Comments on: Good Deal or Not? Mt. Rainier Edition (Reader Request)

By: m.e.

m.e. — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 01:34:11 +0000

mt. rainier’s crime rate is higher than the STATE of maryland’s, but it’s also low-income compared with DC. but people don’t just move there and piss and moan about things: i happen to know a wonderful person who has lived there for 20 years, and she is one of the people responsible for 1) increasing the number of cops from 2 to 18, 2) dedicating a park as a skate park for kids, and 3) setting up the silo near the fire house for the people who want to heat their homes by burning something other than oil or gas. she also remembers when they decided to position the area as an arts district. also, she told me about people who used to take turns standing on a street corner on the weekend till 4 a.m. and writing down license plate numbers of drug dealers. improving a community takes brains, dedication, and guts.

glut coop is incredible, and less costly than anything in DC.

if you’re thinking of buying a house there, know that MR is rather famous for having springs running underground. many houses either have NO basements or have problems with water in the basement. way back when, the area used to be orchards, which makes sense.

but it’s a great little town and a great community.

By: Jamie

Jamie — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 12:11:18 +0000

“In regards to crime its got much lower crime than Col. Heights or Petworth”

Crime RATE is all that is important. The population of Mt. Ranier is about 8,000. The population of Columbia Heights is probably harder to estimate but 20010 zip code is 30,000 people.

By: Neener

Neener — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 06:41:22 +0000

yes, you should expect Maryland taxes to be much higher than in DC. I looked at a house in Bethesda that was selling for the high $700s and because of its land- and oh my god, the land– the taxes were $12,500 per year or more than $1000 per month just to own that land.

It had its own natural waterfall.

for $799k

By: bdh

bdh — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 22:18:22 +0000

Listing says: Taxes: 6129.57

Are the taxes in PG county really that much higher than in DC?

By: ontheDCline

ontheDCline — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:37:29 +0000

as a Mount Raineir resident for 6 years I have to say that when I first moved the from the city it was a little hard since I consider myself a city girl but I now absolutely love it, love my neighbors, love my block, etc. My neighbors are a mixe of artists, a have state delegate, a professional dancer, waitress, vet, and I think that is it. I have worked on my house since I moved in and continue to work on it, and it will probably never end. the major drawback of Mount Rainier is the lack of a metro station within a 10-15 minute walk (from dowtown which I consider the awesome Glut co-op) and crime is not as bad a CH or Petworth.

Having said that, I and many other have seen the neighborhood evolve and what I love about this place is that it actually is a mix of dif. people not only backgrounds but incomes, lifestyles and more.

Whether the house is a good deal or not, can’t say, hard to tell on photos, and no telling whether they are covering major problems, but for that price and that close to DC I would think it’s good.

By: Eric in Ledroit

Eric in Ledroit — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:29:10 +0000

the glut food co-op is pretty freaking sweet.

By: L

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:21:57 +0000

@ ex rowhouse, I could see your point if this house were way outside the city, but this house is *2 blocks* from the DC border. It’s about 5 miles from the White House – same distance as Brightwood.

By: Aaron

Aaron — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:03:58 +0000

This is not a good deal. We have a contract in on a place in Moutn Rainier and viewed almost every house there over the last 6 months.

As someone above noted, this is a flip…it is identical to the listing on Shepherd St in Mt. Rainier….tons of white paint and lacquered floors. The people behind this are flipping a lot of houses in the area.

The crime here is much lower than in Petworth or Columbia Heights…the stats and details are published on the Chief of Police’s site. Car break-ins and car thefts are the bulk. But keep in mind Mt. Rainier also encompasses some rougher areas and this is in the “Poor Mans Takoma Park” section. The people here are mucher nicer than in Takoma – not as obnoxious and self absorbed (like the South Park episode with the Prius cars).

Like any neighborhood the key is to do your homework. Mt. Rainier is building a bio-fuels cooperative, part of the Hyattsville Arts District, etc.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 21:00:42 +0000

This is zoned Mount Rainier elementry, right? Anyone know the middle/high school?

Where do these people go to the grocery store?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 20:17:45 +0000

rd,

not right now it isn’t.
at least not for the areas along rhode island avenue from about brentwood ave to hyattsville.
not a bad time to buy.