Washington, District of Columbia Reviews

The worst - 8/31/2021
Living in DC long term brings on a kind of insidious misery. A long, slow, simmering down of any natural optimism or desire for a better future. It’s a leach of a town full of awful, smug, self centered people with more money than sense and the weather is extremes of every example. Every spring and summer, scores of outsiders descend on the town to voice their grievances, like anyone but them cares. Angry protesters who take over your backyard and trash it because they are mad about the environment, or Trump, or Biden, or whatever. They bring negative closed mindedness and get in your way while trying to go about your daily routine. The traffic is truly unreal. A total, inescapable, nightmare from hell that drains your very will to live on a daily basis. It’s expensive as hell to live here, if you are an average working person. To live in a decent area you must have regular payments from your rich parents, be rich yourself, or make so little that you can get the district to pay your Read More

It was time to leave. - 3/3/2020
Parts are beautiful but alot is rundown and ghetto. They always show the monuments and upper nw neighborhoods but never show hoods across the Anacostia River. Crime is still an issue. Also the people are a little stuck up, snooty and pretentious. The winter and summer weather sucks. So glad I Read More

Great town with it's challenges - 7/18/2019
Moved to DC 40 years ago from Mpls-St. Paul. DC is an amazing town. Downside is people are very competitive, everything is expensive. Great restaurants, foodie heaven in most groceries, lots of things to do, great day trips to choose from. Minnesota was much friendlier, but if you are here awhile you can settle into an good, interesting group of friends - from all over the World. Traffic is a nightmare all the time, lots of great neighborhoods to choose from including some of the most historic in the US. So lots of good and bad, but if you like activity, DC might be for Read More

Day to Day Life is Stressful - 11/14/2017
I've lived in and around the District for 40 years and have watched it become increasingly congested and stressful. Commutes are a nightmare made worse by the rise of high toll "Easy Pass" lanes for the wealthy and those whose employers will pay for it. The large immigrant population means dealing with a lot of people who learned to drive from wherever they came. I see 2 or 3 serious smashups every week caused by high speed and dangerous driving (swooping across 3 lanes, near constant tailgating). Instead of putting more highway patrols on the roads they try to control it with cameras (mail you a ticket), which doesn't work. Those forced onto the subway system face high fares for a system that frequently breaks down. When I lived in the Virginia suburbs, round trip to take my 4 grandchildren downtown to the museums would run more than $60. Living or driving downtown means dealing with a grid that runs N/S, E/W cut by NE/SW, NW/SE diagonals; it's the only city where continuing to Read More

Washington, DC - 9/28/2015
I've been in DC for 10 yrs now. It's a great place to live, if can afford it. I'm a Chicago native. I came to DC by way of Military.DC was my final duty station. After retiring. I decided to stay.DC is divided into 4 quadrants, (NE.NW,SE,SW). NW and SW are the more expensive areas. NE and SE are fast becoming more expensive. If you own property in DC and want to move out of the area. I would rent the property out, because NE and SE are quickly gentrifying, and real estate prices are going up in those areas. DC is very small. You don't get much space for your money. There is plenty to do here. Plenty of restaurants, festivals, museums, monuments, parks, and walkability. You are very close to Baltimore, Philly, Delaware, New york, Virginia Beach, Ocean City, Casinos, amusement parks, Williamsburg, etc,,. There is no shortage of things to do for all age groups. The transit system is very good also. The main drawback is the high expense of living in the city. It costs less to live outside Read More

Climate is big downside - 6/22/2015
Hazy, hot and humid. Day after Read More

All-Day Traffic Restricts Your Flexibility -- Espe - 8/23/2014
Washington is a nice place to live and work, for the most part. Expensive, but lots of options. However, for a retiree, the traffic really restricts your enjoyment. With so many people "telecommuting" the roads are full of cars all day long, as they go shopping, etc. There used to be some free time on the roads during the day, when most people were at work (you just avoided rush hours) but now the roads are jammed all day long. I'm looking for a medium-sized city with amenities and a lot fewer Read More

Walkability - 3/25/2014
Washington, D.C. has become more walkable in the past 5 Read More

Living in the Capital is OK, but I want more than - 9/14/2013
DC is great if you want to work for the federal government and dream of a career in "public service." But if politics is not your passion or special interest, you may be disappointed by life in Read More

Sweltering - 7/22/2013
I think I should have been Canadian. The summers here are so unbearably humid that the Federal Government deemed employees working in the DC area receive Tropic Pay before air conditioning became standard in their Read More