Good place to live for a young professional, early 30s (Seattle: crime, daycare)

[daimyo75]

I finished law school not too long ago and after travelling/interviewing for a while I have a some offers from firms in Denver and in Seattle. As I'm in my early 30s and my girl in in her mid 20s, we're thinking of settling down and having kids.

So we are looking for a neighbourhood with good access to downtown. Good schools. Safe. Clean. With lots of things to do. I don't really want to live in a stodgy, old neighbourhood, and would rather live in a slightly hipper area with good restaurants (wouldn't mind good ethnic). I'm originally coming from California.

What are some good places to start searching?

Other facts. I'll be making about $125,000 to start, my girl will make about $35,000-40,000 - but probably increasing.

How far does $165,000 take you in Seattle compared to say San Francisco or Los Angeles?

I heard the Queen Anne area is one of the better areas. Does it have good schools? Greenery? Good food? Is it safe? Is there a better part of Queen Anne or/and a worse? Is lower Queen Anne a bad neighbourhood?

Any other areas I should consider. Anybody familiar with Silver Lake (where I used to live): are there any similar areas in Seattle? Gentrifying areas with good eateries, interesting/artistic/alternative people, relatively safe and not exceedingly expensive?

Also what is the drive from Queen Anne to downtown like? Insane traffic? How long should it take during rush hour?

[CityGirl72]

Welcome to the double edge sword

Good areas for families and the best schools are on the Eastside where your stouchy neighborhoods area

But you are not a parent yet so you don't know how hard it is to parent in the "hip" neighborhoods when all the stuff that's best for your kids are not in "hip" neighborhoods

I live in Seattle, we are now looking to move to the Eastside for the kids sake

[pwright1]

Upper and lower Queen Ann are both great areas of the city to live in. Safe and walkable with all the amenities right at your feet. Several supermarkets including Trader Joe's, quite a few restaurants, movies, bookstores and right on major metro bus routes.

Other areas of the city I recommend include, Greenlake, Wallingford, Ballard, Fremont and many neighborhoods just east of downtown. Those include Capitol Hill, First Hill, the Central District, Madison Valley, Leschi and Madrona. Also downtown Seattle's Belltown neighborhood is right in the heart of everything.

As for the drive from Queen Ann to dt Seattle its a short 5-10 minute drive. Even during rush hour you won't be affected too much at all.

[daimyo75]

Originally Posted by pwright1

Upper and lower Queen Ann are both great areas of the city to live in. Safe and walkable with all the amenities right at your feet. Several supermarkets including Trader Joe's, quite a few restaurants, movies, bookstores and right on major metro bus routes.

Other areas of the city I recommend include, Greenlake, Wallingford, Ballard, Fremont and many neighborhoods just east of downtown. Those include Capitol Hill, First Hill, the Central District, Madison Valley, Leschi and Madrona. Also downtown Seattle's Belltown neighborhood is right in the heart of everything.

As for the drive from Queen Ann to dt Seattle its a short 5-10 minute drive. Even during rush hour you won't be affected too much at all.

SEATTLE HAS TJ'S??? That was one of the things that saddened me with leaving California... leaving Trader Joe's behind... I'm in a much better mood now...

How about Seward Park? Is that a good area?

[malarkey]

Seward Park is a great area. You also might consider Columbia City. Definitely a hip, gentrifying area, with one of the city's best Farmer's Markets every Wednesday.

[AzDreamer]

I personally wouldn't buy in Seattle with the intention of raising a family. There are too many better options.

Even if you can find a decent area it's going to be close to an area with crime and it will spill over into your area.

When my kids were growing up we never had to worry about them walking to the store or to a friends house. Peace of mind is worth a lot more than being close to a hip restaurant.

[JTC]

Queen Anne is the best! I lived up there when i was a little kid. I dont remember ever hearing about anything criminal happening on (upper) Queen Anne...but im only 18, so maybe im wrong lol.

[pwright1]

Originally Posted by AzDreamer

I personally wouldn't buy in Seattle with the intention of raising a family. There are too many better options.

Even if you can find a decent area it's going to be close to an area with crime and it will spill over into your area.

When my kids were growing up we never had to worry about them walking to the store or to a friends house. Peace of mind is worth a lot more than being close to a hip restaurant.

[daimyo75]

Well, my thoughts are that living in a "hipper" area should not be too bad when your kids are smaller. You probably will have a bigger impact on their lives than the daycare/kinder they go to at that age anyhow. They won't be going anywhere without you, so they'll be safe.

Anyways, I'm sure I'll become more conservative as time passes. Perhaps by then I'll be able to afford something in Bellevue where the good schools and the stodgy rich are at!

A bit more seriously, I never wanted to be shielded as a child and (at this point) I don't think I'd want to become an overprotective parent that would rather raise his child in a bubble of Baby Einsteins and sterile neighbourhoods. To be honest, I think it would be better for my kids if I joined the Foreign Service and they grew up in different countries, than the other extreme: in an extremely safe but unstimulating environment (e.g. Orange County in California). But maybe that opinion might change once I have children...

[SaltyDawg]

The thought that kids are somehow better off in the soulless suburbs is a fallacy, in my opinion. Plenty of folks live around me with kids in the dense area around Greenlake, and the kids look awfully happy to have a playground, wading pool, swimming hole, basketball courts, etc... they don't seem shell-shocked by all of the diversity they see

You should certainly look at Magnolia (kind of an in-city suburb), Greenlake (great park, tons of activities for kids, great if you stay in shape), Wallingford (dense, compact, terrific business district) and Maple Leaf (traditional city neighborhood, less dense than the others).

Others can chime in with more info on some of the southern neighborhoods (Mt Baker, Madrona, Georgetown). The reality is is that there are a lot of distinct neighborhoods in Seattle - you owe it to yourself to spend an hour or two walking around each of your targets to see how they feel to you.