thoughts for coming back with the family /job in Renton (Maple Valley: to rent, mortgage)

[missiona]

I am considering accepting a position in Renton (just of 405 -corner of SW Grady Way and E Valley Rd). I grew up on the Olympic Peninsula but moved to the East Coast many years ago. In-laws live in SW Washington (Greys River) and my family is on Oregon Coast.

We have two high-school age daughters. Suggestions on a place to live with a decent commute? (I currently do an 1-1.5 hours each way here in DC) Would like to be 30 minutes or less, BUT still live in affordable housing (mortgage payment/taxes under 2K) Was looking at maybe Maple Valley or Ravensdale? Mapquest doesn't do a lot to tell you how many other cars are on the road and whether 19 miles is 1.5 hours like it is where I currently live.

Thoughts/suggestions on a convenient location? Girls will be out of the house in 2 years, but still want a nice, quiet neighborhood, more rural than suburban, decent schools (I do not believe that test scores are the be all for judging a school) My daughters currently attend a high school with 2500 kids. I had 500 in my school. I'd like them to finish in a bigger place than I did, but about half the size they currently attend.

We currently live in pretty diverse neighborhood, but everyone has a job, we all just have no family life or sense of community.

Don't want to do the move back home if it isn't going to improve the quality of life.

[Ira500]

Maple Valley does have good schools. So does Issaquah, which is 20 ish minutes from Renton via the back roads. Also, some of Renton and some of Newcastle is in the Issaquah School District. Newcastle has some great hiking trails.
Ravensdale is a lot more rural than urban. Really rural. It's retail consists of the store. One store.

[texastrigirl]

I would also recommend Maple Valley given your requirements. Good schools, nice houses, more affordable, not too far from Issaquah for retail, etc. Close to great hiking and skiing. Maybe not a half hour commute but certainly not much more than that and less than you are doing now.

[LongDawson]

Liberty High school is excellent. Look into the area all around that school. Lots of houses to rent for $1200-$1600, stick to that at first. I am not sure what the formula is for $2k or less on a mortgage. You might need to find a house for $200k to reach that, which is possible but you'll need to hunt around for that if you want to be in the Liberty HS area, most homes are $250k+ such as this:

17305 SE 133rd St, Renton, WA 98059 | MLS# 29137951

That would be 10-15 min commute. Give yourself a break and quit commuting so much. Maple Valley is even too far. Good luck.