As the title states I have a job offer that would be in the DC metro area, corporate offices located in fairfax. Its a new job in IT stuff, and I know this is one of the best areas for it. I am trying to get a read on every one I know on if I should take this job or not, So I figured hey! why not ask you guys!

so lets have it, how do you guys like living up in that area? I understand there is a massive traffic and cost of living. I am trying to get a feel if this would be a right move for me.

Right now I live down in Hampton roads, but its time for me to **** or get off the pot and figure out where I would want to live.

 

Problem with the dc metro area is we have change. By change I don't mean Obama but rather a nickel.

 

Dont.

 

It's a great area to raise a family but I would not call it a great place to live.

 

I like the area, minus the huge volume of people on the road. So instead of running into 1 bad driver a day, you run into like 30 and they cause traffic to move slowley. Overall I like the people in this area I have come to know but the area it self is crazy over priced for the houses/apartments. Other then that the Cost of Living doesnt seem to bad. So basically after you get your house paid off its a good place to bank money. Also there are always tons of jobs open in this area it seems like. So if you get laid off / fired, it shouldnt be that hard to get another job.

Traffic: 2/5
Housing: 1/5
Things to do: 5/5
Variety of food/restaurants: 5/5
Schools: 4/5 (lots of good schools in this area bad ones too)
Income: 4/5 (depending on job)

I can only really base this off of the two other places I have lived for a decent amount of time Pgh PA and Buluxi MS.

I dont think I will retire here but it is a good place to grow up in as long as you pick the right area.

 

cost of living could be high as some may say... then live modestly. I know plenty of people who get by on $400/month rent living in NOVA.

Traffic isn't that bad. If millions of men and women do it everyday, I'm sure you won't have a problem.

Key to success is getting connected, esp in the IT field. You'll meet a heck of a lot more IT folks in this area than you ever will in Hampton Rds.

 

Think twice...
http://wamu.org/news/morning_edition..._traffic_in_us

 

Lol traffic isnt that bad honestly, yes it sucks but if you have a flexible schedule you can work around it.

 

one of the best areas for networking hands down (greater DC/metro area in general).

Yes the traffic is terrible, but you will learn what time of day and what roads to avoid..

cost of living is quite high, but its very dependent on the specific area/county you live in.

Schools (public and private ) are some of the best in the nation.

If you want to advance your career you should do it.

 

Yeah, its up there working with a bunch of virtual servers and VMware. Its a great opportunity so I am just weighing my choices. I am also looking at Raleigh NC and just got a call from a recruiter for a job with Cisco so that's also a possibility.

Could care less about schools, no kids and don't want em. Apparently they are expensive? and would cut into my track time.....

 

you a programmer?

Clearance?

My wife recruits programmers with clearances

 

no programmer, yes to clearance.

I am a Voip/network/virtual server kinda guy.

 

I am also in IT (Network Security) up in NoVa (live in Fairfax but commuting to Rockville daily currently) but it is the perfect place to live for IT and Networking. I have had no trouble finding jobs and you can find housing for any pay-rate in the area. Plenty to do and very nice, traffic can be awful but if you're flexible and open to exploring you can find plenty of ways around it. I would definitely recommend it for IT though, as long as you stay in that field you'll have a job and home here.

 

It's been years since I lived in NOVA, but I thought I'd throw my $0.02 in here. Beyond the traffic and congestion, I've never been in such a population dense area before. Your life is somewhat ruled by traffic patterns, HOV lanes, etc., which didn't make it much fun. The humid climate hasn't been mentioned, but it was an eye opener for me. Made outdoor activities that much more difficult. On the plus side, there are plenty of museums, concerts and other attractions to take in, and living right there gives you all the opportunities you'd want.

Summit Point Raceway is only three hours away and that's an excellent road racing facility. I got my motorsports career off the ground at Summit with EMRA, although there's other great tracks further up the coast.

 

I live and work in Bethesda MD but frequently head down to DC or accross the river toward Tysons corner. Where are you coming from and what standard of living are you expecting? If you're running with a bachelors degree and are still in your 20's, I'd say check out Columbia heights. It's a cool reasonably affordable place and plenty of stuff to do. On average, South of the Potomac would be a little cheaper than most places. But you should avoid 495 like poison.

 

Who is this Cracka350 guy, super close to us but no idea who he is. You should go to the NGC meets

 

well this is all kinda a moot point now, it looks like I will be going to Seattle for a job with Amazon. Thanks for all the advice guys!

 

Way better choice, I'd take Seattle over MD/DC any day.

 

No way I could stand the amount of rain they get (although I have only heard). when I visited there it only rained a couple days

 

I had training in Bellevue (right next to Seattle) for a week. Fortunately it didn't rain the entire week. It was absolutely amazing over there. Girls all looked like they just got off the California beaches minus the attitude. Food was great. Road was clean. Everywhere you go it's mountain and water in site. My buddy that works for Microsoft had tried to recruit me multiple times. If I could stand the rain I'd totally be living there.