Living or Moving to Richmond Virginia, What You Need to Know

Richmond Virginia is a diamond in the rough and one of the fastest growing Cities in the South and a great place to do business and raise a family. In terms of quality of life Richmond Virginia offers an abundance of activities and the cost of living is reasonable. Along with the City of Richmond there are a number of outlying counties that are considered to be a part of Richmond. These counties include Henrico, Chesterfield, Chester, Hanover, Ashland and as far out as Goochland. The City and each of these counties all offer affordable living solutions for everyone.

The first thing you need to do is decide if you want to live in an apartment, a condo, a townhouse, a duplex or a single family home. It is my suggestion that if you are new to the Richmond area that you rent an apartment on a short term lease, three to six months so that you really have time to get to know the City and can make a fully informed decision about where you want to live.

Once you decide if you want to live in an apartment, condo, townhouse, duplex or single family home you need to narrow down your location. The Richmond area is very large. With that said it has very good roads and highway systems so you can get from one of the region to another in thirty minutes or less. When determining where you want to live you need here are a few questions you should ask yourself

1. Do you have kids and do you need to be worried about schools? If the answer is yes you may want to look at one of the surrounding counties instead of Richmond City proper. While Richmond has a number of very good elementary schools the middle schools and the high schools are facing challenges like most big cities. Gang violence, drugs, high drop out rates, etc. If you are planning on sending your children to a private school this becomes much less of an issue. There are a number of excellent private schools in the City including a Waldorf school and a few Montessori schools. You also have the option of private day schools and schools connected to churches.

2. How much money do you want to spend. The Richmond region allows you to get a lot of bang for your buck. If you want to live within City limits there are a number of houses that can be purchased for under $175,000 dollars. For this price you can get a house or a condo that is in a decent neighborhood that has been fully renovated. You also have the option of buying a home that is in need of renovation and doing the work yourself. This may allow you to be in a better neighborhood and you will obtain sweat equity in your home.

It is important to note that at this time Richmond is offering a number of incentives to new home owners and also buyers who will purchase a home in an area that the City has classified and identified as an area undergoing renovation and gentrification. Richmond has a very rich history. Homes that are hundreds of years old, many that need to be refurbished. If you are willing to purchase one of these homes and bring the house up to code you may be eligible for tax credits and low interest rate loans. Speak to a Realtor so that you can explore all of your options.

3. Another question you want to ask yourself is how far do you want to be from your place of employment. One of the best things about Richmond is that even if you live outside of City limits and your job is in the City it is unlikely even in the middle of rush hour that it will take you more then thirty minutes to travel from your home to your job. There has been a lot or recent road construction and the highways are in good shape and cross the City in ways that really let you get from one place to another with relative ease.

4. If you decide to live in Richmond and you are looking for additional services that will make your move and life in Richmond more affordable look into public transportation. For employee's of the City and even some state jobs the City and State offer free bus passes to get to and from work. This cuts down on your transportation costs, cuts down on auto admissions and cuts down on the cars on the road. The buses are set up to allow you to transport your bike. You may want to ride your bike to work and then take the bus home.

5. If you decide you want to live outside of City limits you are once again offered many affordable solutions. While other regions have seen a decline in housing options Richmond continues to grow. In some of the outlying counties you can get a four bedroom two bath home on a half an acre for less then 200,000 dollars. Additionally for the most part the planners have done a very good job with these developments. You still have tree's and you have sidewalks and you have club houses and pools. You do have to pay a home owners fee so take this into consideration when you are determining the amount you can afford and be aware these fee's have a tendency to increase but it you choose well you will have access to a pool for four months out of the year along with a small fitness center and community activities.

In closing Richmond is a nice place to live. You can find a home that is affordable and leaves you will enough discretionary money to go to the theater, the symphony, movies, to go and hear live music (Richmond has a great live music scene) and eat out at a number of very very good restaurants. Remember when you are looking for affordable living solutions it is not just a home you are looking for but a life and Richmond has the ability to afford you a very nice life