Woodinville > need wonderlands(mtns/water) less traffic/congestion? Buy land to build! (Seattle: home)

[AGRusco]

Hey all! We have lived in Woodinville for the last 6 years & love it! It is everything we have wanted minus the traffic and congestion. We want to buy land and build a medium home with big garage, but it is impossible to find anything even raw land for a reasonable price. We are looking for 3-6 acres. We originally are from the Kitsap/Jefferson county areas. We have been entertaining the idea of moving back and building in Poulsbo. Poulsbo would be the only area we are interested in. We are self employed, my husband is a general contractor and is concerned his salary will be less there since he will not be commuting back here.

What other towns should we look into? The only other town we are interested in over here is Snohomish area, but again there is nothing available and we don't want to spend tons on a home without acreage. We both lead a very active lifestyle > mostly climbing, hiking, backpacking, boating, gardening, kayak, SUP, biking, etc. We love the variety that the Cascades offer, and honestly we feel like we are being pushed back to Kitsap with the housing market. We could live here another 2 years and still be in the same situation. It comes down to quality of life & King co is just way too overly crowded/congested. We want a great sense of community with close access to outdoor opportunities, and good food which is Cle Elum/Leavenworth, but we are not at that point in our life yet. We would consider moving north of Skagit county, but the same concerns are with Poulsbo. N.Kitsap mostly appeals to us since we can use the ferry to visit, but I definitely would not be commuting. We both have family in the areas, and yes the Olympics are right there but I often feel like I might get 'island fever' since it is the peninsula. I always felt like that when I live in Kitsap. Traffic is horrible on the 5, so I would always take the ferry if I came back over here. My other ideal area would be around Bellingham or Skagit County closer to the water/mtns/farms. Our budget is around 300k or less for land.

For anyone north of Seattle, how well are you thriving? We need to get out of Seattle area and even if Kitsap isn't, its better than king co! If we build, we will be living the tiny home life for at least a year which isn't an issue since it is only us.

Thanks for hearing us out!