Spokane County (Cheney, Medical Lake, Davenport: high crime, home, to buy)

[blueshix]

My family and I are moving to Spokane area very soon,and would like to know what cities/towns outside of Spokane are the least inexpensive to live, where the roads into Spokane are pretty much accesible through the winter, and don't have too high crime. We have looked into Latah, Reardon, Greenacres, etc., but need more specific info. Though Medical Lake and Cheney look great, a bit out of our price range. Any imput would be greatly appreciated. Thank You

[WendyK]

Blueshix - What do you consider inexpensive and how far would you be willing to drive? You might want to consider Rosalia, Spangle, Ford, some parts of eastern Lincoln county...Your gas costs driving into town every day might eat up what you save in housing costs, if you are going to be commuting.

[StealthRabbit]

What about Rockford and Fairfield?

I have considered those areas, but they seem pricey, and growth restricted.

How close is a public indoor swimming pool to SE Spokane? (I like to daily or 3x/wk, lap swim)

I am also interested in low property crime, as I'd hate to come home and be 'Cleaned out'. Thought the Farm type folks might keep a better eye on things than the typical rural dwellers. (5acre mini's)

I want to be able to leave for a few months to do volunteer work elsewhere, but have tractors, excavators, dump trucks, machine shop and a fair amount of antiques that I'd like to hang on to...

janb

[blueshix]

Thanks for responding Wendy K.! We are looking to buy a home in the 50-70k range, we know it won't be pretty, but that is all we can afford. I would consider Lincoln county if we could commute though winter. How far are the towns you mentioned from Spokane, and is crime high? Thanks!

[WendyK]

Blueshix - I just did a quick search and found 27 properties under $75,000. Lincoln county is probably going to be your best bet - Odessa, Harrington, Creston, Davenport. There are a couple in Tekoa and even a few in Spokane. I don't think you'd have any crime problems to worry about in the small towns - they're mostly farm type communities. Drive time into Spokane from Lincoln county will vary from 30-60 minutes, depending on how far out you go.

[blueshix]

Thanks Wendy! Will I be able to commute into Spokane through the winter months from Lincoln County, and does it tend to snow more there? I currently live in Southern Oregon, where we only get a few inches at a time, so Im curious how the snow levels are up in your region. Thank You!!

[WendyK]

I don't think you'd have any trouble commuting as long as you're not too far off the main highway. State roads are kept pretty well cleared, as are school bus routes. I guess we get more snow here than where you are now, but not enough to get snowed in. You should get good snow tires if you're going to be driving a lot on snowy roads.
Oh, and on your pit bull question - I have not heard of any other towns that have actually banned pit bulls. I didn't know that about Rosalia. There are plenty of people in the spokane area with pit bulls.

[blueshix]

Thanks Wendy, all your info is very helpful! We hope to sell our home here soon, and be headed north asap!

[Pcghost]

The only major winter time obstacle between the Lincoln county towns (Reardan, Davenport, Wilbur, etc) in the Deep Creek hill. It is a steep hill on Highway 2 about 5 miles West of Fairchild Air Force Base. It is doable, but I have seen many underequipt or underexperienced drivers have difficulty navigating it on the ice and snow. If you are an average winter driver with a front-wheel or 4-wheel/All-Wheel drive vehicle you will be fine.

The commute in from the north (HW 395 or HW 2) tend to be a little easier, and the commute between Spokane and the Cheney area is a breeze.