jaydreb5

Housing near Metro is very expensive and competitive.

Travelgirl_7000

Thanks for everyones help!! I think we have decided on Falls Church, Virginia. Anyone have any views on the area? I know the commute will be a little longer but that doesn't bother me.

bunchargum

Falls Church City is OK but many places that have a Falls Church address is mostly hispanic. If you are hispanic from Central America, great- if you are not you will feel like a minority/outsider.

I use to live in Falls Church.

Ann41

Falls Church is fine, for the most part. There's a little downtown area with some decent bars and restaurants.

But there are parts of Falls Church where it's difficult to drive--around Route 7, nearly Bailey's Crossroads can be a huge pain. Strip mall hell, and traffic everywhere. So just be careful of where exactly in Falls Church.

Right near the border with Arlington, there's a little row of stores, called Westover. Lost Dog Cafe is wonderful. There's a fairly large garden apartment complex there. I don't know the name of it, but you could probably even call Lost Dog and ask them. And it's a reasonable walk to the metro from there.

JJason

The housing market in the DC area continues to boom with prices still soaring despite the slight increase in mortgage rates. Get used to paying top dollar for a house.

I would try Arlington before living in Falls Church. FC has a lot of undesirable areas that you may not want your address to be associated with.

Traveler_A

As a resident of Falls Church city, I'll offer my two cents that Falls Church is a nice place to live and convenient to the Metro and some shopping (although not "boutique" stores). The other posters are correct: there is a difference between the City of Falls Church and what is commonly known as "Falls Church." For example, Seven Corners (a big intersection) is often referred to as being in Falls Church, but technically isn't in the city. That area and areas that are afterward when heading that direction (toward Alexandria from I-66) are often called Falls Church but really aren't (i.e., Bailey's Crossroads). As long as you stay between Route 50 and I-495 you should be fine as far as the "nicer" areas of town. As I'm sure you know, every city has its less desirable neighborhoods, so you just have to keep in mind that if a place (apartment, house, etc.) seems pretty cheap, there may be a reason...

And if you can't find something in your price range in Falls Church, Arlington was a good suggestion. You may or may not not be as close to a Metro subway station, but the bus system here is pretty decent. Really anything in the corridor between Falls Church and Rosslyn might be worth looking into (i.e., look for names like Ballston, Clarendon, Courthouse - all near Metro stops). Plus if you're under 30 those places will put you with people in about the same age bracket).

Good luck!

E

Traveler makes an excellent point...basically, Virginia allows what are called "unincorporated cities". They are cities that don't belong to a county; Alexandria is one and City of Falls Church is another. However, portions of Fairfax County are also called Falls Church. Really, the only reason you should care is because the tax structure and city/county services are administered a bit differently between City of FC and Ffx Cty. I lived in City of FC for a couple of years and liked it very much.

As for bunchargum's remarks concerning hispanics...one of the very best things about the DC area is its cultural diversity, b/c it means we all get to enjoy great ethnic food, shopping and ambience even in the 'burbs. Those who leave b/c they feel threatened by it are pushing themselves out, making more room for the rest of us.

I wish you the best of luck with your relocation!

angeleno

I'm living in Falls Church while I finish school. I like it quite a bit.
There is a nice mix of people, more like what i'm used to in Los Angeles - Asians, Latins, Caucasians, Blacks and Indians. makes for lots of good mom and pop restaurants!
There are three metro stops in FC - Dunn Loring, East Falls Church and West Falls Church, and all three have plenty of parking. There are also lots of different bus lines that will take you to the metro if you don't have a car. All the bus lines go by large supermarkets, so you can pop off and get some groceries on the way home.

You definitely can get a nice apartment in your price range - there are sometimes ads for FC apts on washingtondc.craigslist.org

Jon_Eric

Things must've changed since I lived there. A few weeks ago we had an article in our paper here talking about how certain nice areas around the country became not so nice and vice versa, well one of the paragraphs began with "The decline of Montgomery County, MD" scary. Anyway I first lived with friends in Great Falls, Va (nice) then the company put me in an apartment very near the Four Seasons hotel but damned if I can remember the name of that area to save my life, anyway the company paid for half of it. When that finished I ended up in Columbia which I liked because its SO different from anything in New Orleans and many people commute to DC from Columbia as I did. Most of Columbia is nice or nice enough and Howard County is certainly nice. I do remember ridiculous traffic and an insane real estate market. I swear (then) it was probably cheaper to buy than to rent. It also became very clear to me that what was nice one minute was not nice the next, regarding different areas. DuPont Circle and Madams Organ will not appeal to everyone. I know for the District if it has NW in the address for North West thats generally a good sign. Good luck!

crys

The building where I live is in Alexandria (but NOT Old Town), and is close to the Metro. It's a condo, but there's usually some units for rent. The realtors who do a lot of business in this building tell me the rental market is getting soft, so you might find a 1BR here in your range. Go to the website http://www.montebello.org/mb.htm and click on Realtors. It lists only what's for sale, but contact one of the realtors listed and they may be able to help you with rentals.

weski

Going back to an earlier post, start with where you are working and then figure out reasonable commuter routes, via Metro, buses, etc. You do not want to drive to a Metro, since there is no parking except at 6:30 a.m. Find which Metro line services your office/school and work from there. Ask there where people live. If you are working in the Federal agencies SW of the Mall, you would be crazy to live in Chantilly MD or Rockville Md. Avoid beltway and bridge commutes by car at all costs. Think smaller and closer, especially if you have no kids. You also want to walk around shopping areas on a weekend near where you are considering, ethnicity is fine, but in some areas it can be scary on a Sat. night near clubs.

weski

Chantilly, VA (near Dulles) in Fairfax County. sorry.

angeleno

i drive to a metro station in Falls Church EVERY DAY and find parking very easily at 9am.

Traveler_A

As far as the Metro parking issue goes, my experience with parking pretty often at the West Falls Church station is that you should arrive by 7:15-7:25 to be able to find a space. After 10am, some of the reserved spaces are open season for everyone, though.

ealing_calling

Hi all,

My DH and I will be repatriating (finally) next month - and it's DC! Any recent tips on apartment hunting?

Of course metro access is crucial - we're hoping for the Cleveland Park/Dupont Circle corridor (and will have the budget for this area, with any luck).

This thread had some very useful nuggets & factoids, was just wondering what else people would suggest (we will work with an agent in addition to scouring the Post, craigslist, etc).

Many thanks, hope people had good holidays
Bye from London!
, )

Shane

Between Tysons Corner and the city of Fairfax, half a mile from Route 66 and a half-mile from the Beltway is an apartment complex called, I believe, Peach Orchard. A buddy of mine rented a room there for about $ 1000 a month. The closest subway stop is Dunn Loring, I believe.

flygirl

expect to spend about 2 grand a month for a decent one bedroom in a nice area. you won't get a huge place for this, but it should be passably nice.

for apartment hunting, go to www.apartments.com or www.washingtonpost.com and look to the real estate section.

ealing_calling

Thanks for the tips. Any ideas on whether we should try for a 6- or 9-month rental . . . just in case a new administration gets in this fall? , )

Thank you again!!

shannon44

The Old Town area of Alexandria is beautiful. My husband and I lived there before we had kids. It is expensive though.If you can find a bargain there, go for it. But that's just Old Town, the rest of Alexandria is pretty scuzzy. I have quite a few single/childless friends who live in Arlington, and enjoy the nightlife their, and it's proximity to the district. Other than those two, your're in the 'burbs, which are all pretty much all the same. The further out you live, the better housing you will get for your money. If you go down this route, I would look at Reston, VA. We now live in Sterling, VA. We are in Loudoun County, but only a few miles from the Fairfax county line. Due to an explosion of new construction in the last decade here, housing is plentiful and a relative bargain. It might not be right for you now, but it's a great place to buy your first home when you're ready, as we did. Please feel free to email me with any questions ([email protected]) if you think I can be of assistance. Good Luck!!!

uhoh_busted

You are young. You really want to try to live in the city if possible. When you get older and decide to have kids, THEN you can move to the 'burbs. That said, if you can find anything in Bethesda or Chevy Chase or Arlington do check it out. There seem to be a lot of apartments up and down Connecticut Ave in DC, but you really will need to scour the ads and contact the agencies listed in the Post to find out what's available. Call some before you get here and try to set upan appointment. Many many apartments have turned into condos or co-ops (I'd love to buy one and retire downtown but OUCH! 2 bedrooms are easily over 500K) so sometimes your best bet will be a sublet or to rent from someone who owns a condo. I think that's where you'll want to use an agent. Definitely check out www.washingtonpost.com and get on the phone tomorrow!