Northern Virgina or Maryland

[nisryus]

So the wife has been entertaining the idea of moving out of Texas netx year, hopefully when the economy will be better by then.

Two area she has been looking at on Realtor and Redfin were NoVA and Maryland, since we can't afford CA. She used to think of Seattle WA or Portland OR. But decided to try finding somewhere around East.

NoVA area like Fairfax, Sterling, Annadale and Manassas.

Close to DC with many things to do, as we can take the metro rail. Also the kiddo is studying in W&L in Lexington, VA so that's around two hours away only, instead of having to fly home.

But i heard the tax is crazy (not as bad as CA). Like if you have a car you have to pay annual personal property tax on it?

Maryland looks cheaper, and the places she was lookg at are Annapolis, Baltimore and Towson.

The kiddo and I have been to Towson when we visited Goucher College there. Its kind of far away from everything, but it was an ok area.

The Lyft drivers both told us tax, tax and tax, plus its not that great to live in Baltimore.

Anyone who is living in either areas and has more insights? Are tax really that bad in either state?

 

[Torn Mind]

You moving around for work or something? Because you'll get bottlenecked by the traffic if you choose poorly.

Annapolis is basically for the well off, yes. But it is relatively isolated and you will need a car to travel US50 or I-97. The Navy and state gov are featured in the city proper. The rest is suburb life.

And yes, Baltimore is a proper garbage dump where even the least judgmental should be at least concerned about random victimization. It is a mosaic. There are well neighborhoods inside the city with corresponding property values. Again, you will want a car, probably need one because the crime makes the city not walk-friendly and the good stuff requires commuting out of Baltimore.

Manassas is also further out, so again, car and traffic bottleneck must be considered.

 

[Chaotic42]

Taking the DC metro during rush hour is an experience for sure, as is driving. You're going to want a commute against traffic and housing prices are kind of nuts. I have to travel there for work from time to time and... it's not for me. If you have the freedom to move anywhere and want to be in that general area, maybe Richmond? It's a nice city with stuff to do, but it's less chaotic than the DC or Baltimore metro and housing should be cheaper.

 

[dingster1]

Take a look at Fredricksburg. VRE to Union to meet Metro. I’m in Richmond. Transit here is hit or miss compared to DMV.

 

[lxskllr]

I've lived in MD my whole life. Dunno about tax. You just pay and get on with life. No point in worrying about it. What is a worry is traffic. Traffic is pretty much shit along the I95 corridor, and the closer to DC, the worse it gets. Might be manageable if you want to take mass transit everywhere. That would be closer to DC.

If you wanted to do any driving, I'd be looking at the more rural areas of MD or south central PA. While you aren't exactly close to anything, you aren't far either. You can drive to DC, Baltimore, or Philly when you want to do city stuff, but your day to day existence is less stressful.