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stevep,
Thanks for the info...are you from Northern VA? We figure once we saw a house of interest, we would then look at the schools...the BIGGEST factor is elementary schools since we have a son in Kindergarten. I have done my research and am well aware of the statistics of the fairfax county schools. I figured that once I thought we saw a house that is affordable and in a good school district....we would go for it, rather than rent. You think this is a bad approach?
We used to live there VA/MD for about 10 years in Arlington and Cascades/Potomac Falls, but we moved in 2002. The commute is huge, so you'll definitely want to "test drive" it before buying a home. Also, many people take the train to work into DC, so that also might weigh into your decision.
The bigger issue is that you haven't sold your home in PA yet. In this market, you don't want to get stuck with 2 mortgages because it's tough to know when you'll sell your home. For example, if your home doesn't sell for a year, can you handle paying 2 mortgages for an entire year, plus upkeep and taxes on 2 homes? And it's even harder to sell your home when you live in a different state because you've stopped doing general maintenance on the home, so it starts looking "old and tired". Also, it will be harder to qualify for a mortgage with an existing mortage.
On the flip side, if you wait and sell first and then get prequalified for a mortgage, you'll now have spent some time getting used to the area and will be in the driver's seat, because you're a "true" buyer which every seller is looking for.
Yea , at first we thought if we could look to rent in the area we wanted to buy then buy when we saw something and ideally keeping our son in the same elementary school...that would be ideal. Yet, it may be unrealistic.
Overall, we are not going to do anything until our house here sells.
As for commuting, hands down, the metro will most likely be the way we go. Currently, my husband walks to the Braddock station and does not even need his car. So the way to go down there. Where ever we find, that will most likely be the way he commutes to work...and me too for that matter where ever and when ever I find work.
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