Questions About Fremont/Queen Anne (Seattle, Pacific: real estate, condos, townhouses)

[migratingduck]

My husband and I are relocating to Seattle from Orange County, California for work. We fell in love with the downtown Fremont area on previous visits and are looking to buy a home or townhome nearby. It seems that most of the homes in Fremont, however, are in upper Fremont and are not that walkable to downtown Fremont so now we are also looking in northeast Queen Anne just on the other side of the Fremont Bridge. Does anyone know if there are pros and cons to living in Fremont vs. in Queen Anne given that we want to be able to walk to downtown Fremont? Yes, we do realize that we would need to wait for the bridge to go up now and then to let boats pass if we were in Queen Anne. I read somewhere that it only takes 5 minutes though. We would appreciate and insights from people who are familiar with the area.

[bigtrees]

Were your previous visits in the summer or winter?

Hope that you have visited here in the winter - everyone vists during the summer and falls in love with it.

[Ira500]

The area around Seattle Pacific University on queen Anne right across the Fremont Bridge is quite nice and might even be a little less expensive for housing than Fremont itself...The bridge doesn't go up all that often, and I agree that " Upper Fremont" is a bit far to the heart of downtown Fremont, but it's not really Fremont at all in my opinion if it's north of 46th St.. People who sell real estate have a tendency to rename neighborhoods when it suits them...but there is another little retail district in "mid Fremont" around 43rd when Paseo Caribbean restaurant and the Buckaroo Tavern and a terrific Italian restaurant called the Swingside are that is another nice part of Fremont worthy of consideration.

[migratingduck]

Originally Posted by bigtrees

Were your previous visits in the summer or winter?

Hope that you have visited here in the winter - everyone vists during the summer and falls in love with it.

I visited at the end of winter and in the middle of spring. Are you saying that downtown Fremont in particular is bad outside of summer or are you talking about Seattle more generally? My work is pretty specialized so I go wherever the jobs are. Other options included upstate New York (0 degrees on the day of my interview) and central Illinois. Seattle or bust!

[migratingduck]

Originally Posted by Ira500

The area around Seattle Pacific University on queen Anne right across the Fremont Bridge is quite nice and might even be a little less expensive for housing than Fremont itself...The bridge doesn't go up all that often, and I agree that " Upper Fremont" is a bit far to the heart of downtown Fremont, but it's not really Fremont at all in my opinion if it's north of 46th St.. People who sell real estate have a tendency to rename neighborhoods when it suits them...but there is another little retail district in "mid Fremont" around 43rd when Paseo Caribbean restaurant and the Buckaroo Tavern and a terrific Italian restaurant called the Swingside are that is another nice part of Fremont worthy of consideration.

This is helpful. We will also check out the mid-Fremont area in addition to the areas we are already looking at. Thanks!

[Jennibc]

It's funny to read "downtown Fremont" I've always just thought of it as Fremont and I am assuming what you mean by that is the business district. It seems like there are all sorts of townhouses/condos that have gone up in that area in the past decade and a half so I would be surprised if you cannot find something within walking distance. I suppose it comes down to what you consider walking distance.

I used to live at 43rd and Phinney and it only took me less than 10 minutes to get down to the old Red Door.

[jwb123]

Don't discount the bridge! Both that, and the Montlake Bridge are active all day long and can cause quite a back up with traffic.

[Ira500]

According to the Seattle Dept of Transportation, the Fremont Bridge rises an average of 35 times per day...I don't recall the risings usually delaying things by more than a few minutes, and, if you were commuting into downtown Seattle from Fremont via the 26 or 28 bus, they would be delayed by the bridge opening, meaning there would be an advantage in living on the Queen Anne side of the bridge.

[Prple]

I don't really remember the Freemont Bridge being too much of an issue when I lived in Queen Anne several years ago. (Not nearly as bad as the Montlake Bridge which seems to cause longer back ups . ) I agree with Ira regarding the area around SPU in Queen Anne. I would also add Magnolia as a suggestion...It has a cute downtown area and kinda feels like a small town. Also seems family friendly. All in all, I don't think you can really go wrong with North Seattle, there are lots of cool places to choose from! Good luck!