Considering move to Whidbey Island (Seattle, Everett: housing, rent, job)

[Scorpio2]

Hello All. Question for everyone on the pros/cons of living on Whidbey Island. My wife has a job potential in Coupeville that pays 55K and I have one with Boeing in Everett which would be double that (or so). We have 3 kids so our first concern is the quality of schools there. The work arrangement would be - wife works on the island and is available for kids during the day, I walk on the ferry and ride the bus to Boeing which would theoretically be about a 40 minute commute. On paper it looks good - decent commute, small town that is supposedly in the rain shadow, a little bit cheaper housing than Seattle.


This all started when my wife and I recently took a family trip back to Seattle after leaving the area 14 years ago and developed a serious itch to move back. We live in the Midwest now near our families but our trip made us realize how much we miss the PNW and friends we have in the area.

After 10 years in Seattle, we moved back to the Midwest to be near our families but frankly that is the only thing keeping us here. You can't beat the Midwest for cheap housing, sunshine and good schools but - boring, boring, boring, especially if you love outdoor activities. Plus, we realized after our trip out there that we actually have a wider social network in Seattle than here. People in the town we live in already have their friends and family is usually nearby so we've never seen much of that Midwest openness. It is very strange to me as I have an outgoing personality, am from the MW and can't seem to "break in" to the social circles like I did out there.

We would miss our parents but aren't that close to the rest of kin. I know the downside to the PNW having lived there for awhile and it sounds like Whidbey might alleviate some of that. Or maybe this is just wishful thinking...

[AlwaysSmiling]

Good Morning!
Let me start by saying there is no way you can commute to Boeing in 40 minutes from Coupeville. Coupeville is a good 40 minutes just to the ferry. Then, depending on the ferry schedule, you have another 20-25 minutes on the ferry. Then you need to take the Boeing bus and that is another 20-25 minutes. In my opinion it would be terrible living in Coupeville and working at Boeing. Obviously, it can be done, but, why do that? You could live in Clinton, and make it much more doable. The so called rain shadow over Whidbey has slowly made its way off island. Last winter we had horrific storms, power outages for days, and many, many rainy, dreary days. I would really investigate before you move. You have all the power right now, don't move until you explore everywhere.
Let me know if you have any other questions.

[Scorpio2]

Thanks for the reply, AlwaysSmiling. I started thinking about it and if the commute was actually that short, alot more people would be living on the Island. I based everything off the bus schedule and the ferry ride I took when I was out there. But of course, taking that route during rush hour won't be the same. Too bad about the rain shadow moving. I'm sure it's not as consistent like it is for Sequim since Coupeville is further away from the Olympics.

Like you said I have the power now and there are other options to consider. Clinton or even Mukilteo would be better for commutes. This would give more job options for me and my wife as well.

[AlwaysSmiling]

You are most welcome. Mukilteo is very nice, and still in the real world. Clinton gives you a rural life, but still able to walk onto the ferry, which is a better commute for you. Good luck!

[PookeyMDB]

Anyone live there that can give me the pros and cons about moving back to Washington ?

[aussiegal]

Scorpio2, here is another idea. My husband (and son) work at Paine Field and commute from Mount Vernon. They're on different shifts. Coupeville and Everett I don't think are quite equi-distant but I did have a client once whose wife was in school in Seattle and he was at the Naval Air Station in Oak Harbor and they wanted to live in Mount Vernon. It does away with the ferry ride which in bad weather would be a blessing.

[wythors]

The Mt Vernon/Coupeville commute would be "iffy". It would be about 45 minutes each way under ideal circumstances, but Hwy 20 is two lanes from Anacortes to Oak Harbor with no place to pass. One accident and you could be really late to work. Personally, I'd me more inclined to live somewhere closer to Clinton on the south end of the island. This would give you easy access to Mukilteo and points south via ferry and a reasonably short drive to Coupeville. That said, any time you're a slave to the ferry schedule, it is inevitably going to become a PITA at some point during the summer.