Suburbs-North vs South (Seattle, Everett, Federal Way: appointed, neighborhoods, buying)

[trysometh]

What are the pros and cons of living in southern Seattle burbs vs northern? People usually choose based on their job location, but I will be able to work in either one. I'm not rich though so for me it's better where it's cheaper, and schools don't matter. Seems like south is cheaper? Or you can find affordable spots in the north too? From what I see, north is more rural, less diverse, less crowded, less crime. I don't mind the urbanity though, seems like there's more to do in the south.

So just trying to get the big picture. Thanks.

[mkarch]

It depends on where you draw the line(s). I don't consider Shoreline, Mountlake Terrace or Lynnwood Edmonds to be rural at all (Woodway maybe!). Certainly no more than Burien or Kent. Kent has some fairly rural areas when you get out by Covington. But you go that far out and it's highly debatable whether it's still considered a suburb.

[trysometh]

well, bothell, everett and snohomish get rural while still not far from DT Seattle

[mkarch]

Originally Posted by trysometh

well, bothell, everett and snohomish get rural while still not far from DT Seattle

Bothell might have some horses, but not a whole lot of agriculture going on there, definitely not much in the city limits. The other two aren't suburbs.

[Blondebaerde]

Originally Posted by trysometh

What are the pros and cons of living in southern Seattle burbs vs northern? People usually choose based on their job location, but I will be able to work in either one. I'm not rich though so for me it's better where it's cheaper, and schools don't matter. Seems like south is cheaper? Or you can find affordable spots in the north too? From what I see, north is more rural, less diverse, less crowded, less crime. I don't mind the urbanity though, seems like there's more to do in the south.

So just trying to get the big picture. Thanks.

Slice of the Big Picture(tm):

Near twenty years ago, north suburbs was chosen by me based on budget (almost always everyone's primary constraint). That being Mill Creek.

My works was Eastside, but could easily have been Seattle downtown, too. Amusingly, not once have I needed to commute downtown. Not what I would have guessed, way back when.

Thus, I thought "considering my budget, best to be equidistant from both." To do this again, same constraint, I'd choose Canyon Park area of Bothell. The eight miles from Mill Creek north side could be 20 minutes, by freeway (back in the day when it was 2 lanes) or even more on Bothell-Everett Highway.

I always liked the Bothell and Mill Creek area, and had a year and a half around town to explore before buying there. I personally like north end more than south end in terms of things to do (recreation) and traffic patterns, mostly the latter. Though traffic from the north end south was quite unpleasant, too. Appears that hasn't changed in the years since I moved Eastside.

If the data exists somewhere, and lord knows it should, may want to thoroughly study traffic patterns day by day, month by month, and year over year from some hypothetical Point A to Point B north or south end. If that data doesn't exist yet in some easily consumable format by someone halfway competent at data analysis, I'd be sorely disappointed. There must be gigabytes produced every day, enough to do regression analysis against other variables like weather, accident rates, and so much more that affects commute times.

[Cecilia M]

In general, the North end of Seattle and the north suburbs are safer and more expensive, whereas the South end of Seattle and the suburbs are considered more low-rent. There are tons of exceptions to these rules though; there are lots and lots of nice neighborhoods in the South end and there are definitely some crappy areas in the North end. If you are going to buy a home, you definitely want to talk to people with localized neighborhood knowledge and be skeptical of any deals that look too good to be true.

One big thing to consider in Seattle is the traffic. If you think you will need to regularly commute on the freeway, the South end traffic tends to be horrific during rush hours. Like LA-levels. I lived in Federal Way for three years and getting to work in downtown Seattle was horrible. Frequently parked on the freeway. There are buses, which is the only saving grace, and now there is a light rail, but the freeways are still super jammed all the time. North End traffic is not good either, but it isn't as bad as the South end from what I remember.

I moved up to the city of Seattle 8 years ago so maybe my info is outdated, but that was my experience. You can check the WA state traffic maps if you want to see real time traffic patterns.

[trysometh]

what makes traffic worse in the south?

[mkarch]

Originally Posted by trysometh

what makes traffic worse in the south?

There's a lot more housing south of downtown than there is to the north.

[trysometh]

Originally Posted by mkarch

There's a lot more housing south of downtown than there is to the north.

so its more populated huh
i wonder if JBLM is a factor

[trysometh]

whats the most affordable town in the north? everett?