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House Hunting in the Washington DC area

HOUSE HUNTING IN WASHINGTON, DC area

The Area

The Map

Rent

Transportation Concerns

Rental Tips

THE AREA

MAP

Map graphic care of www.apartments.com

RENT
Here's a general guideline to the baseline rent you can expect to pay - adjust for higher rent areas:

APARTMENT TYPE   WASH DC       VA/MD

Efficiency/Studio $700-950 $500-700

1 BR $800-1,200 $650-1,000

2 BR $1,000-1,400 $850-1,200

3 BR $1,200-1,800 $1,100-1,400

Apartment to Share $450-800 $400-750

Entire House $1,800-4,000 $1,200-4,000

Though only 10 square miles in area, Washington DC with its four quadrants (NW, NE, SW, SE) can be a rather confusing place for newcomers trying to find housing. Below are some of the areas that current graduate students have identified as convenient to the Georgetown campus. These are located nearby and are the most suitable to living in the District and studying at Georgetown:

Adams Morgan   East of campus, north of Dupont Circle. Ethnically diverse and "bohemian." Housing in high demand. Well served by public transit. Walk to Campus: 30-45 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Stations: Dupont Circle, WoodleyPark-Zoo (10 minute walk to either)

Burleith/North Georgetown   North of the campus along Wisconsin Avenue, within easy walking distance. Mostly townhouse living. Georgetown University Transportation Shuttle (GUTS) and Metrobus service. Walk 10-15 minutes. GUTS: 5 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Station: (none)

Capitol Hill Central section of Washington, DC, just east of the Capitol. Populated by young politicos and families. Affordable and safe housing quickly rented. Well served by public transit. Walk: 30-45 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Stations: Capitol South, Eastern Market, Union Station.

Cleveland Park/Woodley Park Northeast of the University, near the National Zoo. Quiet and attractive with many family homes renting basement apartments to students; some group homes. Well-served by public transit. Walk: 25-40 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Stations: WoodleyPark-Zoo, Cleveland Park.

Dupont Circle East of campus, extremely popular. Higher rents. Well servied by public transit. Walk: 15-30 minutes GUTS: 10 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Station: Dupont Circle.

Embassy Row/Massachusetts Avenue, NW   East of campus. Upscale. Very high rents. Well served by public transit. Walk 10-20 minutes. Dupont GUTS: 10 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Station: Dupont Circle.

Foggy Bottom  Southeast of Georgetown, near State Department and George Washington University. . Moderate-high rents, almost exclusively apartments and townhouses. Well served by public transit. Walk: 20-25 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Station: Foggy Bottom-GWU.

Foxhall/Palisades   Adjacent to the northwest part of campus. Student housing interspersed among upscale homes and some apartment buildings. Well-served by public transit Walk: 5-20 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Station: (none)

Georgetown Immediately surrounding the campus. Desirable and convenient location. Moderate to high rents and competitive. Well served by public transit. Walk: 1-5 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Station: Dupont Circle or Rosslyn (10 minute walk to either).

Glover Park    Immediately north of campus. Quiet, residential area featuring group homes and townhouses. Large student population.Well-served by public transit. Walk: 5-15 minutes. GUTS: 5 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Station: (none)

JUST OUTSIDE WASHINGTON, DC

Bethesda and Chevy Chase, Maryland Located across the northwest DC border. Variety of housing, from single homes, to high-rise or townhouse living. Well served by public transit. Not within walking distance. Metro to Dupont Circle: 25 minutes. Bus down Wisconsin Avenue: 40 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Stations: Bethesda or Friendship Heights.

Takoma Park, and Silver Spring, Maryland   Just over the north/northerneast DC border. Reasonable rent for young people. Mixture of apartments, group house, townhouses, and single family homes. Well-served by public transit. Not within walking distance. Metro to Dupont Circle: 20 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Station: Takoma, Silver Spring.

--MARYLAND SUBURBS: A good map of Maryland suburban housing area can be found on teh University of Maryland housing web site at: http://tombstone.umd.edu/Documentation/OCH/AreaMaps.htm

Rosslyn, Clarendon, Courthouse, Virginia Square, Ballston areas of Arlington, Virginia Across the Potomac River via Key Bridge from Georgetown. Affordable rents, convenient to Georgetown by walking Key Bridge or by public transit. Well-served by public transit. GUTS bus from the Rosslyn Metro station directly to campus. Walk: 10-45 minutes. GUTS: 10 minutes. Neighborhood Metro Stations: Rossyln, Clarendon, Courthouse, Virginia Square, Ballston.

--VIRGINIA SUBURBS: A good description of Arlington, Virginia neighborhoods can be found on the Arlington Smart Places website at: http://www.smartplace.org/smartplaces/smartplaces.html

TRANSPORTATION CONCERNS

Parking Fees

The campus itself offers hourly parking to those who wish to travel by car. However, it is rather limited - especially during the construction - and costs $2 per hour to a maximum of $12 per day. On-street, meter parking is also limited around GU. Some students opt for remote parking in Rosslyn, then take the free GUTS shuttle over Key Bridge to Georgetown. A schedule of the GUTS shuttles can be found at http://www.georgetown.edu/facilities/otm/main.html.

Students with cars that are not titled for the District will also need to obtain a temporary resident or standard parking permit for Washington, D.C. (unless their housing already provides private parking). Details are available at the DMV website: http://dmv.washingtondc.gov/registrations/temp_res_park_permits.htm.

Public Transportation

While there is no Metro stop for Georgetown, several bus lines and free shuttles service the University. Buses G2, D3, and D6 all stop at the campus, while D1 and D2 are just 3 short blocks away. The charge for Metrobus usage is only $1.10. For a complete schedule of their routes, consult http://www.wmata.com/metrobus/default.htm.

Dupont Circle (20th & Q Streets, N.W.) and Rosslyn (Fort Myer Drive between 19th Street & Wilson Blvd in Arlington) are the two closest Metro stops to Georgetown. The free GUTS shuttle runs to both Metro stations. To learn more about the Washington Metro and these specific stops, go to http://www.wmata.com/metrorail/default.htm.

In addition, the GUTS shuttle also has an Arlington Loop (circling the various communities just across the Potomac River) and buses to both the GU Law Center and Wisconsin Avenue Offices. The complete schedule for the GUTS system can be found at http://www.georgetown.edu/facilities/otm/main.html.

The Washington D.C. area has many convenient bicycle routes, making GU easily accessible by bike. Learn more about the biking community at www.waba.org.

RENTING TIPS

When hunting for apartments and looking at the spaces, here are a couple of helpful guidelines to keep in mind:

Set an appointment time. Do not just surprise a landlord and ask to see the space.

Look and be responsible. The well-dressed and persistent applicant is more likely to become a tenant than the sloppy one who never calls back.

Be prepared. Have your checkbook ready for putting down a deposit right away on a place you like. Washington, DC is a highly competitive market. But, be sure to find out if your deposit is refundable and/or counts towards the first month's rent.

Start early. Time is of the essence. Be sure to give yourself at least a few weeks to find housing. Some landlords even sign leases in advance for students. For the Fall, the prime time is from early July to early August.

Georgetown University's Off Campus Housing Student Handbook

Be sure to consult Georgetown University's Off-Campus Housing Student Handbook for more tips on how properly to inspect a property, what to ask a landlord, and which items to watch for on a lease: http://och.georgetown.edu/living/

George Washington University also offers a very useful house hunting suggestion/tip page: http://gwired.gwu.edu/och/consider.html

Good luck!