RE: House hunting in VA

[MommaMia]

 
As some of you know, our house in CT is for sale.
 
 After my husband and I first met, we moved to VA in the Norfolk area and lived there for about 3 years.  Now that ourhouse is on the market and the hubby is once again considering a job change (the new company he just started with has tried to pull a big sneaky wool blanket over his eyes) we are thinking of moving farther sout.  The fact that we used to live in VA and his brother and his wife and his sister and her new fiance  also live there makes a move to VA look appealing.  Also, hubby s parents live in Northern NC.
 
 The week of spring vacation the kids and I are hopping on a train and going to the BIL s for a visit and I m going to see if I can check out some houses for sale.  It s amazing how much more house you get for your money there as opposed to CT!!!
 
 What are some good neighborhoods to look in?  I d like to drive by a few before contacting an agent.  I don t like the pressure feeling when I m just taking a peek to see if the houses are even a possibility in my mind.
 
 I m thinking of looking n the Yorktown area.   Where else can I find nice roomy lots (about 3/4 to 2 acres) and nice family type neighborhoods.  Cul-de-sac neighborhoods are very appealing to me.  The kids want some place that they can ride bikes with relatively little traffic.  (picture the neighborhood in the movie " Father of the Bride" )  I don t want anything with yards that back up to one another.  Newer construction or older farmstyle with acreage.  Home sizes should be around 2000+ sq. feet with 2 car garages.
 
 Thanks for any suggestions!

[Gone-Camping]

 MommaMia
Loaded question really, what kind of money are looking to spend? Houses here can still be bought for as little as $50-60,000 but you get what you pay for! I m not real familiar with the counties like York etc, but if you re going to look into the city of Norfolk, Chesapeake, or Va Beach, I could point you in the right direction, but would still need to know what kind of price range you re looking at?!?!
 
 You going to be here Easter weekend? We re having a campout at Newport News Park that weekend, right next door to Yorktown....

[MommaMia]

 MommaMia
Hey there Cliff~
 
 
 I know you guys are having a rally... but darn it, we are leaving the Sat morning before Easter.  Wish I could pop in and say hello, but the kids start back to school monday morning.
 
 Our price range that we look at is between $150k and $250k  with the $200k mark being the most likely final cost.
 
 We aren t really interested in Norfolk... lived there (Ghent) and that now seems like a whole lifetime ago.
 

[BedBugs]

 MommaMia
Cindy,
 I may be able to give you some insight if you are looking at the Penninsula.  I live in a very nice neighborhood in Denbigh.  It is in Newport News.  You could definitely get the house you are looking for between Newport News and Suffolk-Surrey area.  In York County you might be pushing it at 200K.  I ll keep my eyes open.  Have you thought about Gloucester?  Other side of Coleman bridge on 17?
 Rob

[MommaMia]

 MommaMia
Rob~
 
 I m jotting down your suggestion right now.
 
 Thanks!

[Gone-Camping]

 MommaMia
Yep, at $200,000, you ll be looking at some of the best housing in the area. I think the average in the area is around $150,000. Denbigh is a good area, and there are some really nice looking places right off of Tabb Hwy (Magruder Blvd Yorktown end of the road), and that is mostly newer housing & sub-divisions.
 
 Ghent huh? Sidewalk cafe s and Bistro s, the Naro Expanded  Cinema (yep, they still show the Rocky Horror Picture Show every other Friday night), Starbucks Coffee, lot s of narrow streets... It s still Old Town Norfolk! I don t blame you for not wanting to go back there!!! I d suggest anything in the Western Branch area s of Chesapeake & Portsmouth ...yes, I said Portsmouth, that place had made some major improvements over the last several years!
 
 The addition of I-664 and the Monitor-Merrimack Bridge Tunnel has made travel between Western sections of Southside Tidewater and the Penninsula a non-factor, takes about ten minutes to drive from the center of Western Branch to Downtown Newport News (not that anyone would really want to go into downtown NPN...)
 
 BTW, most of us should be there Friday night before you leave, and the campground does allow visitors... You d be doing yourself a favor if you stop in and meet some of your cyber-friends!!!

[MommaMia]

 MommaMia
If I can get my SIL to run me over with her car.... no wait, let me rephrase that!!!
 
 If I can get my SIL to run me over to the campground I will.  You are all in D loop right?  I know the CG.  We camped there last year, right near the water.  We have a great keepsake from there too!  We found a cockatiel on the dock!  We posted a found sign at the office and nobody claimed so he came home with us!! DD named him " Polo"  because he was playing around in the water.
 
 Anyway...
 
 I ll get there if I can but don t worry if I don t make it.  We ll run into each eventually!

[MommaMia]

 MommaMia
As far as Ghent goes... we really liked it when we lived there.  It was " gitchy"   and perfect for as as were really young and just starting out.  Loved going to the Naro!  Saw Lawrence of Arabia there.  What a great place to kick back for a few hours and just soak in some old movies and sip hot coffees and munch on yummy baklava!  And right next door... Elliot s with the best Nachos ever! (I don t think they make them anymore) And they were one of the first to have honey-mustard dressing... on top of their Cobb salad... GREAT!
 
 But our favorite place to grab a bite was and still is.... Orapax!  Their pizza is great!  Chewy crust and yummy sauce!  
 
 We have fond memories of there but that was a long time ago.   Now we have 3 kids and our tastes and activities have changed greatly.  We camp a lot and love to garden and have lots of animals.... Dog, cat, 3 birds, rats, lots of fish... and city life isn t for us.
 

[birol]

 Gone-Camping
Gone

York

-Camping, the YorkTown mentioned is the one we saw ? It was such a beautiful place .........
 
 If MommaMia moves there, we will have an excuse to drive down there once again just to meet her and family

[Gone-Camping]

 MommaMia
Birol, it is the one and the same Yorktown, located in York county.... Oh, and we have leaves and flowers and stuff now, spring is fully underway!!! Gonna be camping in 2 weeks at Newport News Park, you want to come down from Canada and try out that new tent? Both Larry and I will be there...[8D]

[birol]

 MommaMia
I will pass this time, thanks for the invitation though, with the anti Canadian feelings running strong these days in the US, I am afraid to cross the border [&:]

[MommaMia]

 MommaMia
Birol~
 
 You don t have to wait until we move to visit.  You can always come to CT!
 
 We just got more ice and snow last night.  I m sure you d feel right at home.
 
 Cliff~~~
 
 Bad boy!  Don t rub it in!