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i'm in DC already but i'm going to move closer to the law school. aiming for an august 1 lease so I have about a month to get settled before school. i figure i'll start apartment hunting in june.

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I think you will be fine looking in mid-july. A lot of stuff will be turning over August 1.

i'm doing a last-minute first-time visit on tuesday! any suggestions?

Holly, are you looking at Duke*? I feel like in my memory, you were leaning towards some higher ranked schools.
This was meant to say Georgetown. This is what happens when you try to post and eat and talk to your friend all at the same time.

i was initially set on UVa, but i've had a change of heart. i got extensions from both, which is why i'm sneaking in a visit. sucks that it's during exams, though.

what's pulling you towards g-town?

mostly location, also international law opportunities.

Well, Holly, we'd love to have you!

it's a nice time of year to visit. really can't go wrong either way, good luck with your decision.

Quick question for all the GULC folks already living in DC. Is the Arlington/Alexandria area considered the boonies relative to DC?

What are the safe neighborhoods in DC that are also an easy commute to the King St Metro (south Alexandria)? My wife got a job with the USPTO and so her commute is a factor in our housing decision.

Tango Mike

seems like you guys could live around the king street metro and you could just take the yellow line up to chinatown and walk from there or switch to the red line and go to union station. i'd guess it's a ~20 metro ride. she could do the reverse if you both wanted to live on capitol hill.

Alexandria is nowhere close to the boonies in the DC area. Same for Arlington. The commute to GULC is just as close as some parts of DC. Just make sure you live close to the metro. There are lots of apartment buildings in the Pentagon City/Crystal City area. It doesn't have the charm of DC (high-rise apartment buildings built in the 70's instead of 100 year-old brick rowhouses), but it could be a convenient place to start until you get to know the area better. Old Town Alexandria does have some charm, but it's not cheap.

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scoutfinch80 wrote:Is anyone else paying full sticker at G-town? I am. I had to turn down a scholarship in order to stay on Harvard's wait list. Every time I think about it, I want to vomit a little bit.

Almost full. They offered me 28k total, but it's need based, so if my parents earn more next year I'm screwed out of that, too.

Ludo wrote:

scoutfinch80 wrote:Is anyone else paying full sticker at G-town? I am. I had to turn down a scholarship in order to stay on Harvard's wait list. Every time I think about it, I want to vomit a little bit.

Almost full. They offered me 28k total, but it's need based, so if my parents earn more next year I'm screwed out of that, too.

exact same situation here - are you guys covering everything with gradplus or are you going to try to get private loans to go outside the budget?

the rza wrote:

Ludo wrote:

scoutfinch80 wrote:Is anyone else paying full sticker at G-town? I am. I had to turn down a scholarship in order to stay on Harvard's wait list. Every time I think about it, I want to vomit a little bit.

Almost full. They offered me 28k total, but it's need based, so if my parents earn more next year I'm screwed out of that, too.

exact same situation here - are you guys covering everything with gradplus or are you going to try to get private loans to go outside the budget?

I figured I'd try to make it happen with GradPlus. You can get private loans really at any time throughout the year, so I thought I'd give it a go first. Then, if I need private loans, I'll get them.

That's the plan, anyway.

Thanks for the housing advice guys. Always appreciated.

Hey I have a housing question too. I want to find a cheap place, I'm not afraid of crime but I'm not trying to live in the hood either. I grew up in Atlanta so I'm pretty sure I can handle not living in the high end areas, but the places that Georgetown mentions all seem to be kinda expensive. Are there other neighborhoods that they omitted in the little guide that are cheaper?

Vyolet11 wrote:Hey I have a housing question too. I want to find a cheap place, I'm not afraid of crime but I'm not trying to live in the hood either. I grew up in Atlanta so I'm pretty sure I can handle not living in the high end areas, but the places that Georgetown mentions all seem to be kinda expensive. Are there other neighborhoods that they omitted in the little guide that are cheaper?

look into columbia heights or the eastern market area

i am extremely afraid of crime, as i am a little girl who will be living by herself. i'm hoping to live someplace nice and kind of yuppie (can't deny who i really am!). was going to look into adams morgan and dupont- do the DCers agree?

the thing i don't like about adams morgan is the lack of metro - it's a pretty long walk. it's also not the safest place to live if you are wary of crime. dupont is safe and obviously a great place to live but it's very, very expensive. I'd suggest looking into cleveland park or woodley park - still a bit pricey but nothing like dupont and certainly one of the safest areas of the city. there are a ton of safe areas around though, you won't have a problem finding something.

I've been looking in the Capitol Hill neighborhood, but people told me that it gets sketchier as you get closer to the new stadium. I don't mind dirty sketch, but don't want to be mugged or live next door to a crack house. Does anyone know what sections of that area to avoid?

For instance, does it get bad by Lincoln Park? How about by the Stadium/Armory Metro stop? What about by Tennessee and H? Or up along Florida Ave where it meets New York Ave?

I'm really just trying to get a feel for the neighborhood....

Parts of Capitol hill are a bit sketchy, but if you find the right place there's definitely some cred in being able to say you're living in Southeast. In terms of the sketchiness of all those places, you really gotta go out there and see for yourself if you'd be comfortable in the area. I've learned that sketchiness is a relative term-- for some Adams Morgan is dangerous and other Anacostia is pleasant. try http://www.crimeindc.com if you want crime stats pasted onto a map of DC.

I was just at GULC yesterday and there are a ton of nice, (what look to be) brand new, high rises a block or two away from the school on the other side of 395. I stopped in one, and the rent for a swank ass 2br in a swank ass building was about $2600. I think it was called Mass Court-- it had enough law students to maintain a bit of community but it's not some 1L shitshow like Gewirz (as described to me by a Gewirz resident). The area is safe and you can't beat walking distance to class/gym/library.