What is a good area to find an apartment near the Washington D.C. area?

We are getting ready to move and we are currently looking at apartments in Alexandria. What is Congress Heights like? We have a two year old daughter and we want a nice place to live but not too pricey.

What is a good area to find an apartment near the Washington D.C. area?
I don't know where you are moving from, but you will be in for a shock.
Reply:Depends on price range, commute options, neighborhood, etc. Expect to pay at least $1000+ for a decent 1 bedroom apt, if it's cheaper it means it's either really far away and inconvenient, or in a bad neighborhood, or really old. If you live in VA expect to pay personal property tax on your car. In MD stay away from eastern/southern Prince George's County, and in VA stay away from the Alexandria Rt. 1 corridor, parts of Annandale and Arlington can be iffy too. In DC stick with NW and you should be ok.





Best thing to do is to take a weekend and explore the area and tour the apts you are interested in. It's really hard to explain the pockets of areas around DC. I'd avoid living further outward unless you want to suffer traffic, leave that to the homeowners.
Reply:I used to live in a nice 2-bedroom apartment in Alexandria. I recommend checking out any (or all) of the apartment complexes at the area known as the Mark Center. They're close to the Van Dorn Metro, near I-395 and I-495 (the Beltway), and the apartments are continuously being updated with new carpeting, kitchens, and baths. The parking is a problem, as it is pretty much anywhere in the DC area, but the location is great. There are several different apartment complexes there, all with different styles of apartments; the ones behind the Giant shopping center on N. Beauregard St (I can't remember the complex name) was really nice; I had a friend who lived there and her apartment was huge and the buildings have secure entries, which is not the case with all of the complexes there.
Reply:I used to live in Northern Virginia %26amp; liked living there rather than living in D.C. There's a lot of crime in D.C. so you have to be careful where you consider living. Generally speaking, the further away from downtown D.C. on the Maryland or Virginia side, the better. Parking is scarce in Alexandria %26amp; Arlington, so be sure to look at apts that have ample parking %26amp; security from others taking the parking spots. Traffic is rather heavy there too. On the plus side, it's easy to get around without a car: metro stations nearby (trains %26amp; buses).
Reply:Columbia Heights is where you wanna go. You might even be able to find an apartment under $1000 a month.
Reply:Maybe take a look at Leesville VA. I recall lots of Apartments there. Perhaps it's far enough from DC to feel safer.
Reply:I would check out reston, i got a few freinds up there, there apartments arnt to costly,
Reply:In DC, just about anywhere in Northwest, in Virginia, depending if you have to drive in your commute the closer to the city the better, was not overly impressed with the Maryland side, but Alexandria, Falls Church, Arlington, Rosslyn, Crystal City, even Sprinfield is good further than Springfield would be a nightmare with traffic. I lived in Fredericksburg and loved it but the commute was AWFUL!