Which Seattle neighborhood is over-hyped? (apartment complexes, home, buy)

[Natalie_W]

Originally Posted by thatguy950

Yep, add West Seattle as well. People love to gush about how wonderful it is, when in reality it's a total garbage dump with roads from the stone age and more used needles laying around on the street than actual residents

Interesting.

[strad]

none of them. Seattle has one of the fastest growing populations in the nation and the fastest growing property values, so people are clearly voting with their dollars and just about every neighborhood is hot.

[Natalie_W]

Originally Posted by Gardyloo

Depends on who's doing the hyping.

Like a lot of cities (Chicago included) people develop attitudes toward particular neighborhoods based on a variety of factors, not least among which are impressions that got fixed in the past and that might be at odds with current conditions. For example, Ballard gets a lot of promotion on this site - vibrant restaurant culture in particular leading the parade. But some of us regard Ballard with "old" eyes - an insular and very conservative neighborhood limited by its Scandinavian/Lutheran heritage, with a bunch of dive bars along Ballard Avenue occupied by high-line Alaska fishermen or wannabes, and a mediocre fish-and-chips shop across from the Locks with a reputation far better than its reality.

But that's 1970s thinking and not in keeping with Ballard's current highly gentrified reality. Which is preferable, the "old" and gritty Ballard, or the increasingly (to me) soulless Ballard? But those are common problems with every big city. I remember Chicago when walking around Printers' Row at night was pretty creepy; my western-suburbs (La Grange) ex-wife and I once walked at night from Union Station to a friend's place in Old Town and when we got there our host was stunned that we were undamaged.

So "over-hyped" is pretty personal and situational. Right now Ballard, Georgetown, and Fremont are the "hot" neighborhoods. Some years ago it was Wallingford, Capitol Hill (especially the "Pike-Pine Corridor") and Belltown that got all the buzz. Next up (if I were to guess) will be Beacon Hill and South Park in the city, and Burien and Renton in the south end. But that's just a guess.

Mediocre fish and chips is the worse! YES to everything that you wrote; you're very wise.

[Natalie_W]

Originally Posted by Flightoficarus87

I think the answer to this question will depend on the person, and what they like/dislike in a neighborhood.

I guess if I have to pick one, I'll say Belltown. Lots of things I actually like about it, and some fun things to do there - it just feels like it could be a bit livelier for being immediately adjacent to the downtown business district of a major city.

That's a fair assessment.

[cmswazey]

Originally Posted by thatguy950

Yep, add West Seattle as well. People love to gush about how wonderful it is, when in reality it's a total garbage dump with roads from the stone age and more used needles laying around on the street than actual residents

The potholes are bad, yes, but I assure you, most of W Seattle doesn't have needles lying around. W Seattle is a 6 mile long peninsula with multiple neighborhoods.

[cmswazey]

Originally Posted by Natalie_W

Interesting.

And incorrect.

[thatguy950]

Originally Posted by cmswazey

And incorrect.

Hardly, I've spent enough time over in the "wonderful and artistic" West Seattle area, it's a dump, plain and simple.

[GrahamS1953]

Ballard!! Bell Town

[jakebarnes]

Originally Posted by Natalie_W

Funny about Capitol Hill because that was my initial impression, like it's supposedly a hot area, but it's over or else never was.

I've lived on Capitol Hill for 21 years. It's changed (and I've gotten older, which changes my perceptions). My impression is that it went from artsy/gay/bohemian to trustafarians, Amazon and tech workers, foreign rich kids in expensive cars and partying meatheads on the weekends. So it's definitely not as "cool" as it used to be. That said, there is still a lot to recommend about the neighborhood: location, transit, lots of amenities, walkability, legacy arts spaces, shopping. It also costs a small fortune and is littered with druggies/bums. (That part hasn't changed in the 21 years, except to maybe get slightly worse). It's also a lot more crowded now as they have built larger buildings in the last 10-15 years.

Which other neighborhoods are overhyped? South Lake Union, Belltown, Columbia City, imo.

[Gardyloo]

Originally Posted by jakebarnes

I've lived on Capitol Hill for 21 years. It's changed (and I've gotten older, which changes my perceptions). My impression is that it went from artsy/gay/bohemian to trustafarians, Amazon and tech workers, foreign rich kids in expensive cars and partying meatheads on the weekends.

Amen.