Considering moving to northern VA ...

[TwoMisfits]

We will be renting for awhile which should help with commute and traffic. Are there any areas to avoid crime-wise? Which schools would you recommend there? We prefer a suburban area (we are not big city people) however we want to at least be close to shopping etc.

I will 2nd that you can kinda tell where to avoid (and where to want to be) by prices. Where will your commute be to? It makes a world of difference in where to tell you to be if your commute is DC, Arlington, Chantilly, or Falls Church...I'd recommend different places for each of those commutes...

 

[DVCcurious]

Maybe my brother in law told me UVA was impossible to get in because his daughter didn't get in (she's a senior in HS) and he didn't want me calling her a looser since she didn't get in.

 

[kidshop]

Springfield/Burke/fairfax station are all a good balance between excellent schools, housing prices and commute to D/C. Housing prices are cheaper the father out you go ( prince William), but commute just gets worse! Seriously the traffic is not to be believed until you see it. Indescribable.

We are military so somewhat insulated from the high cost of living, but I love it here. (Except for the traffic)

 

[PlutoPony]

We will be renting for awhile which should help with commute and traffic. Are there any areas to avoid crime-wise? Which schools would you recommend there? We prefer a suburban area (we are not big city people) however we want to at least be close to shopping etc.

Have you visited the area yet? If so, what were your impressions of the various areas?

Cannot emphasize enough that where you work and how you plan to commute is absolutely crucial to deciding where to live. Prince William County spans 2 major commuting corridors by car - I-66 and I-95. One may be better for you than the other depending on where you are commuting to and when you are dong that. In general, commutes start EARLY here - it's not at all unusual for people to leave home at 5-5:30 am especially if commuting by car. Commuter train VRE is available and if you want to go that way, you would want to look in the western part of the county. My husband uses VRE to go to Alexandria and it works well for him. But it still takes time, it takes him 1 hour 20 minutes door to door each way (from the first/last VRE station on the line) but it's LOW STRESS not driving, he can read and relax on the way. He would likely not save any time if he drove it during rush hour. and some days it would take him longer.

As for schools, personally I'd stay in the western part of the county (which is the I-66 area) IF that works for you commuting wise. What age are your children? Keep in mind the school systems here are very large - Prince William County has 80k+ students, Loudon and Fairfax are larger. Shopping should be ok about anywhere.

As for colleges, William and Mary is probably the most selective school in the state and along with UVa is the top liberal arts school. Virginia Tech is clearly the top STEM university in the state and has multiple programs ranked top 5 and top 10 in the country. But there are many other well regarded universities in the state. However, the top schools are very competitive to get into, especially if you are coming out of the northern VA high schools. My son's freshman class of 5000 + at VT had an avg GPA of slightly over 4.0 a couple years ago.

Are you looking to rent or buy and what kind of budget are you working with?

 

[havaneselover]

Maybe my brother in law told me UVA was impossible to get in because his daughter didn't get in (she's a senior in HS) and he didn't want me calling her a looser since she didn't get in.

Well, it's hard. Acceptance rate is < 30%. And not getting in certainly doesn't make someone a loser. But they still admit 3,000 in state students a year. We have a few high schools in my county that each get 30+ kids/year in.

 

[Alicenwonderment]

I worked for Arlington Schools for a few years. I lived in Falls Church and my studio apt was 1200 in 204-05. It had one room with murphy bed and small kitchen. The second year I lived in the Ballston area. I was lucky with traffic since I lived close by. I do know heading to fairfax on route 7 at the end of the day was very congested. It could take me an hour to go 15 miles with all the traffic leaving for the day. Good luck!!

 

[bdcp]

I'm not sure who claims that VA Tech is the flagship school except for VA Tech alumni. It's got a 70% acceptance rate. UVa is consistently ranked one of the top public universities. That's never been the case for Tech. As far as the number of students accepted per high school, there are about 3,000 in state undergrads per class and 322 public high schools. So 2-3 per high school is way off even when you consider the regional governor's high schools.

But I completely agree--lots of good options. That's why I have 4 years of tuition prepaid for both my children.

LOL. That's what I meant. Every Tech grad I've met thinks it's a better school than UVA.

 

[havaneselover]

LOL. That's what I meant. Every Tech grad I've met thinks it's a better school than UVA.

I dated one of those. Of course he didn't get into UVa

 

[danygirl]

UVA or "even VA tech" hate to tell you but Va Tech is an excellent and highly selective state school. Unlike most states, which might have only one great state school, Virginia has two of them, both excellent.

 

[havaneselover]

UVA or "even VA tech" hate to tell you but Va Tech is an excellent and highly selective state school. Unlike most states, which might have only one great state school, Virginia has two of them, both excellent.

Right, UVa and W&M. A school with a 70% acceptance rate isn't highly selective. It's a good school for sure but let's not exaggerate.

 

[Dakota731]

NO college students in our household but I'm looking at elementary schools possibly in Prince William County. So looking for ones to avoid as well as neighborhoods that are safe and family friendly.

 

[havaneselover]

NO college students in our household but I'm looking at elementary schools possibly in Prince William County. So looking for ones to avoid as well as neighborhoods that are safe and family friendly.

Did you check school digger? That's my preferred site. From there I would go on city data and ask.

 

[TeamH5]

Honestly, you're gonna drive. We live a block from a shopping mall and we still have to drive to go to the places we want to shop/eat at. We're in Franconia/Springfield and though it's city-ish, it's still enough of a suburban feel for us(we live on a 1/3 acre lot that backs up to some woods,
Which is home to a whole family of deer, fox, etc..)
Our elementary schools is Springfield Estates which is a top rated school, but High School is Lee which is not very well rated at all. So if we're here for the long haul we'll have to move for High school.
West Springfield is pretty suburban with great schools all the way around, but also very expensive to live, rent or buy.

 

[PlutoPony]

NO college students in our household but I'm looking at elementary schools possibly in Prince William County. So looking for ones to avoid as well as neighborhoods that are safe and family friendly.

You should be fine at any of the elementary schools in the western part of the county. All are pretty solid with high parental involvement. Eastern part of county is a little more hit and miss, and the population moves in and out a bit more due to having more military families. There are good schools there but I'd research it more extensively than the western schools. I'd put middle school in the same category.

Haven't read parental rating sites for schools around here lately but in the past you needed to be careful putting too much stock in them. Not saying to ignore them but don't take them as the holy grail. A lot of comments in the past were centered more on popularity of the principal. PWC has gotten much better at removing/moving principals who don't mesh with the school community and have results on a downward trend. Again, I'd say the western elementary schools are good and there's not 1 I'd concentrate on getting into.

Personally I'd avoid Manassas City schools and Manassas Park.

Good luck and come back with questions as you have them!

 

[PlutoPony]

NO college students in our household but I'm looking at elementary schools possibly in Prince William County. So looking for ones to avoid as well as neighborhoods that are safe and family friendly.

If you want to give me an idea of your price range and where you're commuting to, I can give you some neighborhoods in western Prince William to consider. Am not familiar enough with the eastern end of the county to do that (east and west are very different from each other). You can PM me if you'd prefer

 

[Dakota731]

How is the Reston/Herndon area for safety, housing, schools etc?

 

[havaneselover]

How is the Reston/Herndon area for safety, housing, schools etc?

I have a friend in Herndon. Her children are in school there and she will be teaching in Herndon starting this year (and grew up there). She seems happy with the schools but the school she is at has an incredibly large population of English language learner students. The demographics at Her boys' school are different.

 

[TwoMisfits]

How is the Reston/Herndon area for safety, housing, schools etc?

Echoing havan, depending where in Reston/Herndon, you could have a very large non-English speaking school population (and neighborhood if you like being out and about in your neighborhood). That being said, it is a big growth area in the county and there are lovely amenities (like Reston Town Center) out that way...

As far as safety, Fairfax County is safer than 99% of the US, so even the worst part of the county will likely be safer than where you are moving from...

 

[emilyrachael]

NO college students in our household but I'm looking at elementary schools possibly in Prince William County. So looking for ones to avoid as well as neighborhoods that are safe and family friendly.

I agree with looking in western Prince William County. The Gainesville/Haymarket/Bristow area has great elementary schools and is filled with young families. There's a newish shopping center in Gainesville and tons of family activities around. Just make sure you can handle the commute.

 

[TwoMisfits]

If you want some of the safer neighborhoods/best schools parts of Fairfax County, you likely want to look in the Burke/West Springfield area, Falls Church city (or the county area near it), or Fairfax City proper (or the parts in the same zip code that are County). Lots of townhomes to rent or buy in all of these areas...the townhome communities tend to be ready made to be neighborly b/c you kinda have to be...pick one with a summer pool and near a public transport option (VRE or Metro) and you'll be fine.