I work in Springfield, live in Woodbridge, and board in Faquier county. If you want some insight on some of the info I learned when I was looking in this area 2 years ago, please don't hesitate to ask. You'll be looking at 300-600+ for full board throughout the area depending on the type of facility and if you want an indoor or not. I'm at a very very low key facility with field board and am spending 275/mo., but this is really cheap... I would really stay away from Cedar Run - I've always heard a lot of bad things about that place even years ago when I first lived here. NoVa is an acquired taste, too, but I wouldn't say it's any worse than any of the DC Metro area. Traffic is definitely an issue though. The previous poster who talked about leasing hit on a very nice point - if you check the VirginiaEquestrian webpage, there's a section strictly for people who are searching for people to lease their horses. It may be a temporary means to an end to get a non-owning horse-fix. There seems to be a fairly large horse culture around here, but I wouldn't say it's an in-your-face-obvious culture, either. Good Luck!