Anyone here who lives/has lived in Washington, D.C. area?

BigSmooth

Lifer
Aug 18, 2000
10,484
12
81
My company was recently bought out by a larger company based in McLean, VA which is a suburb of DC. I have a choice: lose my job or move out there (and get paid better). My girlfriend wants to go to grad school at Georgetown, so we are seriously considering relocating. We currently live in a suburb of Portland, OR.

It'd be a big change, I know. Anyone who lives in DC, can you give me some pros and cons about living there? Everyday stuff like the weather, public transportation, etc. I've checked out a Places Rated Almanac, but I want some Anandtechie opinions. :)
 

Balt

Lifer
Mar 12, 2000
12,673
482
126
My brother lives there.

Weather: Not really sure, but it gets HOT in the summer (and I live in Florida).

Public Transportation: The Metro kicks a$$. It doesn't cover a very large area, but it is sufficient and VERY clean and nice.

Pros: Lots of stuff always happening. Art exhibits moving through, stuff in the museums, etc.

Cons: Crime. My brother's car has been broken into (only once that I know about, but still). Lots of drugs and murder and such. If you stay in the good side of town (or in the suburbs) you shouldn't have a problem, though.
 

Chef0083

Golden Member
Dec 9, 1999
1,184
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DC has a great Public Transit system though. I don't live there but I have friends that do.
 

stomp

Senior member
Oct 9, 1999
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Rush hour traffic is GOD awful. The metro (subway) is absolutely fabulous for most of the metro area, don't think there's anything near McLean yet though... though metro gets damn busy during rush hour.

For Weather: we are a bunch of whining wimps.
-Winter: occasional blizzard measuring less than a foot, more regularly a few inches a few times a winter. That's when people panic, with two inches on the ground -- public schools closed for weeks with a snowflake.
-Summer: hits 100 a few times a summer, most of the times 90s, people die of heat exhaustion.
-Spring: sunny and rainy pretty average amount, people panic and fly off roads.
-Fall: very pretty in the suburbs, but those leaves are flying deathtraps.

overall, the DC metro is an all around nice place... pretty average, though. Crime isn't a huge issue unless deep in DC.

If you can, try and find a living place that goes against traffic to work :D (I'm lovin going out to Chantilly from Vienna, seeing I66 at a standstill, while I'm goin 70 in the opposite direction laughing hysterically).

Georgetown is nice... public transportation system is your friend. Buses work out well too in DC area. Just be prepared to wait a lot... not as bad as other places, but not wonderful either.

Oh yeah, quick tip for metro: learn the routes ahead of time ;)

Its definately a nice place to live... for tech jobs, its the place to be :)
 

kantonburg

Platinum Member
Oct 10, 1999
2,975
1
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Well it depends on where you live and SUOrangeman will vouch for me on this.

Our company is moving to Tyson's Corner in 2 years (McLean)

I lived in Fairfax. Chantilly to be honest and it was about a 30-45 min drive to McLean during rush hour for me. Not too bad considering it was about 20 miles. It you live IN DC then it would be awful getting there. Well if you have to travel anywhere on 95, 395, or 495 it's awful. Luckily I can take the toll road. .50 going and .25 coming home. Not bad.

I came from a REAL small town and it took me about a month to get used to the traffic but after that I LOVED it there. I kinda miss it now that I'm back in school.

Yes the money is better. Fairfax is the first county in america to surpass the $90,000 mean average income for a family. This was in the post in July I think. They also had an article there saying the average home now costs $275,000 too. So it isn't cheap.

Again SUO can give you some better background but there are quite a few that live up here that visit here.

Good luck
 

perry

Diamond Member
Apr 7, 2000
4,018
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Nice area. I lived there from 8th-12th grades before going away for college. My mom just moved away last year after my sister graduated from high school (I graduated in 96). We lived in Montgomery County, MD.

Lots of places to go and see. Tons of culture. Kennedy Center, National Theater, Ford's Theater all have great shows all the time. Museums bore me (I've been to WAAAAY too many), but there always seemed to be some new exhibit in town. Small concerts all over the place all the time.

It's pretty safe in Northwest DC (I think that's where Gtown is), I wouldn't venture into Southeast without an armour column for protection though.

As others have said, traffic is murder. The beltway during rushhour really sucks. Even the backroads get pretty darn busy. Weather is nice. Hot in summer, cold in winter. Not too much snow, and snow removal was always pretty good where we lived.

Go for it. All in all, a nice place to live.
 

BigSmooth

Lifer
Aug 18, 2000
10,484
12
81
Thanks for all the tips. Yeah, the cost of living index is very high there. Kind of put me off initially, but my increase in salary is significant enough to cover it and more.

I better be careful where I choose to live in order to avoid the traffic! :Q
 

SUOrangeman

Diamond Member
Oct 12, 1999
8,361
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As K-burg introduced, I too live in the area (there are a bunch of AnandTechers is these parts).

The most immediate thing you will notice about the area, particularly out here on the WESSSSIDDEE! is the rush hour traffic. let's not fool you. The Capitol Beltway (Springfield, in particular) is the #2 worst traffic spot in the country, behind LA. They will be working on Springfield and the Wilson Bridge for the next 10 years or so. I think they want to end up with 12 (or 24) lanes across, I forget which. The goal is to keep the traffic as bad as it is now, as opposed togetting worse. :)

If you can get beyond the traffic, say, by commuting against it, the second problem will be finding a place to stay. No, we are no where near the prices of Silicon Valley, but let's just say that I'm paying over $1K a month for a 1 BR apartment. As you noted, your salary may afford you such luxuries, so this may not be a big deal.

My company actually owns the spot where the McLean MetroRail station will be built. Once it gets here (and extending the line to Dulles), traffic may decrease tremendously. Still a number of years out, as the people still work at the site where the station will sit.

Let's see, what else can I say ...

Smithsonian, Newseum, Dave & Busters, Bethesda, Cheesecake Factory, Potomac Mills, Tyson's Mall, Tyson's Galleria, Maggiano's, Reston, Redskins, GMU, White House/monuments/Pentagon/etc, ESPN Zone, Baltimore, ... did I mention GMU already? :)

-SUO, BSEE GMU 1997, MSCE SU 1998
 

somethingwitty

Golden Member
Aug 1, 2000
1,420
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I'm from Silver Spring, MD (in Philly now for college). Weather is kinda wierd-it rains a lot, then snows a little and the area shuts down. Metro is awesome-much better than transit here in philadelphia. Benefits-good area for concerts, museums, performances (i.e comedy), touring... Risk of crime isnt too bad, provided you know where/where not to go (you can figure that one out pretty quickly). Traffic on the beltway SUCKS. Final benefit, IMO, some great radio stations. Great variety, great quantity too.
 

BigSmooth

Lifer
Aug 18, 2000
10,484
12
81
Wow, everyone is really complaining about the traffic. Maybe I should see if my company will just let me sleep at work. :)

Actually, I'm glad I have a fairly new car with CD, A/C and all that jazz to keep me comfy and entertained while stopped on the highway. ;)

SUO: $1K month for 1 BR! :Q Hope that your apt. is fairly nice. I have a nice 1 BR here for $675 and it includes utilities (except for electricity) and cable!
 

ddreams

Member
Nov 2, 1999
63
0
0

This summer I moved from Missouri to Tyson's Corner, VA. I live just outside Falls Church off of Rte. 7. Here's my thoughts:

1) Traffic is horrible. Live close to work or plan your commute carefully.
2) Real estate prices / rents are very high. If you want to live near work in Tyson's you will pay for it.
3) I can't speak for the weather, since I got here in July they've had one of the coolest summers on record.
4) There is a LOT to do... great tourist stuff, decent night life, etc.
5) The metro system is great...clean, safe, fast... But it won't help you much if you work in Tyson's or McClean (a stop in Falls Curch that you could hop a metro bus from I guess).
6) Traffic is horrible... Did I say that already? I live 1.5 miles from work, yesterday it took me 20 minutes to drive home... Find out exactly where you'll be working and plan where you live accordingly...

So far I like it... I like being near so many tech companies. My girlfriend is a student at UVA (the reason I moved out here), which is about 2 hours south of DC... Virginia is a fairly pretty state... Parts of it are more southern then I would have guessed... It's near a lot to do (I was in Baltimore last weekend and had a great time downtown, beaches close enough for weekend trips, I'm told skiing day trips are possible, not sure yet)

Make sure you check out cost of living and factor in what effect commuting would have on your life...


 

ddreams

Member
Nov 2, 1999
63
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Forgot to add about cost of living...

I'm paying $955 / month for a one bedroom apartment with a "den" (a den being a 6x10 room). It's nice, but certainly not $1k/month nice... I will probably keep paying that to avoid traffic, but it sure was a shock when I got here.

More importantly, some places in the city and NoVA are getting VERY hard to find rentals period, much less affordable rentals. I very much lucked into my apartment (apartment hunted on the web and the phone for a week, everyone had a 2 month waiting list... Decided to drive up here a few weeks before I was to start work (was living in Charlottesville with my girlfriend since we moved from MO) and look... I drove around Tysons to familiarize myself with the area, and by chance headed down towards Falls Church/McClean on Rte. 7. I stopped at PeachTree of McClean to be told they had a 2 month waiting list that I could get on with a $200 fee.... I said no thanks but I might be back, and went to the apartment complex I'm in now. They had the same deal, _but_ someone had just canceled their lease because they couldn't move to the area after all...I whipped out the checkbook and had an apartment to move into the next day... If I hadn't found that I probably would have had to either live much further from work or stay in an extended-housing hotel thing while I waited on a waiting list.. As it is I'm not sure an extended-stay place would be such a bad idea if your company pays relocation fees, it'll give you a feel for traffic and let you talk to cow-orkers about where they live...

email me (ddreams@yahoo.com) if you want more opinions... Sounds like you're in the same boat I was.
 

BoberFett

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
37,562
9
81
Haven't lived there, but here's my $0.01.

Whenever I go to Virginia for work, I usually fly into Dulles and then drive to Va. Beach or wherever I'm going. Yes, traffic is a nightmare. Northern Va. seems like a really nice area, but I don't think I'd want to live anywhere near DC itself. A friend of my dad's lives near DC and he says there are a lot of areas in DC where he wouldn't feel safe. And he's black. :)