Washington D.C. (including Baltimore) - Which Are The Safest Neighborhoods In The District?

A friend of mine here in NYC (but not on FT) is considering relocation to Washington. One of his concerns is crime. He seems to think he'll have to live in Virginia or Maryland to be "safe."

What are the safest areas of the District particularly in regard to crimes against people?

Probably 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW is the safest, I understand the security there is fairly good. ;).

Seriously, it's hard to give advice for such a broad question. It's certainly not true that one has to live in the suburbs to "feel safe", but I'm not even sure what your friend means by that. What does it take for him to "feel safe"?Crime can be anywhere.

Maybe if your friend has some places in mind people could comment on particular areas. And of course there are on-line resources for crime stats if he wants to spend some time surfing.

http://mpdc.dc.gov/mpdc/cwp/view,a,1239,q,543308,mpdcNav_GID,1523,mpdcNav,|.as p

Just like any city, DC has its good and its bad areas. There are plenty of not-so-nice areas both in the NoVa and MD 'burbs as well. Overall though, the District has improved greatly in the 15 yrs I've been here. One neighborhood, Logan Circle, was pretty bad just a decade ago. Now it's quite desirable with trendy restaurants and pricey condos.

It all depends on what your friend is looking for - house vs. condo, metro accessible, more urban feel vs. less so, etc.

Of course, no area is 100% crime free but there are plenty of neighborhoods which are considered quite safe: Georgetown, Glover Park, Van Ness, Palisades, Chevy Chase, Spring Valley, Cleveland Park, Woodley Park to name a few.

Thank you all for replying.



Seriously, it's hard to give advice for such a broad question. It's certainly not true that one has to live in the suburbs to "feel safe", but I'm not even sure what your friend means by that. What does it take for him to "feel safe"?Crime can be anywhere.



Safe as in New York City safe.



It all depends on what your friend is looking for - house vs. condo, metro accessible, more urban feel vs. less so, etc.

Of course, no area is 100% crime free but there are plenty of neighborhoods which are considered quite safe: Georgetown, Glover Park, Van Ness, Palisades, Chevy Chase, Spring Valley, Cleveland Park, Woodley Park to name a few.

I think an apartment would probably be fine.

Haven't there been a lot of muggings lately in Georgetown?

Haven't there been a lot of muggings lately in Georgetown?

Not really. There were a few highly publicized ones, but I certainly feel comfortable walking around the main drags (M Street and Wisconsin Ave) during any halfway reasonable hours.

In general, most people consider the nicer parts of the District to be west of Rock Creek Park. But Capitol Hill is safe and trendy and is in Southeast D.C., so "not necessarily." Most of my friends who live in the district live either on the Hill or around the area from Gallery Place / Chinatown up to U Street (e.g. just east of the Convention Center or in Shaw). There have been problems with large groups of teenagers around the Gallery Place metro on weekend nights and it isn't the quietest area around. I know other people who live up near Woodley Park / Cleveland Park and that is calmer. In some ways, I feel less safe walking around there because there are fewer people around.

In general, Virginia is cheaper than Maryland is cheaper than D.C. Bethesda is pricy for Maryland while Silver Spring is more reasonable. Arlington and the nicer parts of Alexandria are the expensive places in Virginia. It all depends on what your friend is looking for. There is no reason to rule out either Maryland or Virginia if one is looking for an urban environment. The Orange Line corridor in Arlington (e.g. around Clarendon metro) is quite lively, for example.

I'd also suggest that where one is working might be a big factor. Commuting in this region is often a pain. The metro is pricier and less efficient than the NY subway, for example. If somebody works in the suburbs (or has reason to go to a lot of meetings in the suburbs), it could be inconvenient to live in the District.

I am very much in agreement with gtownguy. There are some pretty rough neighborhoods in Virginia and Maryland that I would not recommend, and some neighborhoods in DC which are very safe.

Style of neighborhood and budget matter as well. Apartment style living could mean Coop city, a loft in Soho, a cheap and dreary flat in Queens, or a duplex on Park Avenue.

I think we need a little better idea of what you mean by New York City safe as well. I can't imagine that the entire city is equally safe or has the same character. There must be neighborhoods in NYC that your friend prefers not to go.

It's a city. No place is completely "safe." Criminals are mobile, and smart enough to know that you won't collect a lot of fancy phones and watches by mugging welfare moms in Barry Farm. And, no fault of their own, but some people are just easy marks— I've met people who've been mugged in Cleveland Park (think: Gramercy Park) and Pentagon City (think: West Nyack) while others have gone jogging at night for years in Brookland (think: Bushwick, or maybe Crown Heights) with no problem. There is a startling amount of crime around the Twinbrook Metro station, in the rather white bread suburb of North Bethesda.


Most of the areas considered nice are in the western half of the District (esp. Wards 3 and 4), most of those considered not nice are in the eastern half (esp. wards 7 and 8), but as with any city, the "feel" of the place can change block by block, and can be quite subjective. I had a roommate who felt "unsafe" in Adams-Morgan, a big restaurant/nightclub district, because it was seedy at 2am on Saturday night. I had another who felt "unsafe" in Georgetown because aside from M Street and Wisconsin, the neighborhoods are residential and quite empty/isolated/dark on a weekday at 10pm.


If it's not the feel, but the numbers that would reassure your friend, there's plenty of data out there. As of 2007 Ward 8 had by far the highest rate of violent crime (inc. Anacostia, Fairlawn, Washington Highlands), but Ward 2 had by far the highest rate of property crime (incl. downtown, Foggy Bottom, Dupont Circle, Georgetown).

I'd check out
http://www.neighborhoodinfodc.org/
http://capstat.oca.dc.gov/mapping/
http://spotcrime.com/dc/washington

Having lived in the area for two different stretches in the 90s, I'll back up those who have said there are both urban and suburban areas that are safe and, by relative standards, unsafe. I knew friends who lived in NW and NE in the District that I was happy to go visit and other friends who lived in NW and NE where I wouldn't think of going. Same for VA and MD. There are lots of nice areas in NW near Rock Creek Park and also in NE around Capitol Hill. The VA 'burbs along the Ballston-Rosslyn corridor are more than decent, too. I can't speak specifically for areas in MD, but in general, it seemed that most of the people who seemed happy there lived in Montgomery Co. along the I-270 corridor.

What about a neighborhood called, if I recall correctly, Shepard Park?

What about a neighborhood called, if I recall correctly, Shepard Park?

Could this be it? I wasn't familiar with that name and looked it up. My favorite area is the Kalorama Rd/Connecticut Ave area.

Shepherd Park (http://www.shepherdpark.org/)

Bobette

What about a neighborhood called, if I recall correctly, Shepard Park?

Here's an article from the Post about the neighborhood.

www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/06/19/AR2009061901636.html

It's a nice neighborhood but I think it is a little off the beaten path relative to other parts of DC. There are 2 Metro stations nearby and downtown Silver Spring, MD is very close - lots of restaurants and stuff there. All depends on what you're looking for - more space, ability to walk to places, public transportation, or other factors. There's another neigborhood just south of there called 16th Street Heights - lots of very nice homes there and kind of a suburban feel to it.

Walter Reed Medical Center is on the edge of Shepherd Park and it's scheduled to close in a couple of years. Redevelopment of the hospital area will surely be a plus to the neighborhood. Think they're planning condos and retail for the area.

My favorite area is the Kalorama Rd/Connecticut Ave area.

There are actually 2 neighborhoods up there - Kalorama and Kalorama Triangle. Both very nice and very desirable areas - between Dupont Circle & Woodley Park Metro stations. Kalorama has lots of huge - and very pricey - homes while the Triangle leans more toward condos.

Safe as in NYC safe? Haha. As if NYC is the paradigm of safe cities. I think that most of NW DC is "safe", but as others have said, you need to give us more info. as to what your friend is looking for if you want us to be of more help. There are plenty of super-fancy parts of DC & NOVA. In 6 years of living here (and I grew up in NYC before that), I've never really felt unsafe...I can't say the same about walking around certain parts of Brooklyn though.

Where will your friend be working? What is he looking for exactly?

For what it's worth, I think that the DC metropolitan area is nicer/safer on a per capita basis than the NY metropolitan area.

I live on the border between 16th Street Heights and Shepherd Park, been here for 10 years, with 7 years in Columbia Heights be fire that. So CoHi hadn't "transitioned" yet. Both areas are quite safe, as are many parts of Petworth (some bad blocks though), and I'd have no worries even over my suburban baby sister moving to any of them. Of those 3 areas, Petworth is most affordable. The Brookland/Catholic U area is also affordable, and generally low crime. DC is rapidly changing for the better, so your friend will have p,entry of choices. Personally I'd not move to the Trinidad area without doing thorough checks into neighborhood crime rates as it's been kind of rough there lately, but with the rapid development along H Street NE even Trinidad will be mini-Georgetown soon enough. As for muggings in Georgetown, those were going on in the late 80's when I lived at 34th and M. Take these with a grain of salt; whenever you have young affluent kids away from home fir the first time, with close access to bars and drinkies, you'll have lots of muggings and purse-snatching.

Safe as in NYC safe? Haha. As if NYC is the paradigm of safe cities.This may be a shock to you but it is. I can walk alone in my neighborhood and surrounding neighborhoods at 3am and know that I'm perfectly safe. Bright lights and lots of people will do that. ^

Most parts of NW DC are generally "safe" - as a former Virginian (Grew up in Fairfax, lived in Arlington & Falls Church for several years), I think VA is a spectacular place to live. I've had friends who lived at 5th & T NW get robbed on their front porch. I had a buddy who lived at 15th & W who had his car broken into so many times, he just left the doors unlocked so he wouldn't have to keep replacing the windows.

Although I'm a biased Virginian, I think that in DC the closer you live to Maryland, the more crime you've got. Chevy Chase isn't too bad (though in apartments, you only get 1 spot or parking pass and it's often not a reserved spot) in MD.

I think a key factor to think about is where is your friend going to work. I have a buddy who lives on Capitol Hill & goes to school near Dupont Circle - it's not a bad commute by public transportation, but he says he'd be willing to spend another $300/mo to live in the Dupont area if it meant a shorter commute or he could walk to school. Being that he's from NYC, I'm sure he's used to walking & commuting to whereever he needs to be & he may be more adaptable than someone coming from outside of NYC.

One thing I learned about moving to Vegas, daytime is different than night time. When moving to a new place check out your commute in the morning & the evening on a weekday and do a drive by during the day & again late night to see what it's like before committing to a year long lease.

Safe as in NYC safe? Haha. As if NYC is the paradigm of safe cities. I think that most of NW DC is "safe", but as others have said, you need to give us more info. as to what your friend is looking for if you want us to be of more help. There are plenty of super-fancy parts of DC & NOVA. In 6 years of living here (and I grew up in NYC before that), I've never really felt unsafe...I can't say the same about walking around certain parts of Brooklyn though.

Where will your friend be working? What is he looking for exactly?

For what it's worth, I think that the DC metropolitan area is nicer/safer on a per capita basis than the NY metropolitan area.

Hey, I live in Brooklyn and I have no concern about walking outside my house at any hour of the day or night. I invite you to the New York City forum on FT to discuss crime stats and safety. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/new-york-city-465/

It turns out that my friend will not know more about this job until at least mid-December so I've stopped posting here until then.

Thank you all for your kindness and courtesy. ^

Most parts of NW DC are generally "safe" - as a former Virginian (Grew up in Fairfax, lived in Arlington & Falls Church for several years), I think VA is a spectacular place to live. I've had friends who lived at 5th & T NW get robbed on their front porch. I had a buddy who lived at 15th & W who had his car broken into so many times, he just left the doors unlocked so he wouldn't have to keep replacing the windows.

Although I'm a biased Virginian, I think that in DC the closer you live to Maryland, the more crime you've got. Chevy Chase isn't too bad (though in apartments, you only get 1 spot or parking pass and it's often not a reserved spot) in MD.

.

are not the 3 nova districts named also the 3 or 4 higest income districts in usa?(and most expensive)

a big section of alexandria(with public housing) is pretty nasty. i think that area in dc west and north of georgetown to the md border is pretty crime safe.foxhall road, americn u, and the likes. the areas in md just beyond that don' make the papers mucn bethesda, chevvy chase, potomac and the likes.

a big section of alexandria (with public housing) is pretty nasty. The James Bland project area in the Old Town North area has already begun its 5-10 year demolition and redevelopment plan, which will include a mix of new public and market rate housing, and the apartments in Arlandria (home to much of Alexandria's immigrant Latino population), but all together we're talking about a few blocks at most. Alexandria City may have more of an economic and ethnic mix than places like Potomac or Hollin Hills, but it's still one of the most popular places in the DC area to live.

I read this and each time someone says - Alexandria, Arlington, NW DC, NE DC - I can think of a neighborhood where I wouldn't want to live, and another where I would. It is very hard to generalize on this stuff. Even the basic, east/west of Rock Creek is filled with exceptions. I think the best thing is to wait until Landing Gear can be more specific, both about where the friend will be working and what preferences the friend has, and then we can be more specific about recommended neighborhoods.

Agreed. And also what the friend's budget is. There are plenty of safe, yet extremely expensive, areas that are not worth recommending to someone that can't afford them.

I just hope nobody here is making decisions about where to live or not live just because of rare instances of crime that wind up in the headlines. Because if you're going to weigh isolated anecdotes of misfortune more heavily than statistics... you'll have a hard time getting on a plane, right?

As others have said there are safe areas and unsafe areas in the Metropolitan D.C. area. Some benefit might come from putting this question to persons at a similar grade level where employment will take place. The Personnel office should also have useful suggestions. They will know first hand the areas which should be avoided.

DC is a cesspool. That is why so many people commute in from Virginia and Maryland every day.....go in and work...then get the heck out. High crime...high taxes....the list goes on. Crime does happen everywhere, even in VA and MD, but it happens at random and frequent times all across DC. I lived there for years and finally had enough and moved to VA....best decision I ever made...

As others have said there are safe areas and unsafe areas in the Metropolitan D.C. area. Some benefit might come from putting this question to persons at a similar grade level where employment will take place. The Personnel office should also have useful suggestions. They will know first hand the areas which should be avoided.

I can't imagine the personnel office would provide anything more useful than personal anecdotes of those working in the personnel office, which is the same as what you get here except the anecdotes are from a different group of people.

DC is a cesspool. That is why so many people commute in from Virginia and Maryland every day.....go in and work...then get the heck out. High crime...high taxes....the list goes on. Crime does happen everywhere, even in VA and MD, but it happens at random and frequent times all across DC. I lived there for years and finally had enough and moved to VA....best decision I ever made...

Yep, the fastest growing place is loudoun county va. it is safe, clean,low taxes and VA. only disadvantages i can think of are expensive housing, no public transportation, and a two hour commute each way to dc(unless there is rain or snow).

a friend of ours moved from grubby pg county(there are some serious problems in pg), to north arlington. she bought a cracker box for half a mil, and has an hour commute to work.

a friend of ours moved from grubby pg county(there are some serious problems in pg), to north arlington. she bought a cracker box for half a mil, and has an hour commute to work.

Half a mil in North Arlington.... not bad :D

DC is a cesspool. That is why so many people commute in from Virginia and Maryland every day.....go in and work...then get the heck out. High crime...high taxes....the list goes on. Crime does happen everywhere, even in VA and MD, but it happens at random and frequent times all across DC. I lived there for years and finally had enough and moved to VA....best decision I ever made...

I feel the exact opposite. It is (much of the) Virginia and Maryland suburbs which are a cesspool of cookie-cutter townhouse developments surrounded by bland chain restaurants. Crime certainly isn't frequent in my neighborhood in DC, although it is random just like in Maryland and Virginia. I will grant that DC has higher taxes. Best decision I ever made was to move to DC where I have a 10 minute commute in the morning, can walk to the grocery store and great restaurants, and live in a wonderful neighborhood.

That said, I won't speak in idiotic generalities. There are great neighborhoods in Virginia and Maryland and horrible ones where the crime rate is as bad or worse than the worst neighborhoods in DC.

That said, I won't speak in idiotic generalities. There are great neighborhoods in Virginia and Maryland and horrible ones where the crime rate is as bad or worse than the worst neighborhoods in DC.

Number of murders in DC this far in 2010: 130
Number of murders in Fairfax County in 2010: 20

DC population: ca 625,000
Fairfax County: ca 1,055,000

I would rather be in Cullmore or Hybla Valley (the most dangerous place of Fairfax County) any. day. of. the. week. versus being in Anacostia or Langdon Park.

That said, I won't speak in idiotic generalities. There are great neighborhoods in Virginia and Maryland and horrible ones where the crime rate is as bad or worse than the worst neighborhoods in DC.

Number of murders in DC this far in 2010: 130
Number of murders in Fairfax County in 2010: 20

DC population: ca 625,000
Fairfax County: ca 1,055,000

I would rather be in Cullmore or Hybla Valley (the most dangerous place of Fairfax County) any. day. of. the. week. versus being in Anacostia or Langdon Park.

Yes, but I would rather live in AU Park (in DC) than Hybla Valley (in VA). I must admit, however, that I was thinking of PG County when I made my comment.