liz

I am thinking about moving to Bethesda,MD and would like any information you can give me on that area. My husband's job will be there but am wondering if it's too expensive to live there. what are housing prices like?traffic?schools? we like older houses so would prefer not to move to a new suburb. Thanks.

Dick

Where would you be moving from?

What do you expect to pay for a house in Bethesda?

Tonya

Bethesda is a very attractive area, close in to DC, yet not urban. Heavily wooded, with lots of wonderful old neighborhoods as well as some new ones. Good schools as well. But the cost of housing is very high. My bro-in-law and wife bought a very small rambler (about 1,200 square feet) two years ago in a good school district for close to $400K -- AND as soon as they moved in, they needed to replace all the windows and the roof, re-finish the floors, and replace all the kitchen appliances. Another bro-in-law bought a bigger house (3,100 square feet) in a newer neighborhood a few months ago for $700K. Traffic is also very congested, though Metro and other public transportation can be very good.

liz

moving from the Northeast. what can you get for $500-600k?

john

I live near Bethesda (ROckville) and for about 500-600K, you will find a nice sized home (2500-3500 sq ft) but you will not have much land. You will be close to shops, metro, bars, and nice restaurants. Bethesda is congest in the evenings on Wisconsin Avenue and in the morning rush but for the nightlife and social aspect, I would live there if I could afford it. (Being straigt outta college kinda keeps you poor). Good luck!

Kelly

I'll tell you my experience. We moved to the D.C. metro area last summer for husband's job transfer. We did a lot of neighborhood and house hunting. Bethesda/Chevy Chase, MAryland was our first pick. WE wanted to spend no more than $500k for home. We are a young married couple no kids yet and wre looking for something in an area where we could walk to things ride metro into D.C. and didn't care if we had a small lot and older house, that just means character. We were looking for a not too large house but 3br/2ba 2story more than 1800sqft. WE COULDNT FIND ANYTHING IN THAT PRICE RANGE SUITABLE! We would have had to spend a minimum of $600k. We settled in Clarendon area of Arlington (our second choice) adn found just the right home for about $465k than had a little left over to fix it up. (it needed new carpet adn some landscaping) Be warned, Bethesda is great but real estate is outrageous. It's kind of weird because other than property the cost of living was CHEAPER than where we were coming from.

Roger

Liz, are you a millionaire. That's what you'll have to be to move to Bethesda. It is one of the most elite neighborhoods in Washington. It's on the red line subway, so that'll be helpful. Two of my favorite restaurants, Benihana's and The Lousisian Express, are in Bethesda. WARNING- Not only is Maryland a very high tax state, Montgomery County is Maryland's highest taxed county. People really love and support big government in Montgomery County.

dc

We bought almost 2 years ago in Chevy Chase, and at that time I found that you got a lot more for the money in MD than in VA. I guess MD has caught up. Beth/CC is all old houses - the new suburbs are places like Gaithersburg and Boyds.

Still, if your husband's working in Bethesda, there's no way you'll want to live in VA. The traffic really is that bad. Can't comment on schools.

liz

ok, so Bethesda is too expensive. Any suggestions on where I can buy an older home with a reasonable commute to Bethesda? I am wondering if there is such a thing. How are real estate taxes? I am paying $11k now which I think is pretty high.

DCer

Some good places to live with a reasonable commute to Bethesda: my hometown Silver Spring and also Takoma Park. Both are less expensive than Bethesda but still very close in to DC. That matters to me as I commute into DC for work and also for pleasure. If you are a more suburban type with less interest in actually entering DC on a regular basis, look at suburbs just north of Bethesda, opposite DC. The further out you go, the less expensive for obvious reasons. I hav a friend who lives in Glen Echo and loves it, not sure what housing costs are in that area, Cabin John is also nice adn both would be a relatively easy commute to Bethesda.

bethesda

Hi Liz - I live and work in Bethesda and I bought very small 1950's bungalow several years ago which I thought was expensive then but would bemuch more now. HOWEVER, I would not do the commute to Bethesda every work day for anything. I see what my co-workers deal with and I simply could not do it. I walk 3 blocks to work, rarely ever use my car, walk to all the stores I need, restaurants, library, theater, etc. and use the Metro or buses when I go further afield. It's a trade off that you have to think seriously about in terms of quality of life and how much that is worth to you.

pete

Liz,
Check the Montgomery County School systems carefully, there is a big difference between the quality of the schools, and that's reflected in the housing prices around the county. If you're not interested in public schools (no kids, or intend to use private schools), then you may decide you're not willing to pay the high ($50-$100K more) premium for the same type of house in the better school district. Areas to try if you can't afford Bethesda are Glen Echo, Kensington (zip 20895, look down around Rock Creek Hills, and Parkwood areas), and further around towards silver spring. A basic rule of thumb for Montgomery County is that the further east & north you go from Bethesda/Chevy Chase around the beltway, the less expensive the houses are. Check current house listings using www.homesdatabase.com (real time updates to MLS system), and realtor.com (not as updated, but has a zip code map for help in choosing area to search).

Rachel

I'm in sticker shockl You can buy a 3000+ sq ft house in a top school district in the Buffalo, NY suburbs for under $300K, be 10-15 minutes from the airport where you can grab a southwest air flight to DC for $59 and bring a friend for free! Bonus-only 15 minutes from another county, Canada. Better yet, could I move my house to Bethesda and sell it?

jane

We were looking at Bethesda last summer and really loved it! But- the prices were high and the houses needed major work. Ranging from updating (ripping out miles of shag carpeting!) to complete renovations. I think there are some good suggestions of close towns already listed.

We bought in VA, but I would stay away from VA if you're driving to Bethesda. Rockville, Kensington, Silver Spring, all good suggestions. I would also look at Potomac. I know...it's the most expensive zip code, but there are actually some surprisingly affordable neighborhoods, too.

Roger

For a big house for a decent price, you might want to try a couple neighborhoods just east of Crofton, MD. Hermitage Hills, where my folks paid $ 350,000 for a mansion 5 years ago. Tom Gugliotta of the Bullets used to live in the nieghborhood. Other neighborhoods with big houses nearby are Huntington Woods, Hallmark Woods, Lavall Woods, Cheval Trails, Arundel Ridge, North River Forest and Chesterfield.

[email protected]

Liz--you don't have to be rich to live in Bethesda. My husband and I have lived in Bethesda for over two years (my husband lived here for several years before I joined him). We absolutely love our neighborhood, which is just beyond the beltway and very convenient to the Grosvenor Metro, and it is far more affordable than other Bethesda neighborhoods. In our area, for between $400K and $500K you can certainly get a good sized (not huge) 4 bedroom house that may or may not need some updating.

If Bethesda doesn't work out, I would definitely not live in Virginia, as the commute would be horrible. I agree that you should look at Kensington and the closer-in sections of Silver Spring. There are some really wonderful older neighborhoods in Silver Spring with beautiful houses. But, as others have said, the further you go from Bethesda, the more carefully you will want to check out the schools. Some of them are great, but make sure you do your homework.

Jane

Just be careful when you start to get into the outer suburbs, like Silver Spring, etc. It's so easy to get caught up in the fact that houses are cheaper, and keep going further and further out. I did that, although it was in Virginia, and ended up miserable. We sold our house after 2 years at a loss just to get out of hell (otherwise known as Manassas). Stay as close to your husband's job as you can, and get as close to a metro stop as you can.

Also, I'd be a little leery of taking any advice from someone whose favorite restaurants are Benihana and Louisana Express. But I guess both of those places are indictative of Bethesda dining: plenty of restaurants, but very few good restaurants. They almost all hover at mediocre.

Roger

Well isn't Jane the snob. Louisiana Express is always a winner in the cheap eats catagory. Great Cajun-- and won't break your wallet. Benihana's is great fun. And a little bit less than the $ 200 a plate that those two homos at the Inn at Little Washington charge. Liz, if you want to blow money on dinner, sure, go to Galileo's downtown, especially the owner's elite restaurant next door (I forget its name) and spend $ 400 for dinner. Just don't complain to me when your kids cry and ask why there's no money for the new Scooby Doo VCR tape.

Roger

By the way, Jane, I'm just funning ya.' Just named our newborn Jane so I'm partial to the name.

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Wow! Buffalo's best schools!

Rachel ([email protected])
Date: 03/27/2002, 01:28 pm
Message: I'm in sticker shock! You can buy a 3000+ sq ft house in a top school district in the Buffalo, NY suburbs for under $300K...