New Pr. William Arrivals Bitter

Supervisor Frank J. Principi (D), whose Woodbridge district includes Potomac Club, said he doesn't think the issues are unique to the subdivision or to Prince William.

"Clearly, this is a national problem," said Principi, who urged patience among disenchanted newcomers. "I empathize and appreciate what they are going through. To the extent we can solve local problems, we should do that. On the rest, we need to cross our fingers."

Among the things he said the county could do better are "streamlining the permitting process and making inspections consistent" on new development. Principi also noted a proposed program to make loans available to county employees so they can afford to live in Prince William.

New residents' views of the county are dictated by when they arrived, said Stephen Fuller, director of George Mason University Center for Regional Analysis.

Those who have been in the county long enough to see their home values appreciate are less disillusioned. People who moved in right before the slump, however, aren't likely to see relief for a while. "It's going to be a long haul," he said. "They probably paid too much. They speculated, and they got caught."

The next wave of new residents are likely to find bargains, because overpriced houses are becoming more affordable. In May, the median price of a home in the county was $256,124, compared with $375,000 in May 2007, according to Metropolitan Regional Information Systems. Three hundred more homes were sold this May than a year ago.

Even so, Fuller said it's going to be a "slow cure," in part because the county's actions to curb illegal immigration have "damaged its image as a good place to do business."

Katherine M. Gotthardt said she thinks it's a waste of time and money for police to check the legal status of arrested criminal suspects. She would rather see the county invest in fire department staffing, affordable housing and schools.

"They don't seem like they are committed to education and social services," she said. "It's going to take them a long time to climb out of this. The perception is that we are backward."

When Gotthardt moved to Bristow nearly six years ago, it was mostly fields, trees and farmland. Bristow is tucked into the western end of the county, sliced by Route 28, with 10-acre lots on one side and newer residential homes on the other.

"It was like the land got eaten up by these subdivisions," she said. "They've added to that climate of everyone being divided. There's no town center."

Despite the rapid growth, Prince William is still a bedroom community. Roughly two-thirds of its residents work outside the county. When it's time to shop or go out for an upscale meal, they get in their cars and drive to shopping centers in the region. What new residents want is an urban experience, with shopping and dining within the comforts of their suburban community, developers say.