Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Washington > Seattle area
 [Register]
Seattle area Seattle and King County Suburbs
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 06-09-2016, 01:24 PM
 
93 posts, read 295,690 times
Reputation: 78

Advertisements

Hello. Thanks for taking the time to read my thread and help me out! certainly appreciate everyone's feedback.

so I am going to accept an offer for a new job in Seattle. I will be making 75k/year (before taxes). I have a few questions about places/neighborhoods I should target when I move there. I have a pretty small monthly car payment (car+ insurance = 300 / month). I will not have cable TV. My phone is also only $50/month. I am 30 years old, single. Pretty outdoorsy/typical Seattle lifestyle. grew up in the midwest and moving from colorado. I don't really spend money too liberally, I tend to spend somewhat frugally. So I would prefer to look for a place on the higher end of my "affordability" window. by the way - how much would you recommend I spend on rent?

I will be working in the Kent area to start. I have heard rumblings that in about 3-5 years, the office will be moving to the Bellevue area. But I am not too concerned with that for now, as I will be renting (and commuting to Kent) for the first year, at minimum.

I have a dog, which I will need to let out and feed during my lunch breaks. So living within a 30 minute commute (at most) to work is mandatory. I would also like to be able to take the light rail or public transportation to downtown seattle, in about an hour (if possible) or less.

Is this feasible? What kinds of commutes can I expect going from the south seattle area to Kent, WA? Any areas I should really look into? I was thinking the North Beacon Hill, Mt Baker, Rainier Vista, Columbia City areas seem to be right in the area I am comfortable with in terms of distance. An easy commute to work, yet right off the light rail to (hopefully) get into the downtown Seattle area in less than an hour. Can anyone tell me more about these areas? Which areas are more walkable (I like to walk alot)? What are the pros and cons of each area? Maybe there's an area i should look into that I don't know about?

any other tips or general advice is certainly welcomed and appreciated! Sorry for invading your space, (nobody likes people contributing to rising rent prices) but I simply got an offer I couldn't refuse.

Thanks again! I'll be checking in every so often.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 06-09-2016, 02:52 PM
 
Location: Seattle
8,171 posts, read 8,301,458 times
Reputation: 5991
If you can afford Columbia City, it would be the most vibrant, walkable area with a reasonable commute to your new work. Wonderful Seward Park is closeby.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-09-2016, 03:10 PM
 
1,630 posts, read 3,884,269 times
Reputation: 1116
The only tricky part to this scenario is the "need to let out and feed during my lunch breaks" - how long a lunch break do you get? With a 30 minute commute, this round trip could take 60-90 minutes and would never be guaranteed - there's traffic, road repairs, ... that could always throw a snag in your plan.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-09-2016, 03:26 PM
 
Location: Independent Republic of Ballard
8,071 posts, read 8,365,584 times
Reputation: 6233
Live in Kent. Sounder commuter rail will take you into Seattle in about a half hour.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-09-2016, 03:30 PM
 
93 posts, read 295,690 times
Reputation: 78
Quote:
Originally Posted by CrazyDonkey View Post
Live in Kent. Sounder commuter rail will take you into Seattle in about a half hour.
Is that all? Wow, that is far quicker than I realized. Thanks!
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-09-2016, 04:01 PM
 
1,630 posts, read 3,884,269 times
Reputation: 1116
Quote:
Originally Posted by CrazyDonkey View Post
Live in Kent. Sounder commuter rail will take you into Seattle in about a half hour.
If OP lived in Kent where his job is, there would be no need for commuter rail.

OP: Realize this is a "commuter" rail - tied to commuter times ... emphasis on northbound in morning, southbound in afternoon - no weekend or night service.

Last edited by tobester; 06-09-2016 at 04:09 PM..
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-09-2016, 04:12 PM
 
93 posts, read 295,690 times
Reputation: 78
Gotcha on the commuter times, I wasn't aware of that.

And yeah, it doesn't sound like that would help since I will be commuting to work via automobile, and only really using the sounder to go north on weekends and evenings to get into the city.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-09-2016, 04:19 PM
 
Location: Portal to the Pacific
8,736 posts, read 8,669,736 times
Reputation: 13007
I think hiring a dog walker would make more sense rather than having to come home just to let it out and then go back to work.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-09-2016, 05:49 PM
 
Location: Seattle
8,171 posts, read 8,301,458 times
Reputation: 5991
Kent has a very different vibe than Columbia City. Maybe visit the two first.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 06-09-2016, 05:56 PM
 
Location: Independent Republic of Ballard
8,071 posts, read 8,365,584 times
Reputation: 6233
Quote:
Originally Posted by tobester View Post
If OP lived in Kent where his job is, there would be no need for commuter rail.

OP: Realize this is a "commuter" rail - tied to commuter times ... emphasis on northbound in morning, southbound in afternoon - no weekend or night service.
While Sounder does not run on weekends, Amtrak runs from its Tukwila station, which is not far from Kent. Both stations have free parking.

Sounder has two afternoon "reverse" trips, which leave Kent at 5:02 and 5:32, arriving in Seattle at 5:28 and 5:58. He'd need to catch a bus back (about 50 minutes). There are also two morning reverse trips, leaving Kent at 6:34am and 7:09am, that he could take to Auburn, Sumner, Puyallup, and Tacoma.

Sounder also runs trains for many Seahawks, Mariners, and Sounders games, to and back.

If he wants to run home at lunch to feed his dog, living and working in Kent is quite doable.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Washington > Seattle area

All times are GMT -6. The time now is 03:07 AM.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top