My wife got a call about a job there.  We have lived in Charlotte, Atlanta and now Knoxville.   What is the good, the bad and the ugly?

I used to live just west of there in Sterling.  When I was in northern VA people referred to it as "Hernduras".
You pay a town of Herndon RE property tax in addition to Fairfax County taxes, which are already high.
Traffic in the area is typical NoVA (insane).

Just like any area, there are nice parts and not so nice parts.

OTOH a cool gun shop just opened up in town.

I live next to Herndon, in Reston.

I'd never live in Herndon proper, but plenty of people work there.

I live south of Herndon in Centreville.  My sister in law lives in Herndon.  She pulled her kids out of the public school and put them in private school.

I'm not a fan of Herndon proper, but lots of nice areas to live not too far from Herndon.

It is the DC suburbs so every thing is pretty expensive cost of living wise.

And yes there is a nice new gun shop there.

be prepared - a 15 mile commute anywhere in NoVA/southern MD area will take you an hour minimum - good luck!

I live in Sterling (Park), which neighbors Herndon on Loudoun County. There's lots of good restaurants and shops scattered in Herndon and Reston, which is on the other side of Herndon.

I live about 5 miles south of Herndon in a pretty nice neighborhood, with lots of amenities nearby (pool, tennis courts, playground, sledding hill, big lot for pick-up games), and a fair number of restaurants and grocery stores.  In weekend traffic it is 20 minutes to the NRA range, and there are other (evil) ranges even closer.

You don't have to live in Herndon proper to have a very easy commute to Herndon jobs.  And, I would NEVER live in Herndon proper.

Fucking tell me about it.



Goddamn I hate this place.

Traffic sucks.
Learn Spanish.

I live in "Oak Hill" the Fairfax Co. part of Herndon . It's not really too bad. I have a 9 mile commute to Ashburn and it takes me around 15 min.

Housing in NoVA is going to be expensive.

Protip: moving just over the county line into Loudoun will save you money on car insurance.

I live in Ashburn, a couple miles west of Herndon (other side of Dulles Airport from Herndon).

Following up on the Hernduras point (that's funny, never heard that one, but it is unfortunately true)...  worse, some of the people who speak Spanish (and many ONLY speak Spanish) are here illegally.

Plus, we've had some gang issues. Nothing as bad as LA (I ASSume since I've never been there), but it is an issue. Mostly it's graffiti, car break-ins, and low end stuff like that, but every once in a while they do some major $#it... killing someone (though usually another gang idiot), or chopping off some gang guy's arm with a machete.

And in today's Loudoun paper, they had the story of the lovely Illegal Immigrant who's getting 35 years for raping his 4 year old relative (which all of us who actually pay taxes get to pay for his extended stay in our fine prison system). Don't know remember where he lived, but it was around here.

So, working in Herndon is good, no problems. Old towne Herndon is okay to shop and eat (and where the gun shop is). But definitely live somewhere else. Cause even the nice areas in Herndon can have criminals that commute.

Oh, and if you live anywhere west of Herndon, you can do like I do and take out a second mortgage to pay for the Greenway Toll Road.

Good times,
Chris

+1.  Just moved to Reston, but been in the area regularly for the last four years as my gf's parents live just south in the "Oak Hill" area.  Never heard the "Hernduras" reference, but it's funny cause it's true.  Commute times will vary wildly, depending on where you live.  I take an express bus to Crystal City every day, and it shockingly gets me there in about 35-40 minutes consistently.  I wouldn't have believed that if I didn't do it for myself.

In Fox Creek in Sterling.  Been in our current house for two years and prior to that over at the Clock Tower off of Sun Rise Valley.  Wife worked in Herndon at the funeral home there and getting into Herndon (downtown) isn't bad coming off of Drainsville Rd or Old Ox.  Heck even coming off of 7100 or 28 isn't too bad.  Lots of little feeder roads to get you in and out of town.

As noted prior, some gang and less desirable folks but we have yet to have an issue in the 5 years here.  

Shopping and restaurants gallor.

If this deal goes through we are looking at Leesburg or maybe Haymarket  to buy a house.  Are these areas any better and is the commute do-able?

Leesburg won't be bad except for the commute coming in - Rt 7 traffic inbound in the a.m. sucks bad from 6-9 and then again on the return in the evening 4-7.

Haymarket is a little far and the commute maybe a little worse. No direct route.  66 to 28 and then Old Ox Rd. Or 15 up to 50 to 28 and in.

Where will you be working and commuting to?

I wouldn't buy in the Town of Leesburg proper.  Same issue with city RE taxes, plus they are very strict on what you can do with the exterior of your house in the "historic" district.
Haymarket is a good distance away, I'd try to find something closer in.

Honestly, you'd be best off renting for a year or so until you learn the traffic patterns around the area.  Depending on which part of Herndon (north or south) will determine where you want to buy a house.  I'd look hard at Ashburn, which isn't bad, and you can easily avoid the Greenway tolls getting from there to anywhere in Herndon.

Move to Ashburn.

It looks like the company is located in South Herndon almost in Chantilly.

Look in Oak Hill for your housing.  South of the Toll Road.

Yup
Couple good houses in my neighborhood

If you want to be close . Something like Ashburn or South Riding if you want more house and a longer drive.

Centreville wouldn't be a bad drive either.

I built a house in Leesburg earlier this year and commute to McLean. Takes about 40 minutes, but I don't ever really have to deal with traffic because of my schedule. Outside the city limits of Leesburg is great. 1. No additional tax for being in the city (prper). 2. Much more peaceful because there is less people. 3. Property is really nice. Easy access to the toll road, Route 15 and Route 7. We sit behind the nature preserve that gives a great buffer between us and all the hussle and bussle.

Herndon and Northern Fairfax County still have some of the lowest crime rates in the DC metro area, where Loudoun County has seen a recent uptick in crime, especially violent crime.  Both places are still light years ahead of lower Fairfax County, PG County, SE DC, etc.  Schools are better outside of the town limits, Oak Hill, Great Falls, Centerville, Chantilly, etc. have great school systems.

Depending on where you come from, expect to pay significantly more in what you pay in rent now. Auto insurance is cheaper then MD and DC.  If the prospective work location is South (more towards Oak Hill, Chantilly, Centerville, or near route 50, then I would consider south of Herndon and along 50 out towards South Riding area.  I don't recommend the commute from Leesburg over to 50 area, during rush hour, it can be longer than it appears.  Especially if your renting, rent near where you are going to work.

Plenty of Turdworlders there abouts!

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