Sultan, Sequim, or another small town? (Seattle, Tacoma: real estate, houses, to buy)

[Michele Mauri]

I am considering moving to the Seattle area with my two teenage daughters. we are coming from Montana, just north of yellowstone Ntl park, where we just loved living in the woods, and being close to nature. I do not want to live in the city of Seattle, but need to be within 1.5 hours from a major airport. I have multiple properties that I plan to see this weekend, but am most interested in houses I see in Sultan and Sequim. Does anyone have an opinion or facts they can share to make a comparison between these two towns? i have never been to either.
we are looking for a relatively small town, but not too small, and one that would provide job opportunities as well. A small "farm" like property is really what we are looking for. One with 1-2acres of land--not a house 10 ft away from the neighbors. any ideas as to where i should be looking for this type of place to buy?
i also need to know about crime, schools, community flavor, grocery stores in these little towns? cost of living comparatively, and any other helpful input that would help steer me in the right direction and help me focus on the area that is right for us.
we want to grow our own food, have a cow, and be in an area of welcoming people that make it easy to become a part of a community. my girls need to make friends and so do I!
thanks in advance.

[Dendrite]

Originally Posted by Michele Mauri

I do not want to live in the city of Seattle, but need to be within 1.5 hours from a major airport.

Based upon this criteria alone would essentially rule out Sequim. It's a good 2 hours to SeaTac (longer depending upon traffic, which typically happens in the Tacoma area). I generally allow 2 1/2 hours from Sequim to SeaTac so as to not grit my teeth if I get stuck behind a slow-poke RV or semi-truck, snow or heavy rain in the winter time and so forth. Also this allows for the unexpected, time to stop and use the washroom, get gas or whatever.

I suppose if you happened to hit the Bainbridge ferry perfectly just right (without traffic) you might get it closer to your hour and a half window but WSF sailing times are not always bullet-proof such that I'd base a critical flight upon them-

[sean98125]

Sultan is facing a growing gang problem these days, and depending on when you are heading to the airport it could easily take you more than 90 minutes to get to Sea-Tac from there.

[SHALOM YA'ALL]

I am guessing you work for an airline.. I work near seatac and commute from Puyallup which takes about 20 minutes on I 5.. if you like the woods I would try looking at Enumclaw, Buckley, Graham area.. they are towards the foothills.. If you go North of Seattle the traffic is horrible.. South towards Tacoma is better.. also look into Issiquah and North Bend.. Good luck!

[jaggonzalez]

I agree with Shalom ya'all. Puyallup, Buckley, Graham are good areas. We live, and I work in Puyallup and I can say the school district here is great. (retired from education) Real Estate Professional for several years.
Please feel free to email if I can help in your relocation.
[EMAIL="jag@betterproperties.com"]jag@betterproperties.com[/EMAIL]