Seattle folks, I need your help!

MissyMissy18

Hello! I know MFP is kind of a random place to discuss this, but these are pretty much the only forums I read!

I'm looking for a new job and hoping to move out west (living in the DC area currently). I just had a phone interview with a company in Bothell, WA (Brooks Sports to be exact... how cool is that?!) that went very well. I've never been to Washington so I was really hoping to get some input from any Seattle-ites out there!

Any information, advice, pros and cons about the area would be great! I'd love to know things like cost of living, lifestyle, traffic/public transportation, weather (how bad is the rain?), culture & food, things to do, etc. etc. ....You know, basic things that would be of interest to a 25 year old graphic designer with no spouse or kids

Thanks!!

lukeout007

Born & Raised...

Cost Of Living - F****** Terrible. I make more than double the minimum wage and I struggle to live. Rent prices are insane. Outside of Seattle you're looking at $900-$1200 for a 2 bedroom. IN Seattle you're looking at $1500-$2000. Yes that's per month.

Lifestyle is all dependent on your preferences. There's a great music scene...unfortunately its infested by hipsters.

Traffic - One of the worst states for traffic in the US.

Weather - Rains a good 50% of the time...overcast at least 75% of the time.

Culture & Food - Culture is more or less answered in the hipster comment above. Food however...now that's one thing I love about seattle. if you're a seafood fan you'll be very happy.

Things To Do - ...........eh.........not much if you're not into outdoorsy stuff. After awhile you'll tire of the touristy stuff.

Long_and_Lean

Bothell is a nice enough area and a big biotech industry hub. If you work there, you could live on the east side or Seattle since it's right at the top of lake WA -- be aware that the 520 bridge which goes across lake WA recently became a toll bridge, so you have to go all the way down south to I90 if you wanna get across for free. Something to consider if you live on the east side and want to go to Seattle to play. Avoid living south of town if you can help it (central district, renton, tukwila) cause it's kinda ghetto, except for west seattle - that's the new up and coming area. It does get kinda questionable once you get all the way down to Burien, but considering as you'll work in Bothell, there's no reason for you to be that far South anyway. Public transportation is big here, but it's much easier to go north/south than east/west (all that dang water in between). Also, Seattle is one of the best places in the country to live! The city is gorgeous and the surrounding nature is fantastic. Btw, if you're looking for an apartment, I'm looking for someone to take over my lease since I just bought a house in west seattle!. It's a 2.5 bedroom, top floor apartment in the city, views of lake union and the space needle, pretty swank place. :drinker:

supatim

MissyMissy

I have lived in Seattle since 88' and I have to echo what Luke said. - HOWEVER - There are some intangibles he overlooked - (just don't tell anyone else)

Cost of living is ridiculous. Bottom line. BUT - there are opportunities here that don't exist elsewhere. Brooks is a great company, and the culture there is conducive to healthy lifestyle. Luke doesn't like hipsters - and that's completely understandable - BUT - there is a great deal more to the Puget Sound area than music, hipsters and seafood.

Traffic sucks. Ride a bike - BUT - transit system is pretty good, dependent on where you locate.

Weather - Look it up, it is often gloomy here and the winters are wet and dark. You'll start to feel like a mushroom. BUT - when it's nice here... You really can't top it.

Culture and Food - So much. Do you read? Like art? Theater? Travel? Sports?

Things to do - Yeah - there is a large amount of outdoorsy stuff to do, but also other things. Wine, beer, cooking, food. (OK, I'm hungry.)

Luke hit it pretty well on the head - I would add that I love it here and couldn't think about living anywhere else. I was born and raised in the MOST beautiful area- Central Colorado (300 + days of sun a year) - I still love Seattle.

Good luck

fabafter5

I moved to Seattle 15 years ago from Ohio. Yes the cost of living is high. Starter homes start at $300,000 for the most part. Some areas are worse than others. When we first moved there bothell was the first place we lived. It is was cheaper living there than in Bellevue or Redmond area.

Seattle is know for having a very active lifestyle. People hike, bike, run for fun lol. The park system is outstanding! Summers are great winters are misty and grey but much better than 3 ft. of snow on the ground.

In my opinion Seattle is perfect! You can drive to the ocean and also to the mounntains.It really is a beautiful place to live. Message me if you have any other questions!

lukeout007

Traffic sucks. Ride a bike - BUT - transit system is pretty good, dependent on where you locate.

You can ride a bike IF you live close enough to your work. WA is pretty well spaced out...if you live in Seattle you're probably not going to ride a bike to Bothell.

Weather - Look it up, it is often gloomy here and the winters are wet and dark. You'll start to feel like a mushroom. BUT - when it's nice here... You really can't top it.

That's true actually. The nice days are amazing.

Culture and Food - So much. Do you read? Like art? Theater? Travel? Sports?

Ok I overlooked some things. I don't think reading counts as you can read anywhere in the US. lol....but we do have great art museums, and theaters. There are some nearby places to travel (islands and such)...Sports...well if you like your team to win this probably isn't the place.

Things to do - Yeah - there is a large amount of outdoorsy stuff to do, but also other things. Wine, beer, cooking, food. (OK, I'm hungry.)

That's the problem....it's all either drinking or eating...if its not those things its touristy stuff that we've all done 100 times.

lukeout007

I moved to Seattle 15 years ago from Ohio. Yes the cost of living is high. Starter homes start at $300,000 for the most part. Some areas are worse than others. When we first moved there bothell was the first place we lived. It is was cheaper living there than in Bellevue or Redmond area.

It is cheaper than those areas...but those areas are some of the worst. Bothell is still a very expensive area.

JessigirlJb

Lots of rain lot and overcast.. But Wa****onians learn to love the rain why??
Rain makes corn, corn makes whiskey
Whiskey makes my baby feel a little frisky
Back roads are boggin' up, my buddies pile up in my truck
We hunt our honeys down, we take 'em into town
Start washin' all our worries down the drain
Rain is a good thing


Read more: LUKE BRYAN - RAIN IS A GOOD THING LYRICS http://www.metrolyrics.com/rain-is-a-good-thing-lyrics-luke-bryan.html#ixzz21q9JVQfb

Fit2morrow

Lived in Bothell for the last 8 years, just moved back to the sun

The rain was never an issue for me, (well - almost never). The lack of sunshine is another story. Be prepared for 8 months (at least) of gray skies...

The area is beautiful if you can afford to spend some time getting out and about. Natural wonders abound, but you'll deal with major traffic getting there to enjoy them.

It is expensive, possibly prohibitively so depending on your tastes and entertainment preferences. Outdoor enthusiasts have plenty to keep them occupied and entertained.

Bothell is a great community and place to work, but options for public transit are very limited. Be careful choosing a home or your commute may be a nightmare. (We chose to live in Bothell since that's where I worked, and we enjoyed it - however if you plan to spend a lot of time in Seattle you may regret not living closer.) Just avoid the west - east commute; it can be a bear!

The nice days are truly amazing - unfortunately there are only about 30 of them in a year. Bring your own sunshine!

Good luck with your decision!

ChcolateLady11

I moved to Seattle 15 years ago from Ohio. Yes the cost of living is high. Starter homes start at $300,000 for the most part. Some areas are worse than others. When we first moved there bothell was the first place we lived. It is was cheaper living there than in Bellevue or Redmond area.

Seattle is know for having a very active lifestyle. People hike, bike, run for fun lol. The park system is outstanding! Summers are great winters are misty and grey but much better than 3 ft. of snow on the ground.

In my opinion Seattle is perfect! You can drive to the ocean and also to the mounntains.It really is a beautiful place to live. Message me if you have any other questions!

ChcolateLady11

I have been in seattle for 9years now and coming from the midwest (northern Ill/southern Wisconsin) I LOVE it here so much more!!!

I echo much of what the others are saying as far as living goes, traffic, and weather.

MissyMissy18

Woof.

Luke, when you say 2 bedroom for $900-1200... that is per person??!?

I am coming from an area where traffic is a veritable nightmare (eg I live 14 miles from work and it takes me a little under an hour to drive there most days), and housing prices are nuts.

I do worry about the weather as it can effect my mood pretty severely.. however I hope that can be overcome by actually enjoying my life, which I certainly don't do around here (I hate my job, people around here are douche canoes, my rent is too high, the traffic stresses me out, there's not much culture or outdoors stuff)...

The other things sound right on par with my interests: Good food & beer, good art & music scene, lots of outdoorsy activities. I went to an art school so I'm used to hipsters and they don't really bother me... although they're likely to annoy the crap out of my boyfriend.

I originally had been looking into moving to Colorado, which I've visited and loved. 300 days of sun? Yes puuuhhleease!

lukeout007

Woof.

Luke, when you say 2 bedroom for $900-1200... that is per person??!?

No...thats for a 2 bedroom apartment in an acceptable part of town. If you want to be in a nice part of town you're looking at $1500...if you are ok being in the ghetto you can go as low as about $800.

I am coming from an area where traffic is a veritable nightmare (eg I live 14 miles from work and it takes me a little under an hour to drive there most days), and housing prices are nuts.

No different here.

I do worry about the weather as it can effect my mood pretty severely.. however I hope that can be overcome by actually enjoying my life, which I certainly don't do around here (I hate my job, people around here are douche canoes, my rent is too high, the traffic stresses me out, there's not much culture or outdoors stuff)...

It doesn't sound like it's going to be much different here....people here are rude and grouchy (probably because of the weather)....the amount of overly pretentious people here astounds me. The rent is very high...the traffic is extremely bad...

MissyMissy18

No...thats for a 2 bedroom apartment in an acceptable part of town. If you want to be in a nice part of town you're looking at $1500...if you are ok being in the ghetto you can go as low as about $800.

Oh jeez dude you scared me!!! That's not so bad compared to where I am now. Right now I'm sharing $2350 for a 3 bedroom and that's a reallllyyyy good price for the area. I have a friend who lives up the street from me in a high rise apartment complex (bleh) that is nothing fancy at all and she pays $1800 for a 2 bedroom.

What are prices like for other things? Groceries, dining, entertainment and such? Taxes?

lukeout007

No...thats for a 2 bedroom apartment in an acceptable part of town. If you want to be in a nice part of town you're looking at $1500...if you are ok being in the ghetto you can go as low as about $800.

Oh jeez dude you scared me!!! That's not so bad compared to where I am now. Right now I'm sharing $2350 for a 3 bedroom and that's a reallllyyyy good price for the area. I have a friend who lives up the street from me in a high rise apartment complex (bleh) that is nothing fancy at all and she pays $1800 for a 2 bedroom.

What are prices like for other things? Groceries, dining, entertainment and such? Taxes?

Groceries - Eh...depends on how frugal you are...and how many stores you go to. Produce here is awful. If you want something that isn't going to rot within hours you'll pay several dollars per pound for basics like apples.

Dining - Probably not much different than anywhere else. We have all the big chain restaurants with average prices. The private places are usually a little fancier and pricier but the food is damn good. If you want restaurant recommendations I can give you tons.

Entertainment - Depends on what you want to do. A movie ticket is $11-$12 per ticket. Concerts can range between $10 and $150 depending on venue and performer. Your average theater shows (plays, symphonies, etc.) are anywhere between $30 and $200 per ticket depending on venue and seat location.

Taxes - Sales tax is high here. 9.5% in most areas. Alcohol is taxed highly. The taxes that come out of paychecks differ by your job...so I can't really speak on that...all I can say is they take far too much out of my checks.

Long_and_Lean

No...thats for a 2 bedroom apartment in an acceptable part of town. If you want to be in a nice part of town you're looking at $1500...if you are ok being in the ghetto you can go as low as about $800.

Dude, I don't know where you are renting to find prices that low. Anywhere within the city in one of the newer/modern mid or high-rises 2 bedrooms go for 2k and up. And if you're looking at somewhere seriously nice (like Rollins Street Flats, for example), it's even more than that.

MissyMissy18

No...thats for a 2 bedroom apartment in an acceptable part of town. If you want to be in a nice part of town you're looking at $1500...if you are ok being in the ghetto you can go as low as about $800.

Dude, I don't know where you are renting to find prices that low. Anywhere within the city in one of the newer/modern mid or high-rises 2 bedrooms go for 2k and up. And if you're looking at somewhere seriously nice (like Rollins Street Flats, for example), it's even more than that.

:noway: SRSLY?!

MissyMissy18

What about crime? I assume like any city, certain neighborhoods are safer than others.. but as a whole, how safe would you say Seattle is?

ki4yxo

I grew up in Maple Valley, and used to go to Seattle all the time.
I left back in 95, and have lived in the South ever since! I went back
to visit last year, (Burien, where I was born!) and my wife fell in love
with the place. It was end of January first part of February, and it
was the best vacation ever! Every single day we were out doing
something. We drove up to Greenwater, to shoot clay pigeons from
a cliff, cooked hot dogs on sticks while it was snowing! Rode down
to Alki a couple of times to walk around, and take pictures of the skyline
at dusk. I'd move back in a heartbeat! It would be awesome to not have
to rely on A/C every year!

I couldn't live in the city though, I'd have to be back in Maple Valley,
Ravensdale, or even Enumscratch. I'd rather drive a little bit to get
to the Emerald City.

As far as the traffic and people go, if you're coming from the East coast,
the people drive awesome over there! Some of the most curtious people
on the roads! We were staying with my brother, and when I told him how
nice everyone drives, he looked at me like I had a horn growing out of
my head. He's never been to the East coast. The locals are pretty cool,
(born and raised in NC) it's all the yankees.