# neighbourhood recommendations washington metropolitan area



## glasgowgirl (Aug 30, 2010)

Hello there,

apologies if this has been covered a thousand times before, my family and I are relocating to the USA in October as my husband has been offered a job over there.

His work will be home-based but covering the Washington/Maryland districts so we could really be based anywhere in the Washington Metropolitan area. We have 2 school age children (6 & 10y) and one of our main concerns is getting them enrolled in a good school, in an area with family friendly activities and a friendly neighbourhood.

As we won't have time to have trip over to check out areas we're relying on the wonderful internet to try and narrow down our search.

One of the main areas we have been focusing on is Fairfax County. Can anyone suggest particular towns in Fairfax which would suit us with good schools to look at?

Also are there any other areas you would suggest we investigate?

Many thanks in advance for any help and suggestions you can provide.


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## YOLO (Jan 11, 2010)

Glasgow,

You mention your husbands territory is DC/MD and then you mention Fairfax County. FC is in Virginia and during rush hour that can be over a 2 hour commute if he has to visit clients. If you want Virginia, try Ashburn. The schools there are great, tons of kids and a neighborhood atmosphere. For houses try this Ashburn Real Estate & Ashburn Homes For Sale — Trulia.com Try Ashburn Village (a sub-division) as there is a community center with a pool, lots of parks and bike paths.

In MD, don't go to Montgomery county...we first lived there when we moved to the DC area and hated it-way too expensive for what you get, people are snobs and traffic is horrendous. Maybe try the Columbia MD area....


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## MarylandNed (May 11, 2010)

YOLO said:


> Glasgow,
> 
> You mention your husbands territory is DC/MD and then you mention Fairfax County. FC is in Virginia and during rush hour that can be over a 2 hour commute if he has to visit clients. If you want Virginia, try Ashburn. The schools there are great, tons of kids and a neighborhood atmosphere. For houses try this Ashburn Real Estate & Ashburn Homes For Sale — Trulia.com Try Ashburn Village (a sub-division) as there is a community center with a pool, lots of parks and bike paths.
> 
> In MD, don't go to Montgomery county...we first lived there when we moved to the DC area and hated it-way too expensive for what you get, people are snobs and traffic is horrendous. Maybe try the Columbia MD area....


It's hard to make generalizations about an entire county. I live in Montgomery County, MD myself and I don't know many "snobs". It's a great place to raise a family and has good schools. Places like Gaithersburg and Rockville are always among the highest ranked cities in the US for quality of life. However, like everywhere else there are always pockets of good and bad and you just have to try to avoid the bad. Obviously the closer to DC you get, the more expensive housing is (e.g. Bethesda, Chevy Chase, Potomac, etc.) but that applies to DC's Virginia suburbs as well (e.g. McLean, Arlington, etc.).

Clarksburg, MD is a new community in Montgomery County that might be worth looking at. I agree that Columbia, MD is worth a look. Ellicott City, MD as well. However, there are many others.


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## Cleo Shahateet (Feb 23, 2009)

Fairfax County is a good choice for schooling - Chantilly, Reston, Fairfax are all good and nice. Mclean has great schools but is pricey. 
Also, it depends if you are going to buy or rent a home. If you buy then it depends what your budget is. In Fairfax County, you can get a townhouse or an old small single family home for around 350,000 but just outside in the Gaineville area you can get a brand new single family home on a 1/4 acre for 350,000. We recently had one built in Bristow in Prince William County and schools, safety and a family friendly environment were our main priorities and we are very happy with our choice. 
Over a 10 year span, we previously lived in Germantown, MD, Centreville, VA, Alexandria, VA and Sterling close to Ashburn in Loudoun County, all of which were fine but we prefer where we have a home now. There are not too many places you can go really wrong though apart from traffic. There are bad pockets and a few not so desirable schools which can be easily researched. Personally, I would stay away from parts of Herndon, Manassas and Woodbridge though.


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## Hash4272 (Sep 26, 2010)

for schools and raising your kids your best bet is to stay in NoVA (northern VA), never even step in to Prince George's county, MD .. Montgomery county, MD is good nice people good place, but a little pricey depending on where his work is in the region then you can choose whats best for your husband, as the morning and afternoon rush hour is horrible, but stick to VA, i have my residence in Great Falls, VA its one of the most convenient and peace full places you will ever find but its also pricey.


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## hellsbadger (Aug 26, 2010)

Hi,
I'm also interested in the DC metro area as my husband will be working in Gaithersburg. We're looking at living in Montgomery county initially until we get to know the area. Are there any specific areas of Gaithersburg to avoid or is it all pretty much OK? Also, I've read mixed reports on Germantown - some seem to love it, some hate it so I'm not sure what to think. We have 2 small kids (age 2 and 3) so ideally we'd like somewhere family friendly so that they can meet new friends. Any advice would be gratefully received!


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## Hash4272 (Sep 26, 2010)

Germantown is good for kids and family, i had been living in that area for about 10 years, you just have to find good communities and there is plenty of them out there


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