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My husband and I are relocating to DC from New York. We know pretty much where we want to live and my husband is coming down on Tuesday to look at apartments.
We have an appointment scheduled to look at a townhouse on Upshur Street, NW right off of Georgia Ave..... a few blocks from the Georgia Ave./Petworth metro.
This is the deal. The place isn't great (there was a toilet in the backyard ugly red carpet, mismatched kitchen cabinets and possibly broken shower faucet). I asked if the rent could be reduced and they lowered it $100 to $1900 a month for a 4 bedroom house.
Is this too much to pay for a place that is very outdated? I certainly don't need granite countertops and stainless steel but I don't won't to over pay either.
We also don't need a house but do need a 2 bedroom that accepts pets. The least expensive house I have seen was 1850 (didn't accept pets) upward to $2650(very nice). Apartments seem to be in the 1400 range (basement) to $2500 month for 2/2.
My recommendation is to do a quick gander at craigslist.org's listings for apartments / townhouses of similar size and price. Check out the photos of some that are available and do a comparison.
I have been perusing Craigslist for about a month now looking at different apartments/ houses. That is where I got the ranges from in my posting. They were actually Craigslist postings.
The issue is that most of the houses I have seen have been renovated. This one is not and although it seems high the majority of the postings are in the 2300+ range.
Frankly, I just don't know enough about the DC rental market(even after spending a ton of time on Craigslist and other sites) to determine if $1900 is a lot for a dump.
For a 4-bedroom house in DC $1900 seems cheap to me (which is reflected in the state of the house). I'm paying $2200 for a 2 bed/1.5 bath townhouse in SW.
How many pets do you have? If it's just 1 or 2 a lot of places should accept them. But still, for a 2-bedroom within walking distance to a metro with pets, you'll be hard-pressed to find much cheaper than $2000.
Frankly, I just don't know enough about the DC rental market(even after spending a ton of time on Craigslist and other sites) to determine if $1900 is a lot for a dump.
$1900 for a 4 bedroom seems cheap, but as you probably noticed you are getting what you pay for. I looked at a few 4br in the 'border area' of Capitol Hill that were around $3,000 or so. Search for 4br in Georgetown or Dupont Circle or Capitol Hill and you'll get an idea of what they are going for on the higher end.
You said you could live in a 2br so long as they allowed pets. I did a quick craiglist search (clicking the 'pets allowed' box) and there were several places in slightly more interesting neighborhoods or condition. Do you have to live in DC proper or are you considering Arlington/Alexandria and other closer in areas?
We really didn't look at many other places other than CH/Petworth/Mt. Pleasant.
My husband's job is about 3 blocks away on Taylor. Since we are moving from New York we don't have a car so close proximity to work/subway are important.
I have a warped since of price, since, I somehow snagged a 3 bedroom for $1350 when I first moved to NYC. It was in Harlem right before the real estate boom. I think you be hard pressed to find a place that cheap in Harlem these days. It was also totally renovated.
I am enticed by the thought of having space and a backyard. However, not sure it is worth living in a run down townhouse. Although, from the pictures it does look like it has brand new windows.
Thank you for the help. I appreciate the comments.
While $1900 is a good deal for a 4 BR in most parts of the city, Petworth is kind of a dump and therefore not especially expensive. I've seen some very, very nice houses in Petworth for about $2000, and they would have easily gone for $4000+ in better neighborhoods.
Columbia Heights is pretty expensive, though I don't understand why. Maybe the proximity to Adams Morgan?
Anyway, I think you should definitely keep looking. I found a decent 2 BR house for $1550 in the Shaw area, though it took some patience.
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been on craigslist
