Why won't tech jobs move to the burbs? (Seattle, Kent: renting, condos)

[agaace]

Any Seattle business owners here? I've been thinking lately why do all tech companies insist on being located in Seattle downtown with such terrible traffic and commute? Why won't they move out to where their employees live, to the burbs?

I get it, Seattle downtown is fun and a bit more prestigious (although I am personally of a different opinion), and it is like what 700,000 people. BUT It's now either the single 25 year olds living in tiny condos (definitely junior employees needed by tech companies) or retired people grandfathered to their houses, and very little in between. Everyone else who has a family is usually in the burbs with this housing market now. If, for example, you look at the Renton/Kent/Auburn area alone - together that is some 300,000 people. These are the experienced, senior employees these companies need. Is it really such an insignificant talent pool that these people can be completely ignored? Especially that I can imagine running a company down south would be much cheaper (slightly lower wages and much cheaper property rent). So.. why? Why does everyone insist on being downtown Seattle? After all, a lot of great companies started out suburbs back in the day, and still turned out successful without Seattle presence.

Any Seattle downtown tech business owners who could answer this question?

[Walch1007]

Originally Posted by agaace

Any Seattle business owners here? I've been thinking lately why do all tech companies insist on being located in Seattle downtown with such terrible traffic and commute? Why won't they move out to where their employees live, to the burbs?

I get it, Seattle downtown is fun and a bit more prestigious (although I am personally of a different opinion), and it is like what 700,000 people. BUT It's now either the single 25 year olds living in tiny condos (definitely junior employees needed by tech companies) or retired people grandfathered to their houses, and very little in between. Everyone else who has a family is usually in the burbs with this housing market now. If, for example, you look at the Renton/Kent/Auburn area alone - together that is some 300,000 people. These are the experienced, senior employees these companies need. Is it really such an insignificant talent pool that these people can be completely ignored? Especially that I can imagine running a company down south would be much cheaper (slightly lower wages and much cheaper property rent). So.. why? Why does everyone insist on being downtown Seattle? After all, a lot of great companies started out suburbs back in the day, and still turned out successful without Seattle presence.

Any Seattle downtown tech business owners who could answer this question?

Sorry, but experienced, senior tech employees don't live in Renton/Kent/Auburn.

They might live in Issaquah, Redmond, Sammamish, Shoreline, etc. If all the major companies moved to these places, it would just completely ruin the suburb feel of the area and inflate prices, totally defeating the purpose of people being there in the first place.

It's pretty much self-explanatory why they don't move to the burbs. It wouldn't be the burbs anymore.

Also, Google is in Kirkland, Costco is in Issaquah, and Microsoft is in Redmond so they are already in the burbs.

[CrazyDonkey]

Originally Posted by agaace

BUT It's now either the single 25 year olds living in tiny condos (definitely junior employees needed by tech companies) or retired people grandfathered to their houses, and very little in between. Everyone else who has a family is usually in the burbs with this housing market now.

Have you spent much time in the City lately? Strollers are everywhere in Ballard, Wallingford, Green Lake, etc. Lots of young families. For your information, traffic is actually worse on the Eastside than in Seattle, due to a much less robust street grid.

[Hemlock140]

Originally Posted by Walch1007

Sorry, but experienced, senior tech employees don't live in Renton/Kent/Auburn.

They might live in Issaquah, Redmond, Sammamish, Shoreline, etc. If all the major companies moved to these places, it would just completely ruin the suburb feel of the area and inflate prices, totally defeating the purpose of people being there in the first place.

It's pretty much self-explanatory why they don't move to the burbs. It wouldn't be the burbs anymore.

Also, Google is in Kirkland, Costco is in Issaquah, and Microsoft is in Redmond so they are already in the burbs.

Yes, in fact you can go into any Sammamish school classroom and ask for a show of hands for those whose parents work at MS and 2/3 will go up, most of the rest will be Amazon and Boeing.

The Eastside also has Expedia, who will be moving to Seattle, Siemens, and a few hundred other smaller companies.

[GatsbyGatz]

What local suburban city could supply enough office space or office development, as well as additional housing for all of the workers that would take up that space, that would meet Amazon's current demand without completely changing that suburb into an urbanized, dense city?

[Walch1007]

Originally Posted by CrazyDonkey

Have you spent much time in the City lately? Strollers are everywhere in Ballard, Wallingford, Green Lake, etc. Lots of young families. For your information, traffic is actually worse on the Eastside than in Seattle, due to a much less robust street grid.

This is incorrect.

There are pockets where traffic is bad:
-Issaquah during rush hour due to high density housing and only a couple roads in/out into most neighborhoods.
-405

It's really nothing compared to Seattle.

[agaace]

Originally Posted by Walch1007

Sorry, but experienced, senior tech employees don't live in Renton/Kent/Auburn.

They might live in Issaquah, Redmond, Sammamish, Shoreline, etc.

They all live all over the place. I've worked with tech people for many years, so I know where my coworkers live. Plus I used south just as an example. All the areas you mentioned are still burbs.

Originally Posted by Walch1007

Also, Google is in Kirkland, Costco is in Issaquah, and Microsoft is in Redmond so they are already in the burbs.

That's 2 companies, and sorry, I wouldn't consider Costco "tech". There's hundreds of small and medium, strictly tech companies in Seattle and only a handful in the burbs. The Microsoft example, you gave is what I mentioned: the startups of the '80s were in the burbs. And they turned out fine. But now everyone just must be crammed in downtown, which is quite ironic, given that now we actually have the technology to work remotely and distribute workforce compared to the '80s.

Originally Posted by Walch1007

It's pretty much self-explanatory why they don't move to the burbs. It wouldn't be the burbs anymore.

I specifically asked business owners about their perspective.. I doubt anyone makes business decisions based on whether any neighborhood will have the same "feel" to it.

[DevanXL]

Originally Posted by Walch1007

Sorry, but experienced, senior tech employees don't live in Renton/Kent/Auburn.

Obviously that is not entirely true. Alot live south of the city especially to build homes for a lower cost but of course the Eastside definitely has more.

[DevanXL]

Originally Posted by agaace

Any Seattle business owners here? I've been thinking lately why do all tech companies insist on being located in Seattle downtown with such terrible traffic and commute? Why won't they move out to where their employees live, to the burbs?

I get it, Seattle downtown is fun and a bit more prestigious (although I am personally of a different opinion), and it is like what 700,000 people. BUT It's now either the single 25 year olds living in tiny condos (definitely junior employees needed by tech companies) or retired people grandfathered to their houses, and very little in between. Everyone else who has a family is usually in the burbs with this housing market now. If, for example, you look at the Renton/Kent/Auburn area alone - together that is some 300,000 people. These are the experienced, senior employees these companies need. Is it really such an insignificant talent pool that these people can be completely ignored? Especially that I can imagine running a company down south would be much cheaper (slightly lower wages and much cheaper property rent). So.. why? Why does everyone insist on being downtown Seattle? After all, a lot of great companies started out suburbs back in the day, and still turned out successful without Seattle presence.

Any Seattle downtown tech business owners who could answer this question?

As for your post, companies are simply locating themselves in the most attractive location. Downtown is booming and many of these Tech companies understand that's were people want to go. Companies are hiring top talent from all over the globe, and selling them on Downtown Seattle is alot easier then selling them on a place in Auburn. If anything, this puts pressure on the region to address all these transit problems faster.

[agaace]

Originally Posted by CrazyDonkey

Have you spent much time in the City lately? Strollers are everywhere in Ballard, Wallingford, Green Lake, etc. Lots of young families.

Just happens I just moved out of Green Lake. Haven't seen all the strollers you're talking about, unless you mean touristy places like the actual lake trail. I also just happened to have a child and the young families from my Ballard hospital who were in the pregnancy group with me were:
- either renting a tiny house
- have been grandfathered in the neighborhood by their family (parents etc)
- half of the group was considering moving out (like I did) to afford becoming homeowners
- all of them struggling with daycare (the mystical thing that we're told exists in Seattle but you can't tell unless you wait 2 years in a waiting list for a privilege of paying up more than your mortgage)

A lot of Green Lake families who were my neighbors on my street moved out as I was moving out. Their homes flipped and sold for $1,000,000, or torn and lots divided in half. My moving out truck had to compete for parking space with construction trucks busy flipping those homes on a quiet Green Lake street.

So my question is: have YOU spent much time in the city lately as someone who is trying to grow a family?

Originally Posted by CrazyDonkey

For your information, traffic is actually worse on the Eastside than in Seattle, due to a much less robust street grid.

For your information, I've lived eastside. I've lived downtown. I've lived south. I've commuted within Seattle, I've commuted to/from Seattle. What you're saying is simply not true. Example: Mercer street. Plus getting in/out Seattle on I-5. Enough said.