Is Washington by far the best state in the country? (Seattle: insurance, mortgage)

[PS90]

Originally Posted by cjg5

Don't worry, TONS of people on this side dislike Eastern Washington as a place to live. I am not one of them. Would LOVE to call Eastern WA home! What is REALLY ruining Eastern WA are the vacation home owners, building mcmansions and driving up land prices and building on nature just to spend a weekend or two of the summer there a year.

Completely agree, especially the last part. It seems a fairly common occurrence in many parts of Eastern WA, such as the Leavenworth area, that a weekender builds a house way back in the woods, and then can't believe why they would have trouble with the wildlife. Last year, a man (I believe his main home is in Renton) was attacked by a bear because he had recently built a home up the Icicle River Rd, came over for the weekend, and promptly left a bunch of garbage outside. In the forest. And, surprisingly (*sarcasm*), it drew a bear. I feel bad for the guy, but the whole incident was 100% his fault. (Sorry for going OT).

[509]

Originally Posted by PS90

Completely agree, especially the last part. It seems a fairly common occurrence in many parts of Eastern WA, such as the Leavenworth area, that a weekender builds a house way back in the woods, and then can't believe why they would have trouble with the wildlife. Last year, a man (I believe his main home is in Renton) was attacked by a bear because he had recently built a home up the Icicle River Rd, came over for the weekend, and promptly left a bunch of garbage outside. In the forest. And, surprisingly (*sarcasm*), it drew a bear. I feel bad for the guy, but the whole incident was 100% his fault. (Sorry for going OT).

30% of the homes in Chelan County are owned by coastal residents. It is 50% for Okanogan County.

Washington is by far the best state is the country for large Corporations like Boeing and Microsoft. They don't pay any state taxes!!

Pretty much the B&O tax is paid by small businesses (over 80% services and retail). Boeing and other large Corporations with tax breaks pay 3.5% of the B&O taxes.

Residents pay the sale taxes but Boeing customers are exempt.

Property taxes paid by Weyerhauser are about 30 CENTS an acre. Corporate farms pay $100/ACRE in property taxes for apple orchards.....and on and on it goes.

[cjg5]

Originally Posted by 509

30% of the homes in Chelan County are owned by coastal residents. It is 50% for Okanogan County.

This is sickening. A customer of mine at work was telling me one day about her childhood growing up in Eastern Washington. I can't remember the exact location now, but I want to say it was near Winthrop somewhere. Anyway, she said she would love to live that way again, but the area she grew up in is now overrun by people who drove up land values for their vacation mansions. People who spend, as I said, a weekend or two per year there.

I agreed with her that I detested this practice, and believe that we both royally offended another nearby customer who was within earshot by the dirty look she shot at both of us. However she shouldn't be the offended one, the customer who can't afford to go back home should be the offended one.

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by cjg5

This is sickening....overrun by people who drove up land values for their vacation mansions. ...I agreed with her that I detested this practice,....

and this is why my WA property taxes went from $800/ yr to $14,400/yr. NOT ez on a retired person (no more raises / jobs) who didnt plan on THAT. Healthcare did nearly IDENTICAL; $80/month to $1,700/month. (for catastrophic ONLY, which will no longer be available option with Obamacare.)

so... as I leave the 3rd farm I created and had to leave due to property tax escalation... I need to find a retirement spot overseas. WE are no longer able to afford to live in USA. BTW, it takes MANY yrs to make a farm (Barns, fences, soils, orchards...). It will all be for not, as were the last 2 farms. (Too expensive to keep in farm / ranchland, MUST sell to a developer to GROW more houses. Can't pay $15k in property taxes by growing cows, eggs, and apples / berries. BUT now I'm in a FEDERALLY PROTECTED Area (no development / extra houses allowed), VERY hard to find a buyer who can pay 3x mortgage amount in TAXES. (We don't make Seattle Wages down here in the CGNSA) Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area - Home The OREGON gestapo (Friends of the Gorge) watch us EVERYDAY via binoculars, just to be sure we don't paint, or roof our house, add a window, or build a woodshed.

They did buy our neighbor's $2m house and tore it down to build this nice overlook !
Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area - Cape Horn Overlook

[PS90]

Originally Posted by cjg5

This is sickening. A customer of mine at work was telling me one day about her childhood growing up in Eastern Washington. I can't remember the exact location now, but I want to say it was near Winthrop somewhere. Anyway, she said she would love to live that way again, but the area she grew up in is now overrun by people who drove up land values for their vacation mansions. People who spend, as I said, a weekend or two per year there.

I agreed with her that I detested this practice, and believe that we both royally offended another nearby customer who was within earshot by the dirty look she shot at both of us. However she shouldn't be the offended one, the customer who can't afford to go back home should be the offended one.

Again - completely agree. Obviously, I wasn't the woman you spoke to, but I actually grew up in Winthrop. As a teenager in the early 90's, this "Westside Weekender Invasion" was just beginning in the Methow Valley. Still, at that time, the valley was mostly a farming community, albeit with a fairly strong tourism contingent.

But now, sadly, I could never go back there. Real estate prices (even now with the depressed housing market) are ridiculous, property taxes are getting out-of-reach for the locals, and the entire vibe of the area has changed from "country folk" to "new-age artsy fartsy", in the short course of about 20 years. What was once Western-art-in-the-park is now glass-blowing and modern art in fancy, stuffy art studios in Twisp.

I won't even go into some of the recent legislation in Okanogan County that is being completely pushed through by Seattle politicians.

[vocal1]

We are moving to WA. We wanted to head to Bellingham but because of our job situation, we will be in the Seattle area.
We travelled to Olympia National Park from Dublin Ca. with our 3 boys and we were really impressed.
We are country dwellers and we are hoping that some of you might know of an area within 30-45 minutes outside of Seattle that would be considered out in the sticks by most city dwellers, around 3 acres with a 2000√' house, barn/shop etc. and quiet. We thought about the tri-cities area but what about Everett or Mt Vernon? Squammish(sp?)?
This is the 3rd time we have moved across country as we are in SW. Florida now. It is way too hot and has far too many bugs here. (to name a small portion of dislikes) It's sunny and beautiful but it is too dang hot! So can any of you recommend an area outside of Seattle that you consider peaceful, quiet, out of the way and conducive to chickens, horses, goats and a nice garden. That is what we are looking for in one of the most beautiful states in the country. I guess what I am asking is what is the best areas outside of Seattle to have a small self sustaining farm and won't eat us alive in property taxes? 8)

(If the OP is not cool with this post in this thread, moderator please remove and place in appropriate section and please accept my apologies)

[Haakon]

Originally Posted by HAIWISH

Is Washington by far the best state in the country?
- Major city in the state
- Unparalleled beauty
- Not too overcrowded but not desolate
- Pacific Ocean AND Puget Sound
- Borders Canada giving WA residents the option of a weekend trip up to world-class Vancouver
- Live-and-let-live attitude
- Mild climate compared to to some other areas of the US.
- Tons of outdoor activities
- Even reasonable cost of living in most of the state

Any MORE reasons?

To bad the people keep electing politicians who screw it all up. So in the balance, NO WA is not the best state in the country, your list paints a great picture of someplace to visit, everything else that has been listed in this thread makes it not such a great place to live.

[Snort]

Originally Posted by StealthRabbit

and this is why my WA property taxes went from $800/ yr to $14,400/yr. NOT ez on a retired person (no more raises / jobs) who didnt plan on THAT. Healthcare did nearly IDENTICAL; $80/month to $1,700/month. (for catastrophic ONLY, which will no longer be available option with Obamacare.)

so... as I leave the 3rd farm I created and had to leave due to property tax escalation... I need to find a retirement spot overseas. WE are no longer able to afford to live in USA. BTW, it takes MANY yrs to make a farm (Barns, fences, soils, orchards...). It will all be for not, as were the last 2 farms. (Too expensive to keep in farm / ranchland, MUST sell to a developer to GROW more houses. Can't pay $15k in property taxes by growing cows, eggs, and apples / berries. BUT now I'm in a FEDERALLY PROTECTED Area (no development / extra houses allowed), VERY hard to find a buyer who can pay 3x mortgage amount in TAXES. (We don't make Seattle Wages down here in the CGNSA) Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area - Home The OREGON gestapo (Friends of the Gorge) watch us EVERYDAY via binoculars, just to be sure we don't paint, or roof our house, add a window, or build a woodshed.

They did buy our neighbor's $2m house and tore it down to build this nice overlook !
Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area - Cape Horn Overlook

Your experience should give everyone something to reflect upon. My condolences because that truly sucks.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by HAIWISH

- Major city in the state
- Unparalleled beauty
- Not too overcrowded but not desolate
- Pacific Ocean AND Puget Sound
- Borders Canada giving WA residents the option of a weekend trip up to world-class Vancouver
- Live-and-let-live attitude
- Mild climate compared to to some other areas of the US.
- Tons of outdoor activities
- Even reasonable cost of living in most of the state

Any MORE reasons?

Nearly all of this can be said about California. Except CA weather is milder, and there's no need to travel across an international border to visit a world-class city. Plus the people are a lot friendlier in CA.

Want to try again?

[Count David]

Washington is my favorite state in the country, however, I have "only" been to 23 of them (missing many back east and the entire south). I'm a CA native, but I also consider myself a son of WA, which was my childhood summer home.

I love the west, I love the east. The bickering between the two is a tug-o-war I refuse to be a part of.

My memories of the west, which began 25 years ago, were fonder before Seattle grew explosively. The forests which backed my grandmother's house in Everett have been replaced by suburban sprawl (). Traffic is much worse than it used to be. Greater Seattle has grown up, and I can enjoy it for what it is, but I miss what it was.

Up until 4 years ago, I was only intimately familiar with the western part of the state, the entire I-5 corridor especially. In addition to Everett, I have family in Seattle and Bellingham. As a boy, I became a floor hockey general and a pool shark at the Boys & Girls Club in Mukilteo. I've sledded Mount Baker in August, been to Rainier, St. Helens, the Olympics, and virtually all of the towns out west. I have been a Mariners fan since August 8, 1995, the day I saw my first MLB game (Joey Cora walk-off single), and was lucky enough to get on in time to enjoy The Ride.

The higher powers at be gave me an opportunity to get to know the rest of the state back in 2009 (a work transfer, lived in Spokane), and gave me the opportunity to rediscover myself and fall in love with WA all over again, in a way I would have never imagined. After that experience, I've now been to all but three counties within the state of WA (Wahkiakum, Klickitat, & Ferry). Someday, I hope to die in Spokane.

What makes somewhere "the best" for somebody can't be equated in social and economic statistics.

It's something you feel.