kirkland, wa (Seattle, Bellevue, Renton: sales, apartments, rent)

[arp2006]

how is the kirkland area as far as crime, schools, and shopping? i like the area but my friend told me that most areas in the seattle metro area are really pricey? but i want to be in a medium size town within close proximity to the city.

thanks

[Andy]

Kirkland is nice. Nice schools, nice shopping, and your friend is right; very pricey. It is tough to get anything on that side of town for under $400,000. The Eastside is the most expensive area of the metro. For more affordability, go north into Snohomish County or Renton and south.

[flyingmariner]

We live a little to the north in Totem Lake but still considered K'land.
Been looking to buy here for several months and there are pockets that are beginning to drop below the 400's It's now possible to buy a half decent rambler for 350......................albeit we are going to wait it out longer because I can't see even those houses staying up in price in spite of all the recent hype. Sales are up, yeah sure, but prices are down. Once summer is over it will be back to doom and gloom.

Kirkland is a nicer area and a lot more affordable than Bellevue. Relatively crime free and 20 mins away from d'town Seattle.

To me being close to airports is important..............40 mins to Seatac (on a good traffic day)

[seattlenextyear]

Shopping: I end up going to Redmond Town Center for clothes shopping (20 min drive). There's also a Target in another part of Redmond, as well as one in Woodinville. There's no mall in Kirkland, although there are some cute boutique-y stores downtown. If you're into high end Nordstroms mall- type shopping, Bellevue isn't far away (15-20 min drive, depending). As far as grocery stores, Kirkland has you covered: Fred Meyer, Albertsons, Safeway, QFC, and a PCC co-op.

Are you renting or buying? Rents are affordable. House prices varies greatly: its cheaper up where flyingmariner and I live, but you're going to have to pay a million for a house in the Market neighborhood.

[ElektroDragon]

Originally Posted by seattlenextyear

Shopping: I end up going to Redmond Town Center for clothes shopping (20 min drive). There's also a Target in another part of Redmond, as well as one in Woodinville. There's no mall in Kirkland, although there are some cute boutique-y stores downtown. If you're into high end Nordstroms mall- type shopping, Bellevue isn't far away (15-20 min drive, depending). As far as grocery stores, Kirkland has you covered: Fred Meyer, Albertsons, Safeway, QFC, and a PCC co-op.

Are you renting or buying? Rents are affordable. House prices varies greatly: its cheaper up where flyingmariner and I live, but you're going to have to pay a million for a house in the Market neighborhood.

Rents in Kirkland are affordable? Excuse me? I'm paying $1800 for a 2 bedroom apartment and that's in Juanita, not even in Kirkland proper!

My main beef with Kirkland is that you either live in downtown Kirkland and don't have a car (because there is no place to really park or keep it) or you live in places like Juanita and can never really visit all the nice shops and parks in downtown Kirkland because there is hardly any parking and its way too far to walk. I think Redmond is a bit better in that regard, but homes are even more expensive than Kirkland, in general.

Partly why I'm moving Bothell. Cheaper (same house is $100K less) with more convenient shopping (7 minutes to Alderwood instead of 20 to Redmond TC or Bellevue) and freeway access to both I405 AND I5 ...and no need to worry about bridge traffic. You just lose some of that small town community feel.. and the waterfront.

[seattlenextyear]

But you're in Juanita Village, which is a rip-off. We're paying less than you for 3 bedrooms. I was just saying that renting in Kirkland in a nice neighborhood generally is easier than buying in one.

[ElektroDragon]

Originally Posted by seattlenextyear

But you're in Juanita Village, which is a rip-off. We're paying less than you for 3 bedrooms.

Good thing I'm only dealing with it another month.

[Redline]

Originally Posted by ElektroDragon

Rents in Kirkland are affordable? Excuse me? I'm paying $1800 for a 2 bedroom apartment and that's in Juanita, not even in Kirkland proper!

My main beef with Kirkland is that you either live in downtown Kirkland and don't have a car (because there is no place to really park or keep it) or you live in places like Juanita and can never really visit all the nice shops and parks in downtown Kirkland because there is hardly any parking and its way too far to walk. I think Redmond is a bit better in that regard, but homes are even more expensive than Kirkland, in general.

Partly why I'm moving Bothell. Cheaper (same house is $100K less) with more convenient shopping (7 minutes to Alderwood instead of 20 to Redmond TC or Bellevue) and freeway access to both I405 AND I5 ...and no need to worry about bridge traffic. You just lose some of that small town community feel.. and the waterfront.

There's a TON of parking in downtown Kirkland if you're just visiting and we go quite often since we live in the Rose Hill area. Are you only looking at the 2 main parking lots? There is a lot of free street parking and there's also parking in the library. We've never had to circle around to find parking. Only place where parking can be tough are at those 2 main parking lots I mentioned above but even there I can usually find a spot without having to circle around. The parking security is quick to issue tickets though so you have to be on your toes!

If you live in downtown Kirkland, however, you'll need to buy/rent a parking spot.

[Redline]

Originally Posted by ElektroDragon

Good thing I'm only dealing with it another month.

Are you at the Avalon?

[ElektroDragon]

Originally Posted by Redline

Are you at the Avalon?

Yes. Although, to be honest, my base rent is $1650. I just have to pay extra for the pets and extra storage. If you're used to city living and like the idea of "luxury apartments" with air conditioned lobbies and huge exercise rooms and coming out of the elevator into a sushi joint... and walking to the lakefront, it's really not that bad.

Howver, since I really had no particular reason to be in Kirkland when I moved here, I wish I had picked one of the apartments up in Issaquah Highlands. Rather have a mountain view than a lake view.