Live on Mercer Island: To buy or not to buy a car? (Seattle: apartment, leasing)

[RunTheDistance476]

First of all, let me be clear...I HATE BUYING CARS. HATE! As some of you know, I just graduated from college and I am moving to Seattle (Mercer Island) for my first big-boy professional job. This is the first time being able to get financed for either a new or slightly used car (man, the nightmares come back of buying really used cars...at least for me). Anyway, I am moving to Seattle after Christmas and I am trying to decid whether or not I want to buy a car. I hate the process, dealing with dealerships, repair people, blah blah blah

With that being said...I am trying to weigh my options . I am living on Mercer Island and I am very happy with the apartment location (price is a little high, but duh) and the area. I will be working in downtown Bellevue...

What I'd like to know is:

1) Is there a bus or something that will take me from the tip-top of Mercer Island to downtown Bellevue?
2) How long would this take?
3) I could ride my bike...though this may not be a viable option when it is raining or snowing...

Thoughts/tips/ideas?

I don't want to spend:

$300 car payment
$100 insurance
$100 on gas
$75 for parking

[Ira500]

Sound Transit Route 550 bus goes from the Mercer Island Park and Ride( near the tip top of Mercer Island) to downtown Bellevue, and it's a 15 minute bus ride.
You can always start out without a car and see how it goes. It might feel a little isolating...There's only so much to do on Mercer Island, and I don't know about evening/night bus service.

[eskercurve]

I can comment ... my wife worked downtown Seattle for two years while we lived on Mercer Island.

Don't worry about the commute to Bellevue too much. Sorta depends on where in DT bellevue. You can still walk a mile from the transit station if you work on the north end.

At any rate you want to take the 550 bus. Check out the King County Metro website and/or Sound Transit's website for route information.

In the ~2016-18 timeframe there will be light rail going downtown bellevue too, so that's something to look forward to if you're still renting there. As much as the NIMBYs tried, they couldn't stop progress.

Do note however that you will likely be stuck in the same traffic as everyone else, so if you're hoping to shave time, you won't.

The good news is, from MI you can go pretty much anywhere on the Eastside as well as in Seattle with a transfer. Also double good is Sound Transit's buses are way nicer than Seattle's. Comes in handy going to the soccer matches and whatnot.

Bad news is there's only one bus route that goes around MI itself, so you won't be able to do much exploring. It's all good though, there really isn't much going on in MI besides Luther Burbank park. It's pretty much a sleeper suburb, despite attempts to make the core more "lively".

[mkarch]

Don't buy from a dealership if you hate it so much. Also if you're planning on not using it that much, you can buy something cheaper or older if you don't have to depend on it.

On the other hand, if you want new because it's less trouble, you can find some pretty good leases for around $200/month. (Civic Hybrid, Mazda 3) or go all Seattle and get a Subaru Impreza for $179. Most of them have another $500/off for recent grads.

I don't lease (or commute), but for someone that wants the convenience of a new car, a low payment and doesn't have a long commute it makes sense.

[RunTheDistance476]

I don't trust in doing a lease..because, knowing anything to do with cars, the leasing company would charge me for every little stain or whatever and it isn't worth it. Plus, I dont like the mileage restrictions. The insurance is also twice as high

[M3 Mitch]

In Seattle there is always ZipCar and I think one other similar service, where you can just use a car by the hour or day, not have any ownership issues.

If you don't like owning a car, don't own one then.

[Hemlock140]

I happen to LOVE buying cars, the fun of the negotiation, walking away when they won't make my deal! Great fun. We have 3 cars currently. On the other hand you don't really need on with great convenient bus service, and people do ride bikes even across the I90 bridge rain or shine here. The only problem is that there is so much to see and do away from the cities here, and most bus service to the outer areas is commute only or infrequent. Once settled in look into zip cars, you can pick one up in downtown Bellevue, I know at least at the Skyline Tower Parking garage as I've seen them there. Just join and use one when you need it, and save a lot of money.

[mkarch]

Originally Posted by wlw2009

I don't trust in doing a lease..because, knowing anything to do with cars, the leasing company would charge me for every little stain or whatever and it isn't worth it. Plus, I dont like the mileage restrictions. The insurance is also twice as high

Insurance should be the same as a purchase. You're not required to turn the car in at the end. If you like it (or get a bad lease return charge) you can pay the residual and it's really no different than if you bought it in the first place.

I say this after buying new cars then wishing I'd leased so the depreciation was fixed at the outset.

[poopskooper]

Take the bus.


Heck, it sounds as if you're not really a car person in the first place. If you're living at the north end of Mercer Island and are working in Bellevue, it makes sense to take the bus. It's a short and easy commute by bus.

You can also ride your bike. Many ride bikes even when it's raining. Snowing is another story, however. Buses also have bike racks so you can do half-and-half or a combination of riding the bus and biking. Ride your bike one way and take the bus back or the opposite. Or bike part of the way and take the bus part of the way.

[RunTheDistance476]

Great advice, guys. I probably will do a combination of bus/biking depending upon the weather and temperature.

I still dont think leasing a car would be a good option, as I dont want to be stuck with a large lease charge at the end and then have to buy a car anyway. Plus I heard you have to get comprehensive coverage and that gets pricy.

My girlfriend will have a car so I can use hers to get groceries or do a little traveling on the weekends.

Zipcars I think I will pass on. I looked at their website and read some reviews and it seems like they have way too many hidden fees. I realized that a judge ruled them all legal, but are they ethical? Eh... I dont want to pay $2.50 for every time I call for help or have to worry about any of that kind of crap.

Does Seattle have any other carsharing companies anymore?