Current MSIV here. I'll try to answer a few questions.
This is accurate except I don't know why you would buy another stethoscope, the one they give you is fine. I've been using it throughout my rotations and I don't have any trouble hearing things I need to hear. I don't know anyone in my class who replaced it except for a couple people whose parents gave them one as a gift. This definitely isn't what you need to worry about before you get into school.
Most people do not live within "walking distance" per se. There aren't a lot of apartments that are really close to the school. A lot of people share houses or live in apartments on the Metro. Grosvenor is a popular location. You should really try to find something along the metro because parking is a nightmare at school and it's almost impossible to get a parking permit to park there, unless you're carpooling with at least 2 other people. Even if you end up having clinical rotations at the school or at Walter Reed, you may not be allowed to park on base. This changed since my class started and it has screwed us over because a lot of people live out farther away and were counting on being able to drive in and park. My advice is to make sure that you can get to school without driving from where ever you decide to live. Riding a bike isn't a bad option either. That being said, you can find 1 bedroom apartments from 1500-2000 with varying amenities in the Bethesda area. Finding a 3 or 4 bedroom house and splitting the rent is often a money saver.
Yeah this does sound like a much better idea. Does the school help incoming students find housing? Or are we completely on our own?