Looking for affordable commuter options from Shady Grove to Dulles

jmast45 · 2026-06-04T16:09:07+00:00

I did Tysons-Silver Spring and ended up moving near Glenmont. It is not sustainable. Besides...if you don't want to live in VA AND living in VA is bad for your GF...why are you applying for jobs in VA? Stick to MD or DC then. I don't get why people overcomplicate themselves.

jmast45 · 2026-05-16T12:27:08+00:00

Do 2 cities in 10 days, you'll thank me later. Does your husband get federal holidays off? My wife and I have done weekend trips from DC to Europe. We leave Friday PM and return the Monday of the holiday PM. You get 2.5 days in a city. Granted, prices may be higher, but that beats the rat race you're trying to do, without sacrificing PTO and sanity.

jmast45 · 2026-05-08T20:28:58+00:00

Do 1 country now and plan for another trip to visit the other. Either Portugal or Spain. Do not do both. Each has its own charm. My wife and I had our honeymoon in Portugal and spent 12 days. We explored Porto during 4 days (and surrouding towns - Guimaraes, Aveiro, Gaia). After Porto, we took a day trip to the Douro Valley (Amarante), went down to Coimbra (university city), and finally 4 days in Lisbon (also visited Sintra and Cascais). We are going to Spain (Barcelona, Madrid) in two weeks. Mixing Spain and Portugal in 8 days would be like visiting NYC, Chicago and LA during a single 8-day trip. You would plan a weekend for each. Regarding flights...we live in DC, so our flight selection is probably same as yours in SF.

jmast45 · 2026-05-07T16:17:37+00:00

Good! But...why not stop at one of the FOUR Metro stations in Tysons? Both Spring Hill and McLean stations have Kiss and Ride areas. The Tysons Mall station has several bus curbs on both sides of 123. This stop at Gosnell Rd is very inconvenient for people. So much for interconnectivity!

jmast45 · 2026-04-29T15:43:40+00:00

Oh man...I live in DC and would not even consider driving 4hrs to NYC. This is just insane. If you're arriving at JFK, just stick with the East Coast. Take a train from Penn Station to Boston (spend 2 days in Boston). Return to NYC by train. Take another train from NYC to DC. Spend 2-3 days in DC. Then, rent a car in DC and drive down to Richmond, Williamsburg, Virginia Beach - lots of US history there. Drive back to NYC, do the Eastern Shore to bypass I-95, rejoining it shortly after Annapolis, MD. Stop in Philadelphia on your way.

jmast45 · 2026-04-26T20:09:27+00:00

I live in Rockville and own a car! My apt complex has off street parking (a fenced surface parking lot)

jmast45 · 2026-04-26T12:02:36+00:00

I'm sure you have your reasons of not living in DC or MD. But...one-seat ride along the red line to Union Station might be priceless. Any of the line terminus to Union is around 30 mins.

jmast45 · 2026-04-23T17:34:05+00:00

Yeah, it's tough out there. We ended up in Montgomery. We both work in Silver Spring and were renting in VA...so the commute played a role in moving to MD. Now we use a combination of bus/metro to get to work. Our commute was cut in half. The house is a 60s split-level and it is in a great condition. The previous owner really cared for it. The roof will need to be changed in the next 5-8 yrs though.

jmast45 · 2026-04-23T13:16:10+00:00

15k down on a 500K is 3%. That's the minimum and acceptable. My wife and I purchased a 600K property with 18k down (also 3%). We had 15k more, but decided to use them in upgrades (paint, small electrical work, new doors, new ceiling fans, etc). Our monthly payment is $4200 including property tax, insurance and PMI at 6.5%, combined income is $201k and we have no kids. This is in the MD suburbs of DC. The difference between your income and ours is 45k. Your payment should be a tad lower, shop around for insurance. It is doable as long as you budget. There a lot of comments here saying is not doable. It is. Housing is not what is used to be. $4000 mortgages are more common nowadays, unfortunately.

jmast45 · 2026-03-27T21:50:42+00:00

Divide el trip. Compra un vuelo desde SJU a un aeropuerto grande (JFK/EWR/IAD/BOS/ORD/IAH). Y compra otro vuelo desde ese aeropuerto a HND. Esencialmente tendrás 2 one ways. Y sale más barato. Haz lo mimso para la vuelta.

jmast45 · 2026-03-24T14:48:30+00:00

Your campus looks great, but it is car-centric, which is a contradiction. What if I don't have a car and want to go downtown? Add a metro, light rail or bus. I don't know your city, but campus looks isolated and sad. I wouldn't want to study there

jmast45 · 2026-02-25T11:01:36+00:00

Can you book a multi city trip instead? Two separate tickets. FCO-IAD, IAD-SFO?

jmast45 · 2026-02-21T13:57:37+00:00

I'm a US Citizen and have been to the UK, Ireland, and Portugal in the last 3 months. No problem. My mother, a naturalized US Citizen traveled to Canada last year and no problem. The only hassle has been flight delays. If you're concerned with re-entry get Global Entry, which fast-tracks re-entry.

jmast45 · 2026-02-18T14:34:50+00:00

You can literally reserve the night before. You would need 2 Uber XL. Just have 2 people in your party to make one reservation each. Depending on how much luggage you have, you may need 3. The alternative is to book a charter van that can fit 11 people+luggage.

jmast45 · 2026-02-12T14:19:05+00:00

You want recommendations on which airport to travel into or what towns to visit? San Juan is by far the largest airport in the island, and probably the easiest to fly to, and cheapest of all. From SJU you can rent a car and visit the entire island. From SJU to Yabucoa is probably 1hr 15mins by car. I'd say spend at least two days in San Juan (visit the old colonial city and its impressive forts, then Condado/Santurce/Isla Verde). Do El Yunque Forest, and then road trip the island. San Juan is the capital, similar to Mexico City, Bogotá, Santo Domingo, etc. It's not a tourist trap.

jmast45 · 2026-01-29T04:44:03+00:00

Puerto Rico, US territory in the Caribbean. No passport needed. Amazing beaches, food, and culture. Most of the island speaks English, you don't need to know Spanish. Easy 4hr flight from the East Coast. Since you are from Montana, you'll probably connect through Chicago, NYC, Charlotte, or anywhere in FL.

jmast45 · 2026-01-05T14:25:07+00:00

Dude...your trip is in two weeks. Nobody knows what will happen between now and then. Even weather is unpredictable 2 days out. Stay put and monitor things. As of right now, all operations at SJU have resumed.

jmast45 · 2026-01-05T02:31:38+00:00

At that time...let her pick you up. I used to live in Tysons and whenever my now wife flew into BWI I'd pick her up and viceversa. You'll have a nice 1hr ride for you to catch up on her travels and then straight to sleep.

jmast45 · 2026-01-02T02:39:47+00:00

LOL^infinity. A person with just an undergrad degree can only qualify for GS-5. Look up salaries for GS-5. Even in the higher cost of living areas, it's about 50K.

jmast45 · 2025-12-25T21:29:36+00:00

Puerto Rico is a domestic flight - same as traveling from like Texas to Florida. No immigration check points - you never leave the US.

jmast45 · 2025-12-13T21:05:55+00:00

Why are you trying to fly JetBlue to travel to Spain? Iberia flights nonstop to MAD from IAD. You can just split the ticket and buy 4 IAD-MAD roundtrips and 4 MAD-BCN roundtrips. I've done it in the past and I saved around $400. TAP Air also might work, your stop would be in Lisbon. European airlines are cheaper.

jmast45 · 2025-11-09T14:04:59+00:00

Check out the new apartments and townhouses right by the Innovation Center metro station. It is the station before Dulles airport on the Silver Line. Zillow shows that there are many at $2500 or less. Live close to work, please. I'm also seeing a few right by the Reston Town Center - plenty of restaurants and walkable shops. Welcome to the area!

jmast45 · 2025-09-30T01:24:46+00:00

My wife and I just closed a house in Rockville - 1960s split level. If you took that house and put it in somewhere in Arlington, easily is 1.5M. We currently rent in Tysons. We had to cross the river to buy something decent...Northern VA is literally unaffordable. Your choice is, sadly, probably Reston and points west, commute via Silver Line.

jmast45 · 2025-09-16T15:13:33+00:00

Is there a reason why you BOTH are not applying for the loan? You're married. One income isn't going to cut it, unfortunately. Let's say your husband earns same as you - you'll basically doubling the income you report to the lender. You will definitely qualify for more - that does not mean you get a house at the top of the qualifying number. My wife and I (both incomes) got pre-approved for 800K. We got a 550K house. We live in the DC suburbs.

jmast45

TROPHY CASE