Washington quaint towns (Seattle, Spokane, Vancouver: for sale, houses, good schools)

[Prple]

Originally Posted by Amberyl

Another main concern of mine is... does it snow in these towns? I am really looking to move to somewhere that gets snow for at least 3 months out of the year.

Also, how much does it rain? And how much sun?

It snows (and sticks) in Eastern Washington, and is pretty sunny most of the time. (4 seasons)

Western Washington is cloudy and rains a lot. Only snows a few times/year. Very green!


I personally like college towns, so I would suggest Pullman, Wa. where Washington State University is located. I love the weather there! They have excellent public schools and are about 30 minutes to Lewiston/Clarkston and 1.5-2 hours to Spokane.

[team_evans]

If you want lots of green, you're not going to get lots of snow.

Western Washington is very verdant, but also warmed from the air off the Pacific. You can pretty much count on a few snow flurries every winter, but as far as snow on the ground for more than a week at the very MOST--never happens. Ok, maybe a fluke winter every 20-30 years. Every 2-3 years there will be a "big" snowstorm where you'll get 4-5 inches that stay around for a couple of days, but 95% of winter days will be rainy and 40 degrees.

The mighty Cascades, which split the state into two, also split the climate into two. Eastern Washington is much drier--some parts are quite scrubby and almost desert-like, but there is also more distinct seasons and more snow to be had.

I would also recommend Pullman. My husband graduated from WSU and reports that it meets your criteria, snow and all : )

I understand the craving for seasons; we've been living on Guam (tropical island; 90 degrees every day of the year) for five years and are trying to get transferred to the Chicago area. Everyone says, "But it's freezing and miserable there!" and we go, "I know! We can't wait!"

Good luck in your search and enjoy the wonderful Evergreen State! My family and I are proud to be native Washingtonians : )

[DLThune]

Look at Cashmere, Washington... small, quaint, rural feel. Close to a small river. Really family oriented community. Less than 15 minutes from Wenatchee for decent shopping. Wenatchee also has a community college, or there are other colleges in washington state within 1-2 hours of Cashmere. You DEFINITELY get 4 seasons here.

[509]

Originally Posted by DLThune

Look at Cashmere, Washington... small, quaint, rural feel. Close to a small river. Really family oriented community. Less than 15 minutes from Wenatchee for decent shopping. Wenatchee also has a community college, or there are other colleges in washington state within 1-2 hours of Cashmere. You DEFINITELY get 4 seasons here.

Cashmere is a nice town, but if you have kids you might want to visit the schools before you commit. Check those WASL scores!!

Also property taxes are very expensive in the Cashmere School District....we finally got our home transferred out of the Cashmere School District. Don't ask on how to do it....we were correcting a historical mistake!! Our property taxes on a 200,000 assessed valuation home went down by over a $1,000 dollars per year!!!!

[Sobefobik]

Originally Posted by Amberyl

I live in Mesa, Arizona and I am considering moving to Washington because I have been without the four seasons for too long. I really want to live somewhere where each season gets equal time share.

I also have two small children (5+6) who will both be starting school this year, so I want to move before school starts so they will not have to switch schools later on. I need to move somewhere that has great education either in the town, or very nearby, so we could commute.

I am looking for a quaint town, much like the town of Stars Hollow in Gilmore Girls. I want to live somewhere where everyone knows everyone else.

I would like to be close enough to at least one larger city. And close enough to a decent college.

I am planning for this to be my last move. I want to settle down and raise my family. Can anyone please suggest a town that sounds like what I am looking for?

Don't move to western Washington. We do not get four seasons. We don't get snow if that is what you're looking for. We get about nine months of rain. If you want four seasons, move to the east side of the mountains. There are some beautiful towns over there that I'm sure that you would like.

Have you considered Bend, Oregon?

[vette-dude]

Originally Posted by Amberyl

Oh and thank you Bigtrees for your perspective.

I do want to see green! I don't like living in the desert.

Well, that leaves out most of Eastern Washington...some Pine in the Spokane area...Port Orchard could be a possibility, I grew up there when there was one traffic light, lol....when Fleetwood Mac was on the top of the charts..
Still have family there, home prices are up there, but so is everywhere on the
west side of the state, being Gig Harbor one of the highest...

[fy10fyr]

Actually the entire NE corner of the state is heavily forested with Pine, Larch (AKA Tamarack), Cedar varieties and Doug Fir. Not at all desert-like in Spokane, Stevens or PO counties. The Tri-cities on the other hand......

[Amberyl]

Originally Posted by fy10fyr

Actually the entire NE corner of the state is heavily forested with Pine, Larch (AKA Tamarack), Cedar varieties and Doug Fir. Not at all desert-like in Spokane, Stevens or PO counties. The Tri-cities on the other hand......

That sounds wonderful! What cities would you recommend in those counties? In the N/E corner of WA?

I am also going to check out Pullman, Cashmere and Port Orchard, right now.

I have looked at Bend, OR, and it seemed very nice. I just wasn't sure about the weather, what it was like there?

[Sobefobik]

Bend has a very nice climate. It gets hot in the summer, mostly in the 90s, and you get a nice amount of snow in the winter. There is not a lot of green there, but it's not totally desert. The Deschutes River is nice there too.

I would not consider Port Orchard if you are looking to get snow. I live just a few miles from there--in Gig Harbor--and we do not get snow very often. Some years it doesn't snow at all. If it does, it's only around an inch, and then it melts by the next day. It is very green because it's practically a rain forest around here. If you're into that, then this area might be good for you. Summers are absolutely beautiful here. The winters, however, are not.

[kristen pierce]

Hi,

I lived in Tucson for over 20 years and recently moved to Gig Harbor WA. This sounds like it may work for you as far as smaller and quaint. Feel free to ask me whatever you need to, as I know quite a bit about both areas now. mod cut: soliciting removed