considering Olympia for family move (Seattle, Tacoma: real estate, big home, neighborhoods)

[coffeesally]

my husband is a project manager here in northern arizona, but we think we will be topping out of the expensive economy here in about two years. meaning, my husband will need/want better pay.

i'm interested to know if Olympia is a good place to relocate. my sons are now 3 yrs. and 6 mos. i am a SAHM. we love/need the outdoors and are fond of forests. how is the school system? private christian schools? jobs? housing market? culture?

oh, and one more thing, what would be the best areas of Olympia to consider for housing? Lacey?

i'll be thankful for any and all feedback. thanks!
sally

[AZ_singlemother]

Lacey is nice area to live.

[Sandy Nelson]

Coffeesally,

Olympia, Lacey and Tumwater are three distinct cities that have grown together. As far as schools, jobs, parks and housing market go, anyplace in that area will be a good place to live. In order to determine what is the "best place" it would be helpful to know in more detail what's important to you; i.e: a big home with acreage, to be able to walk to a Starbucks, a vintage home in a historic neighborhood, quick access to I-5, etc.
Olympia and Lacey have Christian schools as well as good public schools. You can compare the local public schools here:
Washington State Report Card

Good Luck!

Sandy

[squirtle]

I like Lacey, too. It feels like its own town, not just a suburb of Olympia.
The area has experienced growth, but not crazy boom-like that other areas in west WA have.

Not particularly diverse, kinda liberal feel, safe, not too far from Portland or Seattle for city stuff. Outdoors stuff is pretty easy no matter where you go in west WA if you're willing to drive ~1 hr.

[missy watts]

After living all over the world really, my husband and I decided to settle in Olympia. We have two school-age children, so schools were an important piece of our decision.

I think you will find, as we did, that Olympia is a perfect blend of small town and city, with access to colleges, culture, the waterfront, good food, farmers markets and good shopping. We appreciate the small town feel of Olympia, and that we are only an hour from a major international airport, and world-class city in Seattle. I love visiting Seattle for ballet, plays, restaurants, science museums, etc, but I would not want to live there!

AS far as affordability...you should compare real estate costs to those in the area you are coming from. Our real estate is not cheap, and often we hear that from people coming in from out of state.

For a SAHM I would think that you may prefer a neighborhood with other SAHMs and kids. There are a lot of neighborhoods in desirable school districts here. We have lots of public parks....Priest Point Park and Burfoot stand out in my mind when thinking of good forests to romp about in. Both are on the water and have great beaches. And there is a great Childrens Hands on Museum in Olympia, as well as a great water feature park downtown. In the summer it is full of kids waiting for the water to jet up to run through it.

My family has been very happy with our decision to trnasplant here over ten years ago.......I hope you will join us here!
Missy Watts

[Prple]

Olympia is a great area! I have nothing but good things to say about it!

The schools are outstanding. Check out this link to view information about some of the Olympia schools: Olympia Schools - Olympia Public Schools - Olympia School Ratings - Best Olympia Schools I think most of the schools in the entire area are pretty good.

The area is very safe and family friendly. There is a lot to do in Olympia for both families and singles: lakes, parks, museums, shopping, etc. It is about one hour to Seattle (in no traffic) and 30 minutes to Tacoma.