Want to move to Washington State (Seattle, Spokane: rental market, home, transfer)

[Singlemom3]

Hello,

I am a single mom looking to move to Washington State in the summer of '09.
I would prefer to stay on the west side of the state.
I would prefer a smaller town to that of Seattle itslef.
I work in healthcare. I have a CNA licsense, but will have to transfer this from Texas and it may take awhile, so in the meantime, can work for home health.
Schools/neighborhoods are important.
Need as cheap of living as possible without giving up safety. I will need a 3 bedroom but could use a 2 bd for short term.

Anyone with any ideals on what city to live in please?

P.S. not that it matters, but I was born in Auburn, and have family in Tacoma, Kirkland and Spokane.but I would like to stay away from big cities if possible..

[allforcats]

Hi, Singlemom3. I'm going to approach this from the point of view of the schools. Regular contributors to this forum usually cite the following school districts as the best in western Washington: from north to south Bellingham, Shoreline, Mercer Island, Bellevue, Issaquah (which includes parts of Renton), Olympia.

All of those school districts have two important things going for you: they have enough local populations to support a variety of medical services which could provide you with employment, and, maybe excepting Shoreline and Mercer Island, each has outskirts that don't have "city" crowding.

To get detailed ideas about any of these areas, you can Search here on the Washington forum. You can also Google for newspapers for any area, to check the rental market. Good luck!

[Singlemom3]

Thanks Allforcats...I will check those cities out. I lived in Tacoma when I was 13, but only remember the mall and a lot of traffic..which I would like to stay away from.

[StealthRabbit]

For good schools, you could also try Camas (east of Vancouver, but now connected). Probably cheaper than living in Seattle metro.

[Dianne W]

Stanwood has affordable housing, is a community of 5445 with an excellent school district. It is located 60 miles north of Seattle on the Stillaguamish River and is the gateway to Camano Island. We have a brand new water treatment plant so the City of Stanwood has clean, plentiful water. You wll find that people here are friendly and very welcoming of new arrivals. Go to www.ci.stanwood.wa.us and check us out!

[Sweating in Florida]

CNA jobs seem to be everywhere and I hope you ask for at least $13/hour as an experienced CNA up there as pay rates are fairly good up there, right? Minimum wage is $8.55(department of Labor for WA)
I have lived on Fort Lewis, in Lakewood, Tacoma, Federal Way and owned a home in Spanaway once. I worked in the industrial valley of Tukwila/Kent.

Tacoma can be kind of trashy in places and the Tacoma aroma can get annoying.
Try North West Tacoma just outside of the city of Federal Way. Nice area and still get the cheaper rent that is in Tacoma. Federal Way, Kent, and Renton are more expensive.

[MichaelinWA]

That, at least, is not so much of a problem these days, thanks to emissions controls. But when the wind blows just right from the pulp mill...

Originally Posted by Sweating in Florida

the Tacoma aroma can get annoying.

[Sandy Nelson]

Singlemom,

Olympia not only has first rate schools, it has been ranked by Sterling's Best places to Live as the safest medium sized town in the nation the past two years in a row. Olympia is 30 minutes south of Tacoma and has two hospitals: Providence St. Peter and Capital Medical Center.

Sandy

[Seattle_Mike_42]

Anywhere on the Olympic Pennisula would fit the bill. I suggest Port Angeles because its so artsy and cheery.

[DawnR]

I'd like to add a few more great school districts. These are located in Snohomish county (north of Seattle.) Northshore which is located in Bothell and Lake Stevens which is located in Lake Stevens. Lake Stevens is much more affordable to live than Bothell, the commute isn't bad if you work anywhere in Snohomish county, and it's a smaller more tight-knit community. Bothell's housing is a bit more expensive and the city is a bit larger but the school system there is fantastic and if you're commuting to Seatlle or Bellevue/Kirkland it's not too bad.

Good luck with your relocation!