college life in seattle (apartments, crime, house)

[jessemh431]

i want to go to university of washington and was wondering what people knew about it.

also, i want to live off campus. where are some safe areas that are not too expensive that are somewhat near the campus. i'm from l.a. so prices don't need to be too low-i can handle higher prices. i want an area with a fun atmposphere to it and that i would feel safe to walk down to the local store in.

is the area of the campus a good are? is there much do around there.

any help on this would be great

[AzDreamer]

My son lives over there and my other son is moving there this summer so we were talking about this just last week. The area south of NE 45th St , west of the campus and east of I-5 is the worst. The buildings are older, darker, more run down, less parking, more drug activity. You want to try to stay above NE 50th St, and away from the frats where there are always people looking for trouble. Also, stay away from University Ave as far north as 55th St.

[jessemh431]

thank you. that is very helpful

[jessemh431]

so near green lake is a good area?

[CityGirl72]

I live in Green lake, and yes it's nice area - but I wouldn't say it's where the college kids are.

[GoDawgs06]

Originally Posted by jessemh431

i want to go to university of washington and was wondering what people knew about it.

also, i want to live off campus. where are some safe areas that are not too expensive that are somewhat near the campus. i'm from l.a. so prices don't need to be too low-i can handle higher prices. i want an area with a fun atmposphere to it and that i would feel safe to walk down to the local store in.

is the area of the campus a good are? is there much do around there.

any help on this would be great

I just graduated from UW last quarter, and spent all 4.5 years around the area. While I recommend living on campus your first year, if you choose not to, there are not many places that are bad. There isn't an area that I wouldn't live in any where near campus. Most people that occupy the apartments in the area are also college students.

There are a few sanctioned apartments offered solely to UW students. If you do not wish to live in the dorms, but would still like to meet new people, this would be a good idea.

https://hfs.washington.edu/student_housing/single_student_apartments.aspx (broken link)

That site lists the apartments.

Green lake is nice, but it is much to far to walk to class each day. Parking is very expensive, so plan on riding the bus if you do live that far away (UW offers free bus passes to every student).

Honestly anywhere within a 20 block radius of campus will be safe, and composed mostly of UW students. Assuming you have already been accepted, you can email the HFS and they will assist you on your choice: hfsinfo@u.washington.edu

Take care and enjoy your time at UW!

[redrum]

I agree that the University district is a fairly safe place as far as personal safety goes, though it does have a problem with property crime (theft, vandalism, etc). But as others have said, I would definitely avoid the fraternity/sorority area east of 15th Ave and north of 45th street, unless you are into the raucous, noisy house party scene.

Some decent areas bordering the U-District include Wallingford/Fremont (west of the U-District), Ravenna (slightly north of the U-District). Both areas have easy bus access to the University.

You could also try Capitol Hill, which is south of the U-District and near downtown. It's pretty much the center of the hip/alternative/counter-culture/gay scene in Seattle.

[qwangbang]

Originally Posted by GoDawgs06

Green lake is nice, but it is much to far to walk to class each day. Parking is very expensive, so plan on riding the bus if you do live that far away (UW offers free bus passes to every student).

Actually it's $42 per quarter that's added on your tuition bill. If you don't want the bus pass, they wont charge you $42

[qwangbang]

I've been at the UW for 3 years and I'm graduating in 2 weeks, here's my take (pretty much the same as the other ones):

The dorms will give you a small social life, but it's very expensive for what you pay. You live in a small room with another person, share a restroom with 50+ people (or 8 people if you live in a "cluster"), depending on which dorm. They require you to buy meal plans (starting at $300 per quarter) in which, is something like: "put money into your meal account that can only be used in UW dorms/cafeterias that allow you to buy dorm quality (think school lunch) expensive dinners (around $6 - $9 for a dinner)". So they're requiring you to buy their poor quality food and overcharging you for it if you live in the dorms.

I moved out of the dorms after my first quarter to live in an apartment with 2 other friends, and it was a very good deal. You get your own room for 3/4 of the prices in the dorms.

As far as the location of living, I'd recommend that you factor in what you'll be studying at UW to decide on where to live. If you're going into liberal arts where the work load tends to be lighter than health/sciences/engineering, it should be fine living far away from campus like Green Lake where you have to depend on the bus. Health/sciences/engineering require much more time in labs, library, group project meetings, so living on campus or close to campus will be much more convenient (and your grades will probably reflect).
I'm speaking from a computer engineering stand point because I find myself doing projects/labs at school in which I have to stay late, and when I get out (around midnight) from the labs, I appreciate the fact that I live within walking distance from campus.

Best of luck!

[nwthebest]

There aren't any bad neighborhoods around the campus, and the main drag 'The Ave' is very colorful multicultural strip. the UW, while the campus itself isnt all that big (compared to smaller schools like UCLA), its has a ginormous enrollment. Youll pretty much find UW students everywhere in seattle.