a much better vibe than Loudoun County! But so does Clarendon, Arlington, and other closer-in locations....so I should have been more specific. :)

I moved from LA to DC about 15 years ago. If I were single, I would prefer to live in DC, if you can live in a decent area. I don't see it as any more dangerous than other places. I think it would especially be nice if you don't have a car. Alexandria is not attractive to me at all, but it's a large area and that depends where you are talking about. Alexandria Old Town would be nice, but not Alexandria in general out in the middle of nowhere. I like Arlington, also. It's hard to know what your commute would be like without knowing where you work.

I would never recommend Maryland, particularly Silver Spring or places in that direction, for someone working in Alexandria without a car. You'd be commuting forever, I think.

If you are working in Alexandria, the closest metro stop will be on the blue line. Look up the metro system at wmata.org and find the King Street or Braddock Road stations. Those are most likely where you'll be working near (maybe Van Dorn though as well). Now you can see all the other metro stops that you can live near by. On the blue line, there's lots of apartments near these stations: Springfield, Crystal City, Pentagon City, Rosslyn. (I am not sure if there are apartments close to Van Dorn, King Street & Braddock Road.) The closest commute will be from these stations. But you certainly could live in the DC and commute (you'll be doing a reverse commute so the trains won't be crowded at all). If you decide on a place on the orange line (such as Ballston), the train will be very crowded from Ballston to Rosslyn, and then you'll switch trains at Rosslyn, and the rest of the ride will be crowd-free.

The metro website has a great feature - they tell you how long it takes you to get from one point to another using the metro system. So if you're wondering how long of a commute it would be from Ballston to King Street stations, you can just plug the info in and they'll give you an estimate.

I have to tell you the person who states that D.C. is really dangerous for single people is ridiculous. sure it has bad areas like any other city but I lived in that area for approx 3 yrs in the late 1980s and never had a violent crime directed toward me. Doesn't mean it will never occur its just not a guaranteed thing if you are single.

My recommendation, you may want to think about living in Annandale, VA. It is very close to Alexandria just a few miles away. I remember alot of classy townhouses there while looking for an apt in the area.

i've lived in the courthouse area of arlington for 7 years. i very much recommend the courthouse/clarendon area esp. if you are single. very lively, lots of shops and restaurants, farmers markets and flea markets on the weekends, close to the metro.

I like city life with shopping, dining, public transportation nearby.

We just spent 2 years living at Pentagon Row, a fantastic mixed use development across from the Pentagon on the blue and yellow lines (easy access to Alexandria.) I loved it there, very lively spot, every store under the sun within walking distance, tons of restaurants. However it may be above your price range, even the studios! Across the street from Pentagon Row is the massive River House complex that has more reasonable rent.

I know I would also enjoy Dupont Circle and Foggy Bottom.

I would not like the far flung suburbs like Vienna and Springfield! Especially for a single person.

Alexandria seems to have some "iffy" areas, I think I would only want to live close to the old town but that is not convenient to a Metro.

Despite my screen name, I actually live in Arlington (Virginia Square) and work in DC. I highly recommend Arlington for a young single woman. There are a lot of great restaurants/neighborhood hangout type places in the Clarendon-Virginia Square-Ballston area and all 3 are on the Orange Line on the metro. As has been stated before, it would be hard to give you specific commute info without knowing where in Alexandria you would be working. Best of luck with your move!

Please do not be scared off by the post who said DC was dangerous. I lived in DC-22nd & R- when I first graduated from college from 1995-1997. I was right out of school and had no issues with safety/security being a woman. Please do not get turned off by that post. DC is a great, fun, young place to live and work.

Yeah, the "dangerous place for anyone, but especially for single people" comment is a tad dramatic.
Been in the Arlington/Alexandria area for 6 years (Clarendon, Pentagon City, Duke Street-Cameron Station), and I agree about not really looking at Old Town. It is a beautiful area, but pricey, more for families (I think), and the Metro stations are on the outskirts of Old Town. And where I live is definitely starter-families.
I started out in Arlington (Courthouse) and loved it! And with all of the Metro stops along Wilson Blvd. your commute from there to Alexandria will probably be the easiest and least crowded. Also, in DC, the Dupont area is building up near 15th & P, and the other areas mentioned in DC are great too (with plenty of Metro stops). Definitely see if you can afford DC, first, if you are interested in living downtown. You never know. Then venture into Arlington (although the prices there are rising quickly).
Hope this helps! OH! Go to the Metro website www.wmata.com - that might help.

I assume you are a young, single lady. I would suggest living in Arlington or a small apartment in the Dupont Circle/ West side area of Washington.

When I was single I lived in Arlington-it was great, Rossyln, Court House, Claredon and Ballston are filled with lots of young people(23-30's) lots of bars/restaurants all in walking distance. The areas are all names of metro stops but in general when people ask "where do you live in Arlington?' they will mention one of the above areas. Also "North Arlington" is a great area as well-more houses than apts. I prefer North arlingtom over South Arlington(in south,parts are a little scketch but nice places as well)

Yep, Arlington is the place to be for young singles in the DC area--good metro access, lots of nightlife, and close to the city (yet you avoid the hassles/ineptitude of DC city government). Even though it's a suburb, Arlington still has a very urban feel, with lots of shopping, bars and restaurants within walking distance of the orange line Metro stops. There are tons of singles in the area between Rosslyn and Ballston (Clarendon would be my number one choice).

Alexandria has some very nice areas, but I agree that it's more for families than singles. The same goes for areas like Springfield, Annanndale, Vienna, etc.

Good luck! It's a pretty different atmosphere from LA, but I think you'll really like DC once you get acclimated.

Thanks for all the good tips. To answer some of your questions, my job is in between the King Street Station and the Eisenhower Station in Alexandria. It's off of the Yellow or Blue Line. From most of your responses it seems that Arlington is the best choice, somewhat affordable but close to restaurants, stores, and nightlife. Is a commute by bus or Metro from Arlington to Alexandria reasonable?

I live in DC now and take the Metro everywhere. If you are working in Alexandria and you choose to live in Arlington you will need to change trains for your commute. You would start on the Orange line and transfer to the Blue line. It won't take you more than 15 to 20 minutes.

If you decide to live in DC. The blue line and yellow line run would give you a direct shot without having to change trains. There are many, many new apartment buildings going up in the Logan Circle area which is about 3 to 5 blocks from the Blue Line and in Penn Quarter which is near the yellow and blue line.

DC in the Logan Cirlce and Dupont area are great for singles and couples. Lots of new restaurants, bars, theatres, etc.

As for "dangerous"....just use common sense. We have lived in Logan Circle for the last 4 years and have never had a problem but we don't go walking alone at midnight down an alley way either.