Questions about Spokane (Seattle, South Hill, Wenatchee: real estate, houses, rent)

[WendyK]

Dan - I just did a search for Spokane pictures and found this website that shows lots of different architectural styles http://sondahl.com/spokane.html. It has some Riverfront and Manito park pictures, but also the malls and downtown buildings.
I ususually have my camera with me, so I'll try to take some candid shots of different areas and get them posted on here. I'll take some pics of Spokane teenagers, too! YOu do see some with the baggy pants but mostly just jeans & sweatshirts. Some are into the goth/emo look, lots of piercings, tattoos and all that...but I think that's pretty typical of the younger generation. I'm a mom with 3 teens that aren't very scary looking and I know lots of their friends who are just regular, good kids.

[kseo]

You will see a lot of white trash, know question about that!
Spokane is more expensive than Tacoma now...
I viewed all the homes in Spokane and feel the homes are
over-valued. For the job market there you will realize homes
are 30% over priced. I know realtors will tell you different,
but again real estate agents only give information that
benefits them. They are only looking out for themselves.

[Spokanian]

Originally Posted by mes3fils

Spokanian,
Can you be more specific about this quote...'While houses are expensive here...' What is your definition of expensive?

We are coming to Spokane in April, are we going to leave there with a 'bad' taste in our mouth about moving to the area? Some of your posts give some real pessimistic views of the area.

Do the teens walk around town/school there with their shorts hanging down to their knees and their boxers hanging way out? Just curious as thats what is prevalent here.

Spokanian here...

Expensive - even the smaller ones (1000 sq ft) go for 150k and up. Most of the nice homes on SH are in 300-500k price range. Finding one at below 125k is pretty much impossible... But there are a few condos at that price or lower...

Yes, there are lots of punks here, mostly around schools. But... do you know any place where there are none?

As for being pessimistic... I just don't like this town. Not that I hate it, but I just find nothing to like it for. I would rate it at 5/10. No bad, not good. I know it all depends on how much you take from what you're given, but for me this town just doesn't look or feel good.

Just to develop someone's remark here, it's a small town without a typical small town charm and comfort, it's a city without most of the city benefits.

As I said, South Hill is one part of the town where you'll like to live. There are a few tiny parks in there that are kinda ok for small walks. But as someone mentioned no alleys for long walks or for bycicle rides in general, it's all car town. So if you're an evening walk person... there is very little chance that you find a home in the area for walks or safe rides (unless you end up in the heart of South Hill - it's like somebody built homes right in the middle of woods).
Northern part of the town... well, you better be in your car when you're there. White trash abounds. Sure there might be some scattered ok blocks here as people say (I haven't seen one though) and they're most likely mostly on the outskirts of the town, but overall, just cruising in that part of the town doesn't feel good at all. Unfortunately all the major shops are there (around Division st). Somebody asked about Corbin Park - been there, it looked like white trash area too.

Most of the big hospitals are next to I-90 on the 3rd ave (I think) - right where the crime goes red.

I would rate:

South Hill - 8/10 (very beautiful, but has very little to offer in turns of outdoor activities). Eastern parts (to the east from Ray st) are not so upscale, but still way better than anything north has to offer.

Downtown - 1/10. A slum with few sterile dysfunctional streets for all kinds of hicks and drug addicts.

North town - 3/10. White trash. Very little trees. Some distant parts are closer to 5/10.

Here are some pics for those who requested. One shows typical North Part neighborhood/scenery, the other one show what you typically see on South Hill. Hopefully they will give you some idea...

But in general, if you have an option of going to some other place to live - I would recommend doing so.

[Dan6200alt]

Spokanian, thanks for your honest opinions and photos. Good food for thought on Spokane. As a frame of reference, where do you live/have lived? I'm curious what your take on other similarly sized places that have impressed you more than Spokane and why. I know Spokane is no Seattle or SF or even Denver, far from it. But, fact is South Hill is an incredible bargain compared to anything even similar in Seattle or even Denver. The geography is still great (lakes, mountains, etc- although not quite Seattle or Denver again), has some good schools, significantly smaller so less commuting, so its not like settling for Tulsa, Oklahoma (no disrespect to Tulsa, but I think you know what I mean).

Your thoughts on other places to live?

[WendyK]

Nice closer in to downtown northside neighborhoods include Audubon Park/Downriver area, Garland district, and the areas around Shadle HS. These are on the west side of Division. Spokanian is correct that some of the areas closest to downtown on the north side,especially the east side are kind of trashy. If you travel farther north - north of Francis, there are good neighborhoods in the Country Homes area, Indian Trail and Pacific Park off of Nine Mile Rd. The Centennial Trail begins (or ends) in Nine Mile Falls on the NW side of Spokane and follows the river all the way to Cd'A Idaho. This is about 40 miles of varied terrain trail for walking, running, biking, etc. Riverside Park is also on the North and west sides of Spokane County and has huge amounts of trails for walking & hiking, also canoeing in the Little Spokane River. There are plenty of trees on the north side. Mt. Spokane is on the north side but much father east. THere are gorgeous areas in the Peone Prairie/Greenbluff areas on the NE side of Spokane County going out towards Mt. Spokane (the closest ski resort). The Greenbluff area is known for orchards (apples, peaches, plums, grapes, etc.)
There are also great golf courses all over Spokane County that take advantage of the territory. Inexpensive greens fees, too.

Today is incredibly foggy and grey. Temp is about 38. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

[Spokanian]

Originally Posted by Dan6200alt

Spokanian, thanks for your honest opinions and photos. Good food for thought on Spokane. As a frame of reference, where do you live/have lived? I'm curious what your take on other similarly sized places that have impressed you more than Spokane and why. I know Spokane is no Seattle or SF or even Denver, far from it. But, fact is South Hill is an incredible bargain compared to anything even similar in Seattle or even Denver. The geography is still great (lakes, mountains, etc- although not quite Seattle or Denver again), has some good schools, significantly smaller so less commuting, so its not like settling for Tulsa, Oklahoma (no disrespect to Tulsa, but I think you know what I mean).

Your thoughts on other places to live?

The most important thing is that if you feel it is the right place for you to live - then do not hesitate, come over here and see for yourself if it's what you picture it to be. People's opinions vary, some people like their places, some don't. I came here from NYC, so I can't be of much reference as how good or bad Spokane is compared to the other similar sized towns, sorry. I hope there are other people here who can give you more information on that.

[Michiganmom]

This has been a very informative thread. I too, am also investigating Spokane as my husband has just gotten a good job offer there. For now he will be telecommuting and flying out for a few weeks at a time, but in the summer he may have to make a choice of living there or finding another job.

Winters I can handle, we get lots of snow and grey days here. I was under the original impression though that Spokane had a lot more sunny days compared to Seattle because of the mountains intercepting the clouds/rain. Do you get much accumulation of snow? My kids love to play in the snow. We usually get about 6-12 inches at a time.

My main concern though is the schools. I have a five year old and a two year old. My son will be entering first grade in the fall. I looked at the Spokane School District website and was impressed by the variety of special programs they offered, like Montessori, gifted, and cooperative classrooms where the parents participate. But it sounds like from this thread that this school district is having trouble? Is District 81 basically SPS? We are also coming also from a charter school that I think will really meet my sons needs and want to make sure we don't sacrifice that in the process of moving.

When I looked at the Central Valley School District it seemed they were really struggling with overcrowding and that didn't appeal to me as much.

I am also really looking for a neighborhood where kids can ride their bikes somewhat safely on sidewalks, maybe at the end of a cul de sac. I want bigger lot sizes, and secluded yards. In the area that we currently live we have a lot of room between houses, it is pretty rural. My husband would be working in Liberty Lake, so something relatively close to that. It sounds like LL is a nice place to live, but then I am worried about the school district.

As far as city life, we have almost nothing, so Spokane looks pretty good. The closest mall is 70 miles away, etc. We don't eat authentic foods so don't really mind that either. Anyway, thanks for all of your input!

[WendyK]

If your hubby will be working in Liberty Lake, you will probably want to live somewhere in the Spokane Valley area. Liberty Lake itself is a very nice place but you won't find the big lots you're looking for unless you have big $$ to spend! You might want to look in the Ponderosa area, Greenacres or Bella Vista (also a little pricey) or Newman Lake are will give you the feel of being in a quiet, country type area. I'm not as familiar with the CV school district - you should probably be most concerned about which elementary school your kids go to, since they're still young.
In the valley you will have plenty of shopping, churches, restaurants and other services available to you within a short distance.
Snowfall has been varied in this area over the past years - when I first moved here in 1998, it seemed like there was quite a bit of snow accumulation, then we had a couple winters where there was very little snow. This year we don't have any yet accumulated on the ground, but it's only November - still plenty of winter months left! We do have some sunny winter days, but more of them are gray days. Spring & Summer are awesome and make living through the winter months worth it.

[Topo]

May I ask why u want to move from Denver area? That is also one of my options for relocating.......What are the pros and cons that u can tell me about?

[Dan6200alt]

Topo, sorry I didn't post earlier, hadn't check this thread for a bit.

Denver is actually a pretty good place to live, all things considered. Its clean, safe, some good schools, lots to do and see.

My issues: and keep in mind that I've lived in Flagstaff, AZ and Kalispell and Missoula, MT-some excellent ski/college/mountain/lake towns-Denver metro IS NOT in the mountains, not really that close (2 hours give or take there, sometimes 4+ hours back), over populated and the geography/terrain (of the metro area, not the mountains) is brown and dead-looking most of the year. Plus it is expensive. Not like D.C., Seattle, San Fran or Boston, but expensive, none the less. This, of course, is relative to what ones lifestyle requires, but for my family (me, my wife and 2 school aged kids), a good area and neighborhood with a nice house is 500K and up. We may put too much emphasis on having a nice house, but thts what WE want. Certainly, there is much cheaper housing, but just not what we want. This leaves my family watching every expense. Nothing left over to ski, travel, eat out as often as we'd like, basically enjoy what is here. And we make a fairly good living!! I'm in the suburbs, so we commute ALOT. Again, maybe not as bad as L.A. San Diego, etc, but still plenty of it. Thats why we want find someplce else.

I will say that the weather is great!! Four seasons (although fall and spring are quick) and lots of sunshine!! Thats a huge plus compared to WA. For me, that is almost reason to stay-almost. Denver does have some great culture-16th street Mall, downtown, sports, the ski towns nearby (for me not close enough, though), a good airport, clean, healthy, great views-sometimes awe-inspiring. If money is no issue, then its a nice, place. However, if thats the case, I can think of a few place that I'd rather be.

Hope that helps.