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Old 03-15-2010, 02:02 AM
 
23 posts, read 41,697 times
Reputation: 21

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Insofar as crime....they are usually petty crimes and domestic types. Personally, as a woman, I do not feel the need to look around a parking lot before I exit my vehicle here or peruse the area before I head to my car. In Tacoma, which is a much bigger city, I ALWAYS looked over my shoulder. As far as the best/favorite place to live, it was probably Olympia but again, this area is wonderful, right after Olympia. Olympia definitely has a better choice of jobs though. Centralia/Chehalis has a much smaller city vibe than does Olympia but not too small. I'm a city girl and adjusted quite well here since its not considered "hick" or straight up country.

Also...the drive from here to Olympia (about 20 minutes) is quick and easy. The same with the drive to Portland, just longer. Out of the 250 or so times I've driven to Portland, I've never hit traffic, as it is a smooth ride with no major city traffic to contend with.
Sometimes it slows as you enter into or exit from Portland but that goes without saying.

I'm going to add a post I wrote to someone else about this area that includes more details:

This area is beautiful and affordable. We have a small town vibe but not too small town. People are friendly and the crime rate is mostly smaller, petty or domestic-wise. Centralia has a wonderful junior college, where my husband works and 18 yr old daughter attends. The Chehalis schools have a great reputation but not so much in Centralia (elementary, middle school or H.S.)...that's why I transferred my kids to Chehalis.

You can view Mt. Rainier if you are high up on a hill that faces anywhere but South or in a wide enough part of this valley to see over the surrounding hills. It is the opposite for Mt. St. Helens. I can view that majestic mountain every morning during my (5 minute) trip south on I-5 to school with my 7th & 8th grade boys. I live about a 1/2 mile off freeway (I-5) and manage a mobilehome/manufactured home park here. I speak from experience as I have met many people here; from law enforcement to small business owners to your everyday neighbors. When I moved here I was amazed at how "tight-knit" this community is. I simply love it here.

This area has everything you need from the farm-style stores, quaint shops, (including great antiques shops) to major grocery stores, including a WalMart Superstore, Home Depot and not to mention the factory outlet mall here. There are a few movie theaters here also. I'm just scratching the surface insofar as what this place offers. Oh....hunting, fishing, camping, etc. are quite popular around as well.. Strangely...we have all of this and more but are still considered rural-esque. It is a good mix of country, small town community and city here.

Hope this info was helpful...and let me know if you want to know more about this area.

END~~~

Trust me...Olympia is a city that has everything you need if you like a city-vibe better but strangely, this place is becoming a mini-Olympia. BTW...whereabouts are you located or would be moving from? Don't answer that if you're not comfortable...obviously.

FYI...I have been checking out houses in your price range and found that you can get a new home (built in 2009) in a developed neighborhood with 4-5 bedrooms, 2-3 baths, including 2 car garage, 2000-2500 SF, all the trimmings. Not bad and in a good neighborhood.

Also...just for "kicks" click link to view this unique home for sale. I had to laugh at the dome-shaped Chrysler addition to it. It has 4 bedrooms (1.5 additional bonus rooms), 3 baths, 3500 SF, 7 car garage, 3 stall barn, 5 bay open storage , 2.77 acres, private backyard overlooking pond, dogrun, RV parking.. Its in the "country" part of Chehalis but only 10 minutes off the freeway. Geesh...alot of house and property for the cost of $225,000. I'm kinda grooving on this house. Anyways...I had fun looking at the available houses out there.
Century 21 Lund, Realtors property search for Real Estate in Lewis County, Washington. - Home

Last edited by Thrice; 03-15-2010 at 02:46 AM.. Reason: want to add more info I left out
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Old 03-15-2010, 01:47 PM
 
29 posts, read 78,948 times
Reputation: 14
Oh they have prices that low? I just looked on this website for the avg cost of homes, it said 350k avg in Camas and Hockinson areas. My price range is around 200-250k, but that duplex idea sounds really good. I'm married and have 2 daughters, so looking for a 3-4 bedroom home. Thanks for all the info.
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Old 03-16-2010, 06:23 PM
 
29 posts, read 78,948 times
Reputation: 14
Quote:
Originally Posted by Thrice View Post
Insofar as crime....they are usually petty crimes and domestic types. Personally, as a woman, I do not feel the need to look around a parking lot before I exit my vehicle here or peruse the area before I head to my car. In Tacoma, which is a much bigger city, I ALWAYS looked over my shoulder. As far as the best/favorite place to live, it was probably Olympia but again, this area is wonderful, right after Olympia. Olympia definitely has a better choice of jobs though. Centralia/Chehalis has a much smaller city vibe than does Olympia but not too small. I'm a city girl and adjusted quite well here since its not considered "hick" or straight up country.

Also...the drive from here to Olympia (about 20 minutes) is quick and easy. The same with the drive to Portland, just longer. Out of the 250 or so times I've driven to Portland, I've never hit traffic, as it is a smooth ride with no major city traffic to contend with.
Sometimes it slows as you enter into or exit from Portland but that goes without saying.

I'm going to add a post I wrote to someone else about this area that includes more details:

This area is beautiful and affordable. We have a small town vibe but not too small town. People are friendly and the crime rate is mostly smaller, petty or domestic-wise. Centralia has a wonderful junior college, where my husband works and 18 yr old daughter attends. The Chehalis schools have a great reputation but not so much in Centralia (elementary, middle school or H.S.)...that's why I transferred my kids to Chehalis.

You can view Mt. Rainier if you are high up on a hill that faces anywhere but South or in a wide enough part of this valley to see over the surrounding hills. It is the opposite for Mt. St. Helens. I can view that majestic mountain every morning during my (5 minute) trip south on I-5 to school with my 7th & 8th grade boys. I live about a 1/2 mile off freeway (I-5) and manage a mobilehome/manufactured home park here. I speak from experience as I have met many people here; from law enforcement to small business owners to your everyday neighbors. When I moved here I was amazed at how "tight-knit" this community is. I simply love it here.

This area has everything you need from the farm-style stores, quaint shops, (including great antiques shops) to major grocery stores, including a WalMart Superstore, Home Depot and not to mention the factory outlet mall here. There are a few movie theaters here also. I'm just scratching the surface insofar as what this place offers. Oh....hunting, fishing, camping, etc. are quite popular around as well.. Strangely...we have all of this and more but are still considered rural-esque. It is a good mix of country, small town community and city here.

Hope this info was helpful...and let me know if you want to know more about this area.

END~~~

Trust me...Olympia is a city that has everything you need if you like a city-vibe better but strangely, this place is becoming a mini-Olympia. BTW...whereabouts are you located or would be moving from? Don't answer that if you're not comfortable...obviously.

FYI...I have been checking out houses in your price range and found that you can get a new home (built in 2009) in a developed neighborhood with 4-5 bedrooms, 2-3 baths, including 2 car garage, 2000-2500 SF, all the trimmings. Not bad and in a good neighborhood.

Also...just for "kicks" click link to view this unique home for sale. I had to laugh at the dome-shaped Chrysler addition to it. It has 4 bedrooms (1.5 additional bonus rooms), 3 baths, 3500 SF, 7 car garage, 3 stall barn, 5 bay open storage , 2.77 acres, private backyard overlooking pond, dogrun, RV parking.. Its in the "country" part of Chehalis but only 10 minutes off the freeway. Geesh...alot of house and property for the cost of $225,000. I'm kinda grooving on this house. Anyways...I had fun looking at the available houses out there.
Century 21 Lund, Realtors property search for Real Estate in Lewis County, Washington. - Home
I'm originally from ID, but have lived in Memphis, TN for the past 3 years going to optometry school--so I plan on practicing out in WA somewhere in the next year or so, just don't know where in WA yet--that's why I'm on this forum. Thanks for checking houses out for me. My wife really liked that home you posted on here. And we definitely wanted some land, so that was a pretty nice house. It sounds like a pretty nice area there. By the way, while I'm on the subject--are there a lot of optometrists in that area? You may not know, in that case don't worry about it. Thanks again for all the info
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Old 03-24-2010, 02:59 PM
 
Location: vancouver, wa
5 posts, read 9,623 times
Reputation: 10
OK, I've read some of the posts. I have lived in the following places in WA: Centralia, Olympia, Seattle, Spokane, Yacolt, and now Vancouver. Centralia/Chehalis are nice... but if you like quick access to a large city... you are right in the middle of Seattle/Portland.

As a realtor, I can say that home prices are home prices. I just sold my home rental in Centralia last year and bought one here in Vancouver to replace it. Overall choose where you want to live and adjust your budget accordingly. As far as schools, with 4 boys I can tell you school is what the family makes it. We think the Evergreen School District (East Vancouver) is a great balance between home prices and good schools. And trust me when I say you can buy a pretty nice house in some nice Evergreen neighborhoods for under $200,000.

OK, so I'm biased. My child is graduating from Evergreen/Clark College (simultaneously), my wife drives school bus for Evergreen, and I'm a realtor here. But I've lived in 10 communities in 2 states and another country and I think this place is just fine, thank you!

Feel free to contact me directly at candrews@ziprealty.com
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