To Commute Or Not Commute?

"Every day about 150 households move into the Washington area, following the siren call of new jobs and keeping the pressure on the local real estate market. If you buy a house close to your job, you'll definitely avoid a lot of travel. If your job is close to the urban core or major feeder highways, where most jobs are, are you prepared to pay more for housing and give up space? If you buy farther out, you'll pay less for more house, but can you endure the traffic? With housing inventories still at record lows and with new construction lagging far behind the explosion in area population, the choices are clear but often painful. Far out is turning into farther and farther out. "It's the classic home buyer's dilemma," said Mark P. Vintner, a senior economist for First Union Corp. in Charlotte. "It's happening in virtually every urban community in the country. Everyone is grappling with the same issues."

Thanks to Christian Peralta