A Quick Guide to Living in Bethesda, M.D. and What Makes It So Great

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Bethesda, Maryland, was named one of the best places to live in 2018 by Money magazine, and it’s not hard to see why! It’s packed with culture, nightlife, shopping, and outdoor activities. Living in Bethesda, MD, brings residents many benefits and opportunities for enrichment, while providing easy access to the region’s most bustling urban areas. 

This guide will walk you through why you should consider living in Bethesda and the biggest advantages of doing so. There is also a section on things you may not know about the city, which is very useful if you’re thinking about buying property there.

Why Live in Bethesda?

Bethesda is one of the most vibrant and prosperous cities in the country, with a highly educated population and close proximity to national institutions. It’s an extremely accessible city, very close to Washington, D.C., and it’s easy to travel to other regional landmark cities like New York City and Philadelphia. It’s near major highways I-270 and I-495 and offers plenty of public transportation options to residents. 

This dynamic city has several arts and cultural institutions, esteemed schools, lovely parks, and bike trails for those who like to get outdoors. Many healthcare and tech companies operate out of Bethesda, so there is never a lack of job openings or employers. Residents of Bethesda enjoy American life to its fullest.

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Benefits of Living in Bethesda, MD

Bethesda has an almost unending list of advantages and things to do for residents. Let’s dive a little deeper into the primary benefits of living in Bethesda, MD.

Culture and History

It’s no surprise that a city so close to the nation’s capital has plenty of history and culture to offer residents and visitors alike. This city is known as home to the National Institutes of Health and the National Naval Medical Center.

Access to the Arts

There are many ways to take in the arts in Bethesda. For example, the Strathmore is a renowned, modern performing arts center that hosts events and arts programming. The Waverly Street Gallery, Round House Theatre, Imagination Stage, and the Bethesda Art Walk are other local events and venues to check out in the city. 

Proximity to Washington, DC

Bethesda gives residents that suburban-life feel while remaining close to all the action in Washington, D.C. The main attractions, including the U.S. Capitol building and National Mall, are only 20 to 25 minutes away from Bethesda, whether by driving or taking public transit.

Great Schools

Montgomery County Public Schools System includes some of the best-rated public schools in the area. There are also nearly two dozen private schools in Bethesda, including Georgetown Preparatory School and Landon School, which are both highly sought-after learning institutions. And of course, Bethesda’s proximity to D.C. gives residents easy access to universities like Howard, American, and Georgetown.

Parks and Nature

Bethesda is home to many parks and trails for those who like to get outdoors. The Capital Crescent Trail is 11 miles long and used by bikers and joggers. It’s located on the southeastern side of Bethesda. On the northeastern side, you’ll find Cabin John Regional Park, which has more than six miles of trails alongside campgrounds and picnic areas. 

Shopping

Bethesda has many options for shoppers, including the Shops at Wildwood and the Westfield Montgomery Mall, which also includes a movie theater. Bethesda’s downtown also has several chains and local shops where you can find great deals and gifts while enjoying the city’s charm.

These are just a few of the many benefits of living in Bethesda, MD. Access to cultural activities and events is a top priority for many homeowners looking for a place to settle.

Person shopping in Bethesda MD with a lot of bags

5 Things to Know about Bethesda

Bethesda has a personality all its own. Let’s cover a few other important points about living in Bethesda that you may not be aware of.

1. Cost of Living

Bethesda can have a fairly high cost of living since it’s so close to Washington, D.C., which has the seventh-highest home price per square foot in the U.S. It’s important to know that, even though the cost of living is high, the median household income is also high at $164,142 and an individual median income of $85,244.

Plus, a seasoned real estate agent will be able to find affordable residential accommodations for those looking in the area, whether to rent or own.

2. Job Opportunities

Bethesda has many job opportunities, whether it’s working for the government, one of the many arts institutions, the Johns Hopkins Bethesda location, the hotel chains, and many more employers. 

3. Population Information

Bethesda enjoys a population of over 62,000 people. The median age is 43.6, so the city has a substantial population of young people. Nearly 75% of Bethesda’s population is White, with Asian, Hispanic, and Black populations, as well.

4. Public Transportation Options

On average, residents have two cars per household, but many residents commute to work for an average of 26.5 minutes. Bethesda is accessible by Metro and Montgomery County Ride-On buses.

5. Other Bethesda Attractions

Bethesda has an exciting nightlife and restaurant scene. There are several American and ethnic restaurants within the downtown district of Bethesda Row, including cafes, fast-food restaurants, ice cream shops, and restaurants featuring Asian dishes, lobster, pizza, and more.

Bethesda, MD, offers residents a high quality of living, easy access to the nation’s capital, and plenty of fun and interesting things to do. It’s easy to see why it’s often ranked highly for places to live in the U.S. with all of its advantages!

Finding Property in Bethesda, MD

If you’re thinking about looking for a home or property in Bethesda, MD, now’s the perfect time to start. The experienced team at Nomadic Real Estate is your go-to resource for everything property-related in the Bethesda area. We can help landlords fill rentals with the right tenants or tenants find the right rentals or homes for their needs. We also assist residential property owners and investors with a range of real estate services.

Contact us for more information about your Greater D.C. property management needs.

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Enhanced Reporting

Your portal includes a selection of extremely useful reports. Reports are available in the “Reports” section, and are distinct from the financial statements. Unlike financial statements which are static records, Reports are dynamic real-time records that will update with current data every time you view them. 

Scroll down to learn more about Reports:

Navigate to the "Reports" module in your portal:

Owner Portal Reports
  • Keep in mind, these reports are dynamic records. They will refresh to display current information every time you view them. 

Enhanced Rent Roll Report:

Enhanced Rent Roll Report
  • The Enhanced Rent Roll Report will show the rent amount, last payment date, move-in date, lease expiration date, and security deposit amount for each of your tenants. 
  • It will also show a portfolio summary with occupancy percentage, vacancy loss, and more!

Unit Comparison Report:

Unit Comparison Report
  • If you own multiple units (or buildings) with Nomadic, you’ll get access to the Unit Comparison Report. 
  • This report enables you to quickly compare financial performance between your units at a glance without toggling between individual reports. 

Income Statement Month-Over-Month:

Income Statement by Month Report
  • The Income Statement Detail – Monthly Report serves as a month-over-month record of portfolio performance. You’ll see itemized income and expense categories and can track monthly. This report will update with fresh data every time you view it. 

Financial Statements

Financial statements will be published to your portal on a monthly basis. The statements are found in your Documents library, and provide a historical record of all financial performance. The statements serve as a snapshot of financial performance over a given period, and are static documents (unlike Reports, the statements do not update/change in real-time). 

Scroll down for more info about the Financial Statements in your Documents library:

The Documents area contains monthly financial statements:

Owner Portal Documents
  • The statements in the Documents are are static documents. They are posted to the portal once a month to serve as a historical record of financial performance. 

Download a statement to see month and YTD financials:

Owner Portal Property Statement

You'll also find a month-over-month operating statement:

Month over Month Statement

Portal Communication Tool

You can use your owner portal to communicate with our team. Any messages you send through the portal will go straight to your Account Manager. When we reply, you’ll get an email notification and you’ll also see the message in your portal next time you log in. 

Here’s an overview of using the communication platform:

Click "Communications" and navigate to "Conversations":

Commincation Dashboard Screenshot
  • The communications module will contain a record of all messages that you create through the portal. 

Click the "New Message" button and send your message:

Owner Portal New Message Screenshot

Responses will show up in the conversation ticket:

Portal Conversation Response Screenshot
  • You’ll get an email notification whenever you get a response, and you’ll also see the message in your portal next time you log in. 

You can reply in-line using the comment box:

Owner Portal Comment

Each conversation will be logged in its entirety:

Portal Conversation Snapshot

Understanding the Ledger

Your portal includes a ledger with all transactions. The ledger is populated with data in real-time as transactions flow through our accounting software. Much of this information is also available in the Reports area, as well as the Statements in your Documents library, but the ledger is the most comprehensive resource for diving into the details. 

Please scroll through the sections below to get a better understanding of how to interpret the ledger. 

By default, transactions are sorted chronologically:

Owner Ledger Dates
  • The date reflected in the lefthand column is the actual transaction date, not the “bill date”. This is the date the transaction was actually processed. 

If you have multiple properties with Nomadic, you'll see the address for each transaction in the "Location" column:

Ledger Property Column
  • You can filter the ledger to look at just one property, all properties, or specific sets of properties. 
  • If you only have one property with us, you’ll just see the ledger for that property. 

The Description column displays the transaction type:

Owner Ledger Description Column
  • BILL: this is an expense transaction, such as for repair costs or management fees.
  • CHARGE: this is a transaction  billed to the tenant, most typically a rent payment. 
  • NACHA EXPORT: this is a credit we processed to your distribution account. This type of transaction is how you get paid! 

The Amount column shows the dollar value of each transaction:

Owner Ledger Amount Column
  • Positive Amounts: if an amount is positive, it reflects a transaction that is payable to you. Typically, this will be a rent payment that we collected from your tenants. On occasion, a positive number could also signify a journal entry or credit adjustment. 
  • Negative Amounts:  if an amount is negative, this is a transaction that is either payable to Nomadic or is an amount that has already been paid to you. Typically this will be for repair costs or management/leasing fees. Owner draws (net distributions into your checking/savings account) also reflect as negative amounts, since they have already been paid to you. 

The Account Balance column shows a sum of positive/negative transactions at a given point in time:

Owner Ledger Account Balance Column
  • Account Balance should always equal zero after a net distribution has been processed. When the balance is zero, this means that all expenses have been paid and you’ve received the remainder as net operating income, leaving a balance of zero (meaning: no one is due any money, as all funds have been distributed appropriately). 

Navigating the Propertyware Owner Portal

Your portal includes some extremely useful features that help you understand your property’s financial performance at a new level, with real-time transparency into every transaction.

Scroll through the snapshots below for an overview of portal navigation! If you need more help or have specific questions about using the portal, you can reach out to your Account Manager any time for a screen share. 

You can filter all info by date range or property:

PW Portal Filters

View a snapshot of income and expenses on your dashboard:

PW Owner Dashboard View

See every transaction in real-time on your ledger:

Owner Portal Ledger View

Statements and forms will be posted to your documents library:

Owner Portal Document Library

View a suite of real-time financial reports:

Portal Reports View

See a running list of all bills, and drill down for more detail:

Owner Portal Bills View

Under Bill Details, you'll find dates/descriptions/amounts and more:

Portal Bill Details

You can also communicate with your Account Manager through the portal:

Owner Portal Communication Tools

How do net distributions work?

Net distributions keep your accounting clean and simple. Each month we’ll collect rent from the tenants, deduct any repair expenses for the previous month and any management/leasing fees for the current month, and credit the remaining net operating income to your account. 

Net Distribution

You’ll receive a statement via email each time a net distribution is processed, and can view all transaction details in your Propertyware owner portal.