Yes, living in Northern Virginia tends to alter my entire perspective on things just a wee bit. ;)
I grew up here, and traffic becomes increasingly intolerable with each new year...not to mention the fact that condos sell for $200K, townhouses for $250K, and single-family homes go for much more than that (all in the outer suburbs). Living closer to DC, e.g. in Vienna or Falls Church, could set a family back a cool $800K to $1 Million.
Believe me, I'm shocked when I look on realtor.com at prices elsewhere: homes for less than $100K?! Good houses, to boot! Almost makes me want to get a tech job and telecommute :P
200k here in GSO, NC would be a nice 1/2 acre 2500 sq ft newly built house in most parts of town..800k-1m is a McMansion here (7k-12k sq ft).
I was in Northern Virginia this past weekend and about croaked at some of the prices. I rail about prices of some things here on the Eastern Shore, but now I understand so much better why NoVA Freeper friends who were here 2 weeks ago had no problems with prices on things like fresh produce that I would not have paid.
You're not kidding. I live and work near the I-95 corridor in between Baltimore and DC, which is an expensive, well developed, and congested metropolitan area in its own right. But every time I drive into Northern VA I feel like I'm in another world. Can I suggest that you folks place a moratorium on all new building permits, restrict your women to having only one child, and ban the sale of new automobiles?