Moving from SC to a new job in Bellevue need help finding a place. (Seattle: apartments)

[jibby21]

Hello all,

I may be offered a job at a fantastic place located in Bellevue. (98004 zip code)

I currently live in Greenville South Carolina. So as you can see this is a heck of a move.

I am trying to find something affordable in or near Bellevue or whatever.

Things are a lot more expensive this side of the country.

I would really appreciate some assistance or advice on areas I could look into for apartments that are near or a not so far commute into Bellevue.

Are there any decent "not as expensive" as Bellevue communities (that are safe and nice) that are near Bellevue?

I hope I made sense this is the first time I am moving myself (Ive always had the military move me but Im not in anymore) so far like "from one end of the country to the other kind of far" and I know nothing about Washington.

If you need more info let me know and I will answer.

Thanks

[Hemlock140]

It depends on what you would be making in that new job. Bellevue median family income is $110,000, and other areas nearby are even higher. Homes and rentals are priced accordingly.
Nearby slightly lower prices are in Renton, Newcastle, and Bothell, but they are still much more expensive than SC. To get a significantly lower priced area means an hour or more commute to an area like Maple Valley, Auburn, Snohomish or Monroe.

[Ira500]

If you're renting as opposed to buying, parts of Bellevue are significantly lower cost than others. DT Bellevue, where you'll be working, is sky high. Crossroads and Lake Hills, much less so. Newcastle has some more reasonably priced apartments, as does Renton. Renton has good bus service to Bellevue.

[jibby21]

Hello,

Thanks for the responses.

I am looking to rent for now until I get established in my position.

So for a year or 2 if I move yes I will be renting. So it would be apartments I am looking at.

[jibby21]

Out of the communities that IRA500 mentioned like Renton, crossroads etc etc are they ok places? I looked at a few places in Renton its about a 20 minute drive mostly on the highway into Bellevue to where I would be working but that does not take into account highway traffic and times of day.

Any feedback. ideas or suggestions. I would be renting an apartment. 2 bedrooms preferably. Decent location that's about all I ask near places to shop buy food etc etc. Oh and do any of these areas have decent hospitals or medical offices. My wife will be joining me after a few months and she is a medical assistant so she will need to find work somewhere.

Im just trying to get a layout of the land per say.

Thank you again

[Ira500]

Renton is a mixed bag, with nice parts and not so nice parts. The parts closer to Bellevue are nice, and Newcastle is nice and in between the two. I don't know what you're willing to afford, but there's a pleasant shopping area in North Renton called The Landing, with some newer apartment buildings adjacent to it called The Reserve, and The Sanctuary. There are ways to drive to Bellevue from Renton that avoid that horrible freeway 405...Bellevue has Overlake Hospital, nearby Kirkland has Evergreen, and Renton has Valley Medical, all decent hospitals with surrounding medical offices.

[Kalex]

welcome! I grew up in SC and just moved here from Charlotte. Bellevue is similar in size to Greenville but exponentially more diverse and way upscale. It's more of small city where the others mentioned are smaller towns. It has a ton of parks and a good many trails, possibly too much chain-store shopping and a LOT of traffic congestion at rush hour. We live in Issaquah and drive to Bellevue daily for school. I agree that 405 South is bad news at rush hour. I drive against it and it looks bad for Seattle, but not as bad as what I dealt with in Charlotte. We're relatively new so I don't know enough to comment about the other areas mentioned. But Renton is definitely all over the place. Much more typical suburban with nice and not-that-great. It has a lot more newer housing than I've seen in most of the towns we've explored.

Feel free to message me if you have any questions. It seems just about everything is much different here. Most things are more expensive but others, like organic/natural foods, are much cheaper.

[Kayela]

Out of the communities that IRA500 mentioned like Renton, crossroads etc etc are they ok places?

I can't speak for Renton, but I lived in the Crossroads area for 3 years. I really liked it. You're convenient to the Crossroads shopping area and a Trader Joe's, Fred Meyer and Safeway. I really miss Uwajimaya, but there's a new Walgreen's going in. That area and the adjacent area is also full of smaller mom 'n pop places and ethnic restaurants in addition to some larger chain stores (like Old Navy, Sears, Marshall's, etc). The population there is really diverse and there are frequent cultural events at the Crossroads Mall. The part we lived in was comprised mostly of immigrant families attracted by high-tech employment. The bulk of our neighbors seemed determined to work hard and make a good life in new country for themselves and their kids. It's the down-to-earth part of Bellevue that most people don't know that well. It's also quite safe and pretty family-oriented. In fact it can be a tad boring after 8 pm.

It is very convenient to DT Bellevue, but a bit more of hike to Seattle. It's also a quick trip to Redmond, and Kirkland is also pretty convenient. The biggest reason we moved away is that, as a young, childless couple - we were always driving to Seattle for entertainment, and because most of our friends seemed to live there. Eventually we decided that Crossroads was a bit too suburban for our preferences, but I still love going back to the old neighborhood.

[Blondebaerde]

I've been to Greenville. Definitely a different situation here (Bellevue). I live in Kirkland, next city (suburbia) to the north. Wikipedia now calls Bellevue an "edge city" or "boomburb," hadn't heard those terms before. Point being it's a city outside the city (of Seattle) with its own ecosystem, we might say.

Call the two ecosystems Seattle-side, and eastside, for purposes of illustration. N'er the twain shall meet, though they are connected by an onerous bridge called "the 520." Proper name, I believe: "Evergreen Point Floating Bridge." IMO, "PITA" would be a good shorthand.

Not sure what "affordable" means, in your context: Wikipedia also indicates median income in Bellevue for a "household" is $81,184. A "family," $99,822 (2008 data). Make of that what you will, the data is (are) out there. Eastside can be a bit expensive, from not-so-much to $10M lakeside estates.

I lived in Mill Creek, 20 miles north, and commuted to eastside for 11 years. In a word, that sucked. I "saved" money buying in Mill Creek, a nice little bedroom community, but disliked 40 min to 1hr 20 min commutes (each way) daily. Depends on your tolerance for all that, I guess.

Personally, renting as you are, I'd suggest finding something in Bellevue-proper. There are plenty of complexes, from not-so-nice to quite-nice. I lived condo life and didn't really mind, so have at it and good luck if that's your thing.

Oh, if that doesn't suit, Kirkland and Redmond are similar: both homes and condos for-rent. Interesting to note median income in Kirkland is less than Bellevue: I would not have guessed that, but I'm kind of tucked into a neat little neighborhood in Kirkland and may have tunnel vision. All are generally nice, safe places (ref: Wikipedia again).

Spiral out from there (Bellevue-Kirkland-Redmond), commute times increase a little to a lot, so pick your poison.