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We're considering a relocation to the northern Seattle area. We have two young kids involved in sports/dance & we want excellent public schools along with a diverse, small-town feel... can you all provide feedback regarding the above locations? Housing availability/pricing? Kid-friendly activities? Benefits of living closer to coast vs. lake? Pros/cons to any and all of the above? Other suggestions?
Have you been to any of these towns? They're not really small towns, so they lack that small town feel. All of them are pretty much suburban and they do have have some traffic in and around them. They offer a lot in regards to community participation, activities, et. c. ("Culture" options would be more through Seattle.) You might as well add Lake Forest Park... for the Shoreline School District which is very good.
Bothell, Edmonds and Mukilteo all have downtown core which are pretty neat-- Edmonds IMHO the nicest of them all, though its energy is very understated. Mukilteo DT core is very tiny, but the wonderful waterfront park (Lighthouse park) more than makes up for it. When it comes to Mukilteo, its always best to get the house on the hill facing Puget Sound and Olympic range... and they've got quite some steep hills. Mukilteo and Edmonds have the Sounder commuter train stations, but you probably find the bus option to be better to take than the train. All cities listed have lots of buses going to Seattle DT. Mill Creek originated as a planned suburban community. Very (relatively) affordable right now. Kenmore out of all of these is less (well) regarded... People mostly just clump them with Bothell.
If small town (feel) is what you're looking for, then you'd have to look further out... like Carnation, Duvall, Monroe et. c.
Edmonds does have the nicest downtown area of the places mentioned, and nice views. If the commute is going to be to Mountlake Terrace, Edmonds is a really good choice, especially those parts close to Puget Sound...Bothell has a kind of nice old downtown. Kenmore has a 1950's charm, but isn't as cool as Lake Forest Park. All have good schools. Living closer to the sound vs closer to the lake? Houses with lake views are a bit less expensive.
Have you been to any of these towns? They're not really small towns, so they lack that small town feel. All of them are pretty much suburban and they do have have some traffic in and around them. They offer a lot in regards to community participation, activities, et. c. ("Culture" options would be more through Seattle.) You might as well add Lake Forest Park... for the Shoreline School District which is very good.
Bothell, Edmonds and Mukilteo all have downtown core which are pretty neat-- Edmonds IMHO the nicest of them all, though its energy is very understated. Mukilteo DT core is very tiny, but the wonderful waterfront park (Lighthouse park) more than makes up for it. When it comes to Mukilteo, its always best to get the house on the hill facing Puget Sound and Olympic range... and they've got quite some steep hills. Mukilteo and Edmonds have the Sounder commuter train stations, but you probably find the bus option to be better to take than the train. All cities listed have lots of buses going to Seattle DT. Mill Creek originated as a planned suburban community. Very (relatively) affordable right now. Kenmore out of all of these is less (well) regarded... People mostly just clump them with Bothell.
If small town (feel) is what you're looking for, then you'd have to look further out... like Carnation, Duvall, Monroe et. c.
Mill Creek is not that affordable. Bothell is.
Edmonds, Mukilteo, Mill Creek are all nice small towns.
The problem is there is no way to tell where one town starts and the other begins.
It's sprawling suburbia at this point.
Kenmore is older more working class.
Bothell is growing heavily.
From my friends' house-hunting experiences, my looking around, and sources like zillow and even the City-Data website... it all pointed Bothell being more affordable than Mill Creek.
Mill Creek also had to deal with having a glut of inventory that wasn't moving, though that trend may not still be as valid this year.
All great feedback - thank you all for your posts.
From my perspective, all of the above are small "towns" or suburbs - where we live now feels like a small town & we have a population of about 125-130k, so I think it's all relative!!
One of you mentioned Lake Forest Park - any input from all of you experts on what this community is like?
Now... if I were to narrow it down between Mukilteo & Mill Creek, would I be missing anything huge that one of the other areas offers?
Thanks again - all of this info is so valuable & helpful as we go through the decision-making process!!
Mukilteo has Puget Sound. Ferries. Views of the Olympic Mountans. A lighthouse. But Mill Creek has views of the Cascades, lots more easily reached shopping, and more houses for sale.
What I like about Lake Forest Park is what some people don't like. Most of the houses are mid century modern, not too common around here. Big windows, tall ceilings, wood beams. Huge trees. Lake Forest park also has a cool shopping mall, if there is such a thing. It's the hangout space, with a big commons area, independent eateries, Honey Bear Bakery. Lake Forest Park has an unkempt, overgrown quality about it, which is something I like about it. It's not a place where people have identical houses with neatly manicured lawns.
All great feedback - thank you all for your posts.
From my perspective, all of the above are small "towns" or suburbs - where we live now feels like a small town & we have a population of about 125-130k, so I think it's all relative!!
One of you mentioned Lake Forest Park - any input from all of you experts on what this community is like?
Now... if I were to narrow it down between Mukilteo & Mill Creek, would I be missing anything huge that one of the other areas offers?
Thanks again - all of this info is so valuable & helpful as we go through the decision-making process!!
I think you should at least visit these areas. Ira explains LFP very well.
Personally... my preference would put Edmonds/Woodway and Bothell/Kenmore just because they are less bland than Mill Creek/Mukilteo. My husband also works in the DT area and so therefore, he would prefer an easier commute which MC/Mukilteo wouldn't provide given A.) Distance and B.) These two towns got some crap traffic around.
Mill Creek doesn't really have a DT setting. It's a planned suburban community, originated by a group of Japanese fellows, but its hardly Japanese now.
Mukilteo does have one, albeit a tiny one. But the DT is disconnected to the rest of Mukilteo and the ferry traffic can make it annoying to get to DT. Especially given that there's a limited space in parking in that area. But the park is nice indeed.
They're all very different from each other in vibes. So, I personally wouldn't suggest eliminating the others off the table just yet.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Inkpoe
Please post your sources.
From my friends' house-hunting experiences, my looking around, and sources like zillow and even the City-Data website... it all pointed Bothell being more affordable than Mill Creek.
Mill Creek also had to deal with having a glut of inventory that wasn't moving, though that trend may not still be as valid this year.
Ok... I don't know why I posted this at all, it wasn't clear (and evidently I misread N2Sea's comment-- poster wasn't actually disputing me)... I will clarify: MC has a glut of houses which makes it a lot more affordable than it was before.
Bothell is definitely the affordable one, but it also has a much more variable in its socioeconomic classes. MC is more "higher end" than Bothell and people are a bit more well-off (though not "rich" like the Eastside).
I think you should at least visit these areas. Ira explains LFP very well.
Personally... my preference would put Edmonds/Woodway and Bothell/Kenmore just because they are less bland than Mill Creek/Mukilteo. My husband also works in the DT area and so therefore, he would prefer an easier commute which MC/Mukilteo wouldn't provide given A.) Distance and B.) These two towns got some crap traffic around.
Mill Creek doesn't really have a DT setting. It's a planned suburban community, originated by a group of Japanese fellows, but its hardly Japanese now.
Mukilteo does have one, albeit a tiny one. But the DT is disconnected to the rest of Mukilteo and the ferry traffic can make it annoying to get to DT. Especially given that there's a limited space in parking in that area. But the park is nice indeed.
They're all very different from each other in vibes. So, I personally wouldn't suggest eliminating the others off the table just yet.
Ok... I don't know why I posted this at all, it wasn't clear (and evidently I misread N2Sea's comment-- poster wasn't actually disputing me)... I will clarify: MC has a glut of houses which makes it a lot more affordable than it was before.
Bothell is definitely the affordable one, but it also has a much more variable in its socioeconomic classes. MC is more "higher end" than Bothell and people are a bit more well-off (though not "rich" like the Eastside).
So, never mind my post to that... LOL
1. Mill Creek does NOT have a glut of houses currently. There are some new tract homes for sale in the northeastern part of town bordering Silver Lake, but otherwise the houses that come up for sale in the neighborhoods developed in the 80s & 90s do not last long. We just bought a house there...it was on the market for one week, and there were multiple offers. Others we toured went pending in just a few days. If you want to group the $700K homes in with the "affordable" homes (by MC standards) you might end up with more inventory, but people who can/want to pay that for a house probably aren't interested in most of Kenmore/Bothell.
2. Bothell and Kenmore have HORRIBLE traffic getting to either Seattle or Bellevue during commuting hours. I used to live in Kenmore a few years ago, and the traffic on 522 into Seattle every morning made me want to tear my hair out. And God forbid there was an accident on 405; on those days all of the north Kirkland and Woodinville residents would hop onto 522. I can only imagine what it must be like now with 520 being tolled. My husband used to live in Mill Creek, and having done that commute to Seattle, I can tell you that it is no worse than Bothell/Kenmore.
3. Kenmore is the definition of bland. To suggest that Mukilteo and Mill Creek are more bland than Kenmore is laughable. Like I literally laughed when I read that. Kenmore has nice parts - like Arrowhead Point - but so much of the city is zoned very awkwardly. The "downtown" consists of a couple stripmalls and lumber/gravel/granite yards, with a highway running through the middle of it.
4. Mukilteo and Mill Creek may not have big downtowns, either, but at least they're pretty and feel like town cores. Both also have some really good restaurants.
5. I like LFP a lot, though the homes are mostly smaller than what we were looking for. Hardly any inventory. I love the tree cover, but it would have driven my husband crazy. Dark, and mold/moss would be a constant problem.
1.) Fair enough, I did mention in the earlier post that it may not be as valid.
2.) I'll have to disagree here. But again, the OP can do a test-run herself and decide which is worse. I'd rather the Bothell traffic than going up to Mill Creek/Mukilteo.
3.) I obviously clumped Kenmore with Bothell. I have more than several family members living in Kenmore (the eastern part of it) and they spend a lot of time up in Bothell to hang out-- odds are, I'd do it as well. I don't consider Kenmore as having a real downtown core at all.
4.) I really haven't touched on MC DT core but it doesn't really compare to what Bothell, Edmonds, and Mukilteo (even as small as it is) have going on. Though there are lots of stores and it does get busy-- it just doesn't feel like a "downtown".
Quote:
Originally Posted by BellevueNative
1. Mill Creek does NOT have a glut of houses currently. There are some new tract homes for sale in the northeastern part of town bordering Silver Lake, but otherwise the houses that come up for sale in the neighborhoods developed in the 80s & 90s do not last long. We just bought a house there...it was on the market for one week, and there were multiple offers. Others we toured went pending in just a few days. If you want to group the $700K homes in with the "affordable" homes (by MC standards) you might end up with more inventory, but people who can/want to pay that for a house probably aren't interested in most of Kenmore/Bothell.
2. Bothell and Kenmore have HORRIBLE traffic getting to either Seattle or Bellevue during commuting hours. I used to live in Kenmore a few years ago, and the traffic on 522 into Seattle every morning made me want to tear my hair out. And God forbid there was an accident on 405; on those days all of the north Kirkland and Woodinville residents would hop onto 522. I can only imagine what it must be like now with 520 being tolled. My husband used to live in Mill Creek, and having done that commute to Seattle, I can tell you that it is no worse than Bothell/Kenmore.
3. Kenmore is the definition of bland. To suggest that Mukilteo and Mill Creek are more bland than Kenmore is laughable. Like I literally laughed when I read that. Kenmore has nice parts - like Arrowhead Point - but so much of the city is zoned very awkwardly. The "downtown" consists of a couple stripmalls and lumber/gravel/granite yards, with a highway running through the middle of it.
4. Mukilteo and Mill Creek may not have big downtowns, either, but at least they're pretty and feel like town cores. Both also have some really good restaurants.
5. I like LFP a lot, though the homes are mostly smaller than what we were looking for. Hardly any inventory. I love the tree cover, but it would have driven my husband crazy. Dark, and mold/moss would be a constant problem.
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