Considering Olympia (Seattle, Lacey, Aberdeen: real estate, rent, condo)

[juneauite]

Hello!
I posted a thread similar to this in the Oregon forum, and thought I'd look for some advice from you folks as well.

Here's my situation: My family (me, my husband, and two very young daughters) is currently living in Juneau and we've been here about 2 years (since Oct. 2004). There are some great things about living here, and some not so great things. Here's what we like about it:
* it's small enough (pop. 30,000) that my husband, who is an attorney, can work at a small, low-key law firm, be home for dinner every night, and have weekends free. We are not interested in having him work the insane hours he would have to in a big city.
* there is a real sense of community here, with friendly people, and wonderful family events to attend.
* the surroundings are beautiful and there's lots to do outdoors.
* it's safe for kids.

Now, the cons:
* It rains ALL THE TIME. Seriously. I can handle Oregon or Washington rain, but this is a whole other situation, and it's definitely wearing on us. So, although the view out the window is gorgeous, there's not much incentive to go outside, especially with very young children.
* While the surroundings are beautiful, the city itself is not very clean and well-kept, and there doesn't seem to be a lot of pride of ownership reflected in many of the homes.
* Extremely limited retail here. We have a few grocery stores, two "malls" with stores that constantly go out of business, and no real downtown shopping district to speak of.
* The restaurants....*shudder*
* We are isolated here. There are no roads out of Juneau. The only way out is by plane or boat, and both options are expensive. We rarely make the trip to the "lower 48" because it is so costly and requires so many transfers. We miss our family and friends!

Okay, so that's the basic situation, and we're looking to move, hopefully in the next 6 months or so. My parents and several good friends live in Portland and Seattle, and we would love to be within reasonable driving distance of them for occasional weekend visits, etc. We're looking for a place that has the same benefits that we've found in Juneau, but with a cleaner, more vibrant downtown, better weather, and just more to offer in general. We'd like to live as close to the downtown area as possible, since we'd love to be able to walk to stores and restaurants instead of relying on a car as much as we have to here. It doesn't need to be as small as Juneau, but small enough that we could enjoy the lifestyle we're looking for (particularly in regards to my husband being able to work a reasonable 40 hour work week).

So that's the criteria, and we are considering the Olympia area, because it seems like about the right size, the right location, and the kind of community we're interested in. Plus, since it is the capital, there is the possibility that my husband could find government-related legal work.

Other places we're looking into are Corvallis and Salem, OR. I don't really know much about Washington, though, so I'd love to know if you have other suggestions.

I would love to get the inside scoop from those of you who know Olympia. Do you agree that it is a place we would most likely enjoy living? Are there other Washington cities that we should consider? Any place that's sort of "up and coming" that might be more affordable right now? Our budget for a home is around 225K (although we will most likely rent for awhile before buying). Also, we would be okay with purchasing a townhouse or condo, especially if it had good access to downtown.

Sorry this is so long - there is a lot to consider. Any advice is appreciated!

[Cheetoh]

I moved here from Vegas a couple years ago. For the most part Olympia is a nice, slow paced place. Fairly safe for kids, no big city fears or crime, or traffic. I quite enjoy it here, and I have three kids of my own that love it here. A lot of friends of mine hail from Alaska, and they too, like it here better.....

Good luck on your move!

[juneauite]

Sorry to bump this, but does anyone have anything more to add? Thank you for your comments, Cheetoh. That's just the kind of info I'm looking for.

[WazzuCoop21]

I'd mention the threat of serious earthquake damage, but being in Alaska, you aren't any safer. Didn't mean to rain on your parade so to speak.

[madicarus2000]

Look into some of the smaller towns west of Olympia in Grays Harbor (Montesano, Elma, et al). They are only about 30-45 minutes away but on a beautiful drive and there are plenty of shops and stores. Aberdeen is a larger city and has plenty of stores. If necessary you are not that far from all the major shops in Olympia. Plus you're about 2 hours away from Seattle. Hard to explain it but it's and area we fell in love with and we were looking for a small town that had charm, some stores within walking distance, and not an isolated feeling since we also have two young children. We're very happy with our decision to move to Grays Harbor. It's worth looking into and deciding which town you like. From what I hear the commute to Olympia isnt bad. Good luck.

[chris]

you can easily live outside of olympia in that price range (to the south - Tenino, parts of Yelm, and south of there or north of Olympia up 101). You might be able to find a townhouse in the downtown area close to that range with some patience.

Personally I would not live anywhere near the downtown though. Homelessness and drug use are some of the primary reasons I moved my family out of Olympia (city limits). For a city of it's size, Olympia has too many registered sex offenders and teenagers on methodone.

I hear Corvallis is nice - it's a beautiful area!

Salem I can't comment on, only been there a few times and it's pretty quiet.

[worldpremier_slott]

I have lived in the outskirts of Olympia in a town called Lacey. It is a very nice area to live in if you are considering staying close to Downtown. It is about a 5 or 10 minute drive to one of my favorite seafood places downtown. There is a lot of shops and such in Lacey. They also have a university there. It is not so far from downtown that you couldn't ride a bike or take the short trip in the car and park and walk to say the farmers market.. yum... so fun. I miss being in that area and will move back some day. Maybe when I get my own real estate office up and running. who knows.

The schools in lacey are decent. My kids didn't go because they were still young. I cannot vouch for Olympia either. I do know that the people are friendly and you can make alot of friends easily. The neighboring town of Tumwater is good too.

Let me know if you have any more questions ok.

[juneauite]

Thank you, worldpremier. That is good information about Lacey. I had noticed a lot of real estate listings for Lacey while researching Olympia, but wasn't sure if it would be the kind of place we're looking for. Looks like we could get more for our money real estate-wise in Lacey, and a bike ride or short drive to downtown Olympia isn't bad. Thanks for letting me know!

[chris]

can Lacey still be done on a 225k budget? If so, what areas are you thinking about?

[chris]

I just was looking over prices and apparently Lacey is doable for $225k

Guess all the new developments on the Yelm/Lacey border were giving me the wrong impression!