Suggestions for a small, family-friendly community in commuting distance to Seattle? (Renton: schools, live in)

[texastrigirl]

Our property taxes here are actually slightly less than our house in TX, but our house here is valued at more than twice that of our TX house. Insurance is less here as well on cars and on the home, and that includes what we pay for earthquake. Basically we have found the cost of the home and cost of eating out are much more in WA but everything else is the same or less. North Bend can certainly get weather but if you have AWD, you'll be fine. Most of it is rain and wind out there, though it can snow a few times a year to where you might not make it in to work first thing in the morning. Another option is to drive to the Issaquah Park N Ride and take an Express Bus in to DT. I like both North Bend and Maple Valley a lot. NB cannot be beat for scenery. One of the prettiest mtn towns in WA IMO. Schools in MV may edge out schools in NB though. Not sure on that.

We love living here. Love the green, the mountains and the outdoors so we feel very at home here rain or shine. We have the right gear so rain doesn't stop us. We ski, boat, sail, kayak, hike, cycle, etc. It's heavenly for us. My husband is a Cali Boy though and we met in CO so the natural environment here is something we can agree on! We lived most of our TX time in Austin (almost 10 years) and hiked every trail 20x in the area. We have been here 4 years and a few trails we have hiked more than once, but only because we love them. So definitely better for the outdoorsy type compared to TX.

[Wyo713]

Doesn't sound like the property taxes are all that much higher than here than, I thought they would be pretty high. There are properties in some of the areas down here that have property taxes of over $7000 on a $250,000 house, just depends on the area and the school district involved. Well that is a pleasant surprise, and I hadn't realized until today that Washington doesn't have an income tax, so that is another relief.

As we are originally from Wyoming, we have always owned 4x4's so we are prepared for and experienced with snow! The outdoor activities sound wonderful, I have missed the mountains the last several years! As much as I love Texas, their state parks and public land just aren't the same. It seems like you pay out the nose down here any time you want to go experience the outdoors, and then you need to wait until fall as it is just too hot in the summer to do much hiking. We have dirt bikes and like to do some trail riding when we get a chance, but their just isn't many places down here that you can go ride without paying a whole lot just to get onto a trail. We enjoyed going riding in the mountains in Wyoming and spending the whole day out there and not having to worry about when the park closes, how much it is going to cost us, so on and so forth! So yeah, I am pretty excited about the opportunity for outdoor fun!

[texastrigirl]

You will be really excited to hear about the Duthie Hill Mtn Biking park in Sammamish then. It's awesome and they are building another in Issaquah!

Outdoors | Mountain bikers build a thrilling new Eastside bike park | Seattle Times Newspaper

[tobester]

Originally Posted by texastrigirl

You will be really excited to hear about the Duthie Hill Mtn Biking park in Sammamish then. It's awesome and they are building another in Issaquah!

I believe the OP is referring to motorcycles - not mountain bikes. Two groups that normally don't get along real well.

[Wyo713]

Well, I happen to like both, but yes I was talking about motorcycles in particular. Our kids have been wanting to get into racing, but we prefer the cross country type racing over the mx stuff. I didn't think about whether people in Washington are against riding on trails or not, in Wyoming they are pretty excepting. We have lots of friends and family that enjoy going out for trail rides and exploring the country and racing is huge here in Texas.

[texastrigirl]

Oh sorry I do think out near Cle Elum there is some dirt bike racing but I am not sure it's on trails.

[Wyo713]

Does anyone have any input on Auburn or Marysville?

[Inkpoe]

Stay away from Marysville.

Auburn can be nice... got its own Sounder Train Station, easy access to i5, 2 malls/shopping areas-- but still retaining its rural qualities. The Lakelands area is really nice and has the better schools of the district.

[NV2TN2AL]

Originally Posted by Ira500

I was thinking Maple Valley too. Family friendly, good schools, lots of places with at least 1/2 an acre.
Wallingford is a neighborhood within the city of Seattle. Nice place, but not at all what you're looking for, unless you've changed your mind and now want a 4000 sq ft lot.
Parts of Bothell would fit the bill. Woodinville is awfully nice, though a lot more expensive than Maple Valley. Not far from Woodinville are Duvall and Carnation, and a bit north is the town of Snohomish, which is a much older town than other places nearby and has a cool old downtown.

Ira - just wanted to say "Thank you" for all your positive comments about Maple Valley. I was getting really desperate today looking for locations. Both my daughter and son-in-law are interviewing with Boeing and my husband and I are going to be moving as well. I really was beginning to believe what we wanted wasn't going to be possible financially. Everything you're saying about the town, the school's; the small town feel are exactly what we are looking for. Thank you for keeping the dream alive!

Lori

[Ira500]

Originally Posted by NV2TN2AL

Ira - just wanted to say "Thank you" for all your positive comments about Maple Valley. I was getting really desperate today looking for locations. Both my daughter and son-in-law are interviewing with Boeing and my husband and I are going to be moving as well. I really was beginning to believe what we wanted wasn't going to be possible financially. Everything you're saying about the town, the school's; the small town feel are exactly what we are looking for. Thank you for keeping the dream alive!

Lori

No place is perfect and neither is Maple Valley. There is no real downtown. The town has grown a lot but they haven't really added lanes of traffic, so traffic can get bad. But it is a friendly, relatively affordable place with good schools, great places to walk, and plenty of shopping and restaurants.