Best places to live north of Seattle? (Shoreline, Edmonds: condos, buying a home)

[Taiwanhellokitty]

Pros and Cons of living in Shoreline, Lynnwood, Edmonds? I'm just trying to get a feel of these communities here before I visit next week! ;-) Thanks so much!

[Ira500]

Edmonds- Has a really nice older cute downtown area and views of the water that are spectacular. The parts of Edmonds closer to Hwy 99 are less nice.
SHoreline- Richmond Beach is really nice, and there's a Central Market, a big plus. Parts of Shoreline on Hwy 99 are less nice. Noisy road, a little higher crime, less scenic .
Lynnwood- Lots of traffic. Some great hole in the wall ethnic eateries. Lynnwood is big, and is more influenced by the presence of Alderwood Mall.
If you can swing it financially to live close to DT Edmonds, that would be a good thing.

[Taiwanhellokitty]

Wow, thanks for the advice! What do you think of Lake Forest Park?

[Ira500]

Originally Posted by Taiwanhellokitty

Wow, thanks for the advice! What do you think of Lake Forest Park?

I love Lake Forest Park, but it's not for everybody. There's not a lot of new construction there, and some of the roads are steep and windy. Which to me are good things. It makes it more difficult for "bad guys" to find the place, and it keeps ugly condos and townhomes from being built there. But there are a lot of cool looking older houses, very large trees, views, and a nice shopping area. It's in the Shoreline school District, which is pretty good.

[Vinylly]

Originally Posted by Taiwanhellokitty

Pros and Cons of living in Shoreline, Lynnwood, Edmonds? I'm just trying to get a feel of these communities here before I visit next week! ;-) Thanks so much!

I suggest paying them all a visit and decide for yourself. Of the three mentioned, I would recommend Edmonds. The other two are just faceless 'burbs'.

[winteriscoming24]

I had a sketch experience in Shoreline and I agree that Edmonds is the nicest of the 3, but also the most expensive. Manage it if you can.

[jm31828]

I live in Lynnwood, and would have to say it is rather faceless compared to some of the others (Edmonds is awesome, the downtown and waterfront area is so incredibly cool, none of the other areas compare), but it is still a good place to live. The pros are that homes are cheaper than in the other places, and you are very close to all the shopping you would ever need (Alderwood Mall and all of the surrounding big box stores and strip malls). Just throwing that out because it's a pro for some and a con for others.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by Taiwanhellokitty

Wow, thanks for the advice! What do you think of Lake Forest Park?

Lake Forest Park is great, and still within the city limits, I think (not sure about that). If you like treed neighborhoods like that, try Pinehurst, just NE of Northgate Mall. In-city location, but full of cedar trees. Around downtown Edmonds is very scenic and pleasant. Small-town feel. If you need to commute into Seattle for work, though, the traffic from Edmonds can be challenging at times. It's a significantly longer drive than from Lake Forest Park.

[BellevueNative]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

Lake Forest Park is great, and still within the city limits, I think (not sure about that). If you like treed neighborhoods like that, try Pinehurst, just NE of Northgate Mall. In-city location, but full of cedar trees. Around downtown Edmonds is very scenic and pleasant. Small-town feel. If you need to commute into Seattle for work, though, the traffic from Edmonds can be challenging at times. It's a significantly longer drive than from Lake Forest Park.

Lake Forest Park is definitely its own city (NOT in Seattle city limits, which is a good thing if you ask me). It has its own lakefront civic club you can join if you live in the town and everything. We considered buying a home there, but we were a little worried that the trees would necessitate a lot of home maintenance; though it's beautiful and serene, a house under constant, wet tree cover is dark and will attract mold/moss.

[Blindtom]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

If you need to commute into Seattle for work, though, the traffic from Edmonds can be challenging at times. It's a significantly longer drive than from Lake Forest Park.

There is the option of taking the train from Edmonds into Seattle.