Moving to Seattle in two weeks- tell me what's awesome! (Bellevue: YMCA, landlords)

[slan490]

You are getting to know things quickly, that's great!

I think you'll love West Seattle. There's an outdoor pool in summer, parks, shopping, alki, views, and restaurants...oh and markets. And it's such a quick drive to downtown.

Hope you find a great place!

[bingitslola]

Originally Posted by slan490

You are getting to know things quickly, that's great!

I think you'll love West Seattle. There's an outdoor pool in summer, parks, shopping, alki, views, and restaurants...oh and markets. And it's such a quick drive to downtown.

Hope you find a great place!

Thanks! I'm really enjoying it so far. HUGE disclaimer on the traffic, I don't have to commute downtown or on the 405 to Bellevue which seems to get backed up even on the weekends, what the heck!?

West Seattle is absolutely gorgeous, I got to hang out in the sunshine today at Lincoln Park. The Puget Sound is really breathtakingly beautiful.

As for the apartment we did find something barely in our price range that just had an application accepted. Bonus - it's not in a basement! From what we looked at our budget range would have been almost okay if we didn't have a dog. Most of the places that accept pets are the brand new overpriced mega-plexes that are all built by a small handful of property management companies like Greystar which I prefer to avoid. I feel like a lot of landlords must have gotten burned by pet owners in the past. Such a bummer!

I'm planning on signing up for a local YMCA for cost effective yoga/workout equipment. I was spoiled by yoga being included in my last gym, I didn't realize how expensive individual classes were.

On a happier note I am obsessed with the radio station 90.3. Such great music! I also really like the paper The Seattle Weekly. There were some articles in The Stranger I liked, but some that were kind of off the wall, like people meditating over the planned viaduct tunnel to try and figure out soil consistency. I'm having a hard time telling if some of their stuff is supposed to be like The Onion or not.

Last thing - If you find your way down to Renton for any reason check out El Burrito Loco. I found a mexican place that makes me feel like I'm back in Phoenix! It's not gourmet by any means but give me a decent $6 carnitas burrito anyday. My only complaint is that sauces/salsa doesn't come with unless you ask.

[RVD90277]

Glad you seem to be settling in pretty well. The weather has been cold but nice and sunny during the day. I think the rain is coming back later this week though.

[folkguitarist555]

Yes the rents in Seattle and the outlying areas have been soaring rather high in recent years, the traffic is beyond insane, the social aspect is peculiar, yet the whole PNW is still a great region of the USA I tend to think...regardless. Yet it is time for some of us to say goodbye, and seek out that country home, away enough from the crowded masses, to a place where folks smile and engage in sincere discourse, and where the highways are not cluttered to death with snail pace, slow moving vehicles. A time to say goodbye to Seattle for some of us, while others will be saying hello.

[perigee]

Thanks for checking back in, it's nice to get the update. Also thanks for the recommendation, any Mexican place that get's such a high marks from a person from AZ really says something. One of the greatest things about AZ, NM, and TX, is the abundance or great [and cheap] Mexican restaurants. Glad to see we have at least one place that measures up!

Also you are catching us with unusually nice weather. Come November/December it would be great if you checked back and tell us how the short, cloudy, rainy days are treating you. There are plenty of lurkers who would benefit from hearing from your perceptive.

Welcome to the Pacific Northwest!

[crf450ish]

Ok let me start out by saying I'm NOT trying to be a Debbie downer or a negative nancy here. I am about to give a small taste of reality on what to expect here. Number one- Taxes are insanely high. I mean insanely. Liquor is taxed out the a**, tobacco is also. Gas is expensive compared to Phoenix(trust me on my Seattle-Phoenix comparisons, I have family there and also vacation there all summer every summer every year), they are even considering taxing you based how many miles you drive. You can guarantee to be on candid camera every time you drive ANYWHERE in king county, as this state is ready to make money off of you for any little tiny mistake you make behind the wheel. The taxes literally double dip you, I don't feel like explaining. Number two- TRAFFIC! Forget about going anywhere quick during any NORMAL time of the day ANY day of the week. Number three- $1,200 is not gonna get you anything cool at all to live in, that is, unless you have very low standards of living and don't mind living in a neighborhood like South Park. My point is the people here ARENT that bad! It's the liberal mindset of the lawmakers and politicians here that are making it difficult for the middle class to exist here. It's rediculius, things cost SSSSOOOO much money here it's almost impossible to be stress free. It's a damn good thing you don't have kids, because you would NEED income of at least $100k to live comfortably in and around Seattle/King county. NUMBER FOUR- Your in for a massive shakeup with the weather. This winter has been a strange one indeed. Allot warmer and drier then normal. It's incredibly depressing when you have to contend with water 100% of the day 90% of the time between the months of October through June. Yeah I'm serious. You can expect to bundle up or bring a sweatshirt with you everywhere you go. I guess it all depends on ones perception, but mine is definitely not positive after I've experienced other climates in 23 other states. I came back here and thought man this place blows big time in almost every way. Everything is way more expensive in western wa and it rains all the time. To hell with all that. I've wanted to move to the most eastern part of wa state since I was a kid and now I am finally doing so. I wish you good luck and I hope you keep your vitamin D intake up to a max, because you'll need it to maintain the chipper attitude as you have demonstrated in your post!

[elkotronics]

crf450ish - welcome to my side of Washington state, then! Which small town are ya headin' to on the east side of Washington?

[crf450ish]

Originally Posted by elkotronics

crf450ish - welcome to my side of Washington state, then! Which small town are ya headin' to on the east side of Washington?

fruitland

[elkotronics]

Excellent - I'm really diggin' the eastern side. I grew up in the middle of the rat-race on the western side, Edmonds. I do still love Edmonds, though, I have fond memories of it. Enjoy Fruitland!

[CirdanI]

Hi we recently put this guide together about moving to Seattle. Anything you think we should add?

Moving to Seattle | Puget Sound Moving