Deer Park Wa. Five things you wish you knew (Spokane: 2014, to live)

[NGeroux]

My husband and I are planning on retiring in the Deer Park Washington area. What are five things you wish you knew before moving North of Spokane?

[PS90]

Originally Posted by NGeroux

My husband and I are planning on retiring in the Deer Park Washington area. What are five things you wish you knew before moving North of Spokane?

Well, I only know one thing about Deer Park - it's the coldest place in NE WA on the 395 corridor. Spokane is warmer, and once you get north of Deer Park, it gets warmer again. Other than that, it's a pretty decent place.

[WendyK]

Deer Park actually covers a large area - parts of it are in Spokane County, part in Stevens County and the northern most section extends into Pend Oreille county. If you are going to be in the actual incorporated town of Deer Park, you should be happy with the services & shopping that's available. I think it's a very quaint town with some gorgeous scenery in the outlying parts.

[NGeroux]

Thank you both for the information. We were in the area in July 2014 (currently live in Texas) mapping a large grid of what sections we'd like to live. I was just curious about things like electric for heating vs. gas (seems expensive), problems with satellite/cell phone reception, if property/pets need to be "protected" from wild animals (bears?), if any trees other than pines grow there, etc.

[PS90]

Originally Posted by NGeroux

Thank you both for the information. We were in the area in July 2014 (currently live in Texas) mapping a large grid of what sections we'd like to live. I was just curious about things like electric for heating vs. gas (seems expensive), problems with satellite/cell phone reception, if property/pets need to be "protected" from wild animals (bears?), if any trees other than pines grow there, etc.

Okay, let's see if I can answer those things:

1) Power and gas in Deer Park are both handled by a company called Avista. Electricity is relatively cheap in the inland Northwest (although Avista is more expensive than other areas in the central part of the state). Electric rates are $0.07 to $0.08 per KwH, and gas rates are about $0.82 per "therm". We are in the process of building a house, and personally, I find the cost and convenience of electric to be worth it vs. the hassle of installing gas lines or chopping wood, etc.

2) I can't say about specific outlying areas of Deer Park, but as far as I know, the satellite reception is just fine in the entire area, and my cell phone always works fine as I have driven through town.

3) There certainly are bear, cougar, and especially coyotes in the area. If you have cats, I would strongly recommend that you bring them inside at night.

4) Not sure what you mean about trees growing in the area. There are plenty of pines, but there are tons of other conifers growing naturally there as well - firs, tamarack, cedar, etc. If you are asking about domestic, broadleaf trees, then plenty of people have a huge variety of trees on their properties - weeping willows, elms, fruit trees, etc, etc. You won't be extremely successful growing tropical fruit trees or palm trees, but generally most other trees grow very well here.