E3only

Hello Guys,

Just trying to gather a bit more information on Virginia (McLean area for work and decent living areas aroud McLean, VA)

I wanted to get an idea how Virginia (northern part) generally is to live as compared to East Bay (Walnut Creek), CA. Cost comparisons (I know I can google COL calculators but I hardly know the areas in Virginia to compare), Rest, Housing etc.

Thanks in advance.

Bob

I think there might have been a thread recently about northern VA, which might have info, not sure.

city-data.com is probably a good place to start though, for the more general info at least

E3only

Thanks Bob, I will search.

Yeah checked Citydata. The impression I got was something like Arlington, VA is very similar living expenses as East Bay over here but may be that's not a true?

Thought I ask on BE for those living around McLean.

Cheers,

Bob

No idea about East Bay, or McLean specifically, but have friends in the Arlington area who like it, but as a family with kids, is horrendously expensive getting a decent sized home that's in decent commuting distance to where the husband works and to where the good schools were, well they were looking for pre-schools that were taking kids without a wait list when they moved last year or so which hampered housing choices.

Something like a condo is probably much more affordable, or better value for money I'd say, but wouldn't know from personal experience. They only looked at houses, though and they had a military budget to supplement their costs.

E3only

O my .... Seems as miserable as Easy Bay. Over priced real estate high taxes and bad living style.

Recently went to Texas and was stunned what you get in terms of value for money. Surethogh one may not get paid as much.

md95065

... but quite a bit more Republican ...

(Actually I believe that Virginia is the least "red" of the "red states" but that's still a lot "redder" that California)

penguinsix

McLean is probably one of the most expensive places in the DC metro area. It also suffers from some pretty heavy traffic woes.

On the plus side, you're near the Capitol and all the cultural offerings of the big city, the economy there is much stronger than other places in the US, and some of the schools in Northern Virginia are amongst the best in the nation. In fact the number one public high school there is a math and science magnet school that sends dozens to the Ivy Leagues.

The DC area is also a tad more international, with several flights to London every day and other parts of Europe, along with a strong international community (embassies, media, and the World Bank / IMF, etc).

There is a DC mother's message board (warning: extremely snarky as everyone is anonymous) but you will get some idea of schools and neighborhoods if you post there.

http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/forums/list.page

UPDATE Just saw the politics post. NoVA is very blue. The rest of Virginia is very red. McLean is old money red but generally Northern Virginia is more liberal than the rest of the state, though not as much as DC proper.

E3only

Ok,

I am new to entire American history so I have little idea of the terms like 'more redder' 'blue vs red' etc.....

I thought McLean was VA. How is it DC metro - sorry about the stupid questions.

I have been in California for 1.5 years little more than that and visiting other states it's very clear that CA is very expensive and for a young couple wanting to settle down on one salary the housing here is impossible. I am perfectly happy in CA by the way but when I see myself say 5 years from now I think to myself I would value schooling, decent housing ($$) and all those other family things. From that perspective my very short trip (although I am sure it can be misleading) to Texas was great.

Thanks.

Michael

Blue state: Northern, liberal

Red State: Southern, conservative, bible belt

Purple State: AC/DC - Can go either way. Example Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania

penguinsix

DC Metro area implies DC Metropolitan Area which is a colloquialism describing DC and the suburbs. McLean is technically only a few miles from the edge of the city border ("DC, or DC, Proper) though a bit further from the downtown area. It is a suburb of DC though not a Walmart and Target suburb, more of a stately homes and big yards.

Part of it is "inside the Beltway", another local term to describe the inner suburbs of DC which predate the crazy development in the 80s and 90s.

And fwiw, the DC area is one of the most expensive areas in the nation and McLean is one of the most, if not the most, expensive places in the DC area. Have you priced the housing on realtor.com to get an idea? It's a bit out there.

E3only

Thanks!

At the moment very early stages. Work will be McLean NOT housing....I was researching areas around McLean decent distance to get to Mclean (work) yet affordable.

I had initially thought Virginia was one of the cheaper states when compared to CA (East bay) but my research is telling me it's marginally better if not equally as expensive as CA.

Michael

You really need to get down into the real southern states to find real good values or possibly some of the midwestern or rocky mountain states.

West coast and New England states are expensive and some of the midwestern and rocky mountain states are moderately priced.

Steerpike

I'm not quite understanding what you mean by 'bad living style' in the East Bay, if you are 'perfectly happy in CA' ...

I think the living style is fabulous in the East Bay, although you do pay high taxes and real estate is not cheap.

If you are looking for cheaper real estate and are already considering Texas, I would suggest Arizona and New Mexico. I've been in AZ for over 2 years now on an 'indefinite assignment' and I'm finding it quite enjoyable (though I still have my house in East Bay and 'escape' to it every month or so). I'd offer that the low humidity in AZ is going to make it more bearable than the high humidity in much of TX. However, you have to go where the jobs are, and if your job is in the outskirts of DC, that's where you need to go ...

Good Luck!

penguinsix

You can look at McLean cost of living, but also be sure to check areas like "North Arlington" which is zip code 22207. You can check the area of DC just over the border which is known as "Upper NW" (20016) but be forewarned, it's probably as expensive as McLean. There is also the Georgetown area of DC (20007) but it's ridiculously expensive. With both of those areas you would be in DC proper, which means higher income tax than VA and lower quality public schools.

Heading out into Virginia, you can look at areas like Vienna (with some traffic issues) and a city called Reston, which is an entirely urban-planned community with so many stores for so many people and so many pools and schools every XX square km. Can be expensive there too.

If I had to guesstimate, I'd say that McLean and the immediate surrounding areas are more expensive than the East Bay, probably on par with Palo Alto. You can find cheaper stuff but it comes with an ugly commute (not that far in distance, but long in time in the car).

I'm not sure a move would be financially rewarding, though you might develop some new opportunities that are present where you are. If you are in a job in which growth (career and financial) is important, and you are currently stalled out in California, than you might consider it, but if you are just moving for the same or similar money, I think you probably wouldn't get that much of an improvement in quality of life.