Should I start a surviving Seattle support group page? (best cities, sale)

[msvickybee]

I'm sorry to hear so many people are being lured into this horrible situation. Seattle right now is all the rave in the media. All the time I'm seeing articles in places like Forbes, "top 10 best cities to live in America." The reason Seattle gets ranked so high is because they're basing it on things like job opportunities, (which is only true if your in the tech industry) Schools? (No bigger myth in the world than Seattle has great schools) The articles always go on to sale people on the nature's beauty pics. They leave out the horrible traffic, high divorce rate, mental illness, astronomic cost of living ect.

I recently found out that a lot of the people making a killing in the tech industry decided to start investing in property. First they invested in San Francisco, the Southern California, and Seattle, Oregon. The result that the cost of living went through the roof (up 500 %). But now that these industries have their hooks into the housing markets on the west coast, they pay big money to Sell these areas to world- Seattle in particular, as this Liberal Utopian city in blogs, news articles ect.

Looking over the comments on this page, It looks like people are just worked over by their experience in Seattle; I know I was.

I'm a former Seattle resident. I lived there only because I had to, (my family is from there) but I got out and never looked back. Visiting from time to time, I see it as probably one of the most evil, depressing and miserable cities in America, it's just intolerable, and it gets worse everyday.

Please sound off if you like the idea of a official Seattle survivor support page. It would give people a place not only to sound off, but also a support network for the people still stuck there who hanging on by the skin of their teeth.

[tobester]

Originally Posted by msvickybee

The result that the cost of living went through the roof (up 500 %).

That seems a bit steep - a 5 times increase in COL. Over what time period?

[west seattle gal]

Left a year ago but return each month for a few days due to job, family and friends. I think Seattle is an amazing city, not at all depressing/evil, but I am glad to have a new hometown. Life for us did become somewhat miserable due to the daily commute (3 hrs in traffic/day) and high housing prices (we didn't buy in time). I loathe all the new condo/apt highrises. A lot of the small businesses we used to enjoy have been pushed out, and chains are more prevalent compared to a decade ago. A lot of the old funkiness is gone. The traffic significantly impacts quality of life. The schools are definitely challenged due to underfunding.

The good thing is very few people are truly stuck. Moving is not an easy process, but it can be done.

[OneTimeSEALover]

Maybe I'm taking it wrong, but "surviving" sounds like hyperbole. But I LOVE hyperbole. I'll try not to comment on anything since I'm reading in the wrong spirit.

[Canamlian]

Lol

[Haakon]

Originally Posted by msvickybee

I'm a former Seattle resident. I lived there only because I had to, (my family is from there) but I got out and never looked back.

You're doing a lot of 'looking back'. You should forget Seattle and move on instead of wasting your resources on any kind of Seattle support group.

[homesinseattle]

Wow Vicki, I love my life here, sorry you didn't. I'm headed up to ski Stevens Pass today, and going to have some provincial Vietnamese food tonight at a tasty place called the Green Leaf. Big "Year of the Rooster" Chinese New Year festivities in the International District next weekend. Hope you are happy, where you ended up.

[perigee]

Jesus, did Seattle kick your puppy or something? Glad that you moved, but you are still harboring unhealthy amounts of obsessive hate for a city. Just take a breath, be glad that you no longer live in a city you hate and move on with your life, which you have done physically but apparently not mentally.

Best of luck with life, OP.

[Ruth4Truth]

When did tech people start investing in property? I'm curious, because right after I left Seattle, suddenly RE and rents took a big leap. It was unprecedented. People who were renting had to move, some suddenly could no longer afford to live in the city. People selling made a killing, but it became harder for locals to buy. And prices have been spiraling since then, but there was no apparent explanation for the sudden jump up in prices around the mid-2000's.

As for schools, I don't know, except that I did teacher training/student teaching at what is considered Seattle's top public HS, and I was shocked. Shocked out of the profession altogether.

You can do whatever blog you want (were you thinking of setting up your own blog site, or did you mean--in C-D's blog section?), but this sub-forum has seen enough Seattle-bashing, so I wouldn't recommend doing anything like that right here.


Do you really think there would be demand for such a site, OP? I wasn't aware that there were that many unhappy families in Seattle. I can see how the commute would drive people crazy, but I hadn't heard the other complaints as a mass phenom.

[CrazyDonkey]

Seattle is a great city if you can afford to live in it. If not, living here will likely involve making significant trade-offs, such as a better school for a longer commute or a worse residence for a shorter commute, for instance. If not earning a minimum amount, you might have to accept a longer commute, a worse residence, and a worse school, just for the privilege of being here. Many people move here after a short summer visit to Downtown, the Center, Pioneer Square, and the Waterfront, without once stepping foot in, or coming anywhere near, any district where they could actually afford to live. That the reality of being here should often fall short of what are unrealistic expectations is hardly surprising.