Believe it or not living in DC, other than Georgetown or the tony parts of NW, has become a viable option the past few years. I know a few people living in the Capitol Yards area near Nationals Stadium and they like it, just lack in amenities like grocery stores and bars.
Your best bet though is probably NoVA though and where depends on what you are looking for. If you are looking for a 'downtown' with plenty to do at most hours and an apartment or condo within stumbling distance Courthouse and Clarendon along with the surrounding areas in Arlington have been pretty nice places to be the past few years and as a LT you can find more than a few places to rent or buy with your BAH, housing prices in the DC area have stabilized and are slowly rising, not much of a rush if you want to buy....still pretty expensive though, just be prepared to recage.....and be prepared for the fees! The Metro is pretty convenient from that part of town, not much use if it doesn't go where you are working though (where?). Some parts of Alexandria are nice too but a little bit more scattered, I am not as familiar with that part of town though.
Maryland might be an option if you are on that side of the river, more suburban and you would have to look further out to avoid PG County though. Some of Montgomery is more 'urban' but I am not as much of a fan.
If you are looking for a house in the 'burbs that is a whole other story, you will have to look further out (maybe A LOT further out) or for a fixer-upper. Or the hood. I can give you plenty of advice on that if you want though.
One good resource I have found is a site called Redfin, for sales only but it gives you a good idea of what is out there in a easy to use format. You can search by county, city or zip code, for Clarendon and Courthouse you want to look at Arlington County. It is pretty comprehensive for the DC area and gives you a really good idea of what is out there, where and for how much.
PM me if you want to know more.
