Central & Northern Virginia's fastest growing areas

The Washington area's lush techno-economy has pushed out suburban sprawl so far that three semi-rural counties near Fredericksburg have become bustling commuter frontiers that rank for the first time among the fastest-growing communities in the nation.

Have you been to Fredericksburg lately?

What a traffic disaster. It's becoming one 8 lane mega-mall.

Sorry but I can't stand any of those three counties...The real estate market is NOT luxury homes and is usually young, transient military families and multi-family Mexican migrants.

It's tough being excited about a 3 bedroom dump.

Fauquier, Stafford, Caroline and King George counties have joined Loudoun County, which has been on each annual list since 2000.

Most people moving to these counties come from the north (and Mexico), where growth has slowed and new immigrants often replace residents who have left for Florida and Arizona.

Give them Stafford, King George and Caroline.

Hold the fort in Fredericksburg for it's wonderful history!!

But...There's still hope for Loudoun & Fauquier Counties!!!

It still maintains much of its verdant beauty and history, at least in the southern part of the county.

Thanks to Middleburg & Upperville!


The Rt 29/15 area is one big gated country-club community but it IS very attractive.

Here's a list of Loudoun County luxury homes that might appeal to you...Click here

Looks like Warrenton is next to fall then Culpeper. (Click on either of those towns to see their luxury homes).

Washington area's population increased to nearly 6 million. Halfway through the decade, the 8 percent growth rate for the region, which stretches from the Chesapeake Bay to the Blue Ridge, is on track to equal that of the 1990s.

Washington area counties are driving most of the growth in Virginia show Fauquier, Loudoun, Prince William and St. Mary's counties added more residents in the past five years than in the previous 10, and Charles County added nearly as many.


But momentum is moving beyond those counties. Ranked just behind Loudoun, whose 2005 growth rate ranked eighth in the country, were King George and Caroline counties, two small jurisdictions more likely in the past to draw state employees from Richmond than federal or high-tech workers from the capital region.

Now, most of their new residents come from Prince William, Stafford, Spotsylvania, Charles and other counties closer to Washington.

Those new residents are seeking lower-priced housing, bigger lots and less congested roads than established neighborhoods offer. Some are bypassing other fast-growing counties that imposed development restraints.

Age-restricted housing and waterfront property in Caroline and King George also are drawing retirees and "pre-retirees," people in their fifties who plan to work for a few more years.

Many new residents commute through Washington area gridlock. Portia Cobb, 37, leaves home in Caroline County at 4 a.m. each day to drive her van pool 70 miles to the District, where she is a manager at a printing company. She used to live in the city, and now she takes about an hour to get there in the morning.

"This is the only way I could live comfortably and have some space and privacy," said Cobb, who paid $224,000 last year for her four-bedroom, three-bath, split-foyer rambler.

"I went there to get away from the hustle and bustle and to get to easy living."

Caroline County officials predict its population will double within two decades. Among more than 10,000 new homes in the pipeline are 4,000 at the Haymount development overlooking the Rappahannock River.

"Our market is pretty simple," developer John A. Clark said.

"It's commuters in the I-95 corridor."

Officials of every county are trying to straddle the line between welcoming the newcomers and reining in runaway growth.

How can ANYONE stop this?

Albemarle County where Charlottesville sits is trying...read more tomorrow...

Toby Beavers - Virginia realtor extraordinaire.