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Old 03-07-2013, 10:54 AM
 
Location: Kansas City, Mo
35 posts, read 105,764 times
Reputation: 51

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I see lots of people talking about moving to the Seattle area who are engineers, programmers, ect. The kinds of jobs you hear and think make pretty darn good money. My husband and I are interested in moving to the Seattle "area" because of the wonderful weather (I say that seriously) and we have many friends and some family up in the area. It also is a big sell to us that it is known as being VERY dog friendly. We have two beautiful Rottweilers who we love to spend time with and train (we enjoy agility).

We both work for a big box retailer, and are able to request a transfer within the company. We currently live in Missouri, in a VERY low income area, but we make a decent hourly wage (with the company 13 years) and know that we would get a pay increase for cost of living wherever we go. I am however concerned with being able to afford Washington. I assume that people who don't work for Google, Microsoft, Amazon, ect are still able to live normal lives there? We don't have children (and wont be having any), and aren't looking (or interested in) to live in the city of Seattle it's self. We are interested in living somewhere no further than about an hour to 1.5 hours drive around the Seattle area. What kind of places are affordable for our situation? Is it going to be an okay life where we can spend more time outside with our dogs? (Don't mind the rain, but we certainly hate the Missouri weather!)
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Old 03-07-2013, 11:00 AM
 
38 posts, read 68,915 times
Reputation: 53
There are definitely place to live North, South and West at 1 1/2 hours from the city.

But....

Without wanting to pry,

We need to know how much you can or want to spend on rent and/or a mortgage.

You do not have to answer of course.
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Old 03-07-2013, 11:10 AM
 
Location: Kansas City, Mo
35 posts, read 105,764 times
Reputation: 51
I would hope we could start out in something small and under $1,000 mo. Our mortgage out here is only $650, but even on our current income we could go up a couple hundred a month and be okay.
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Old 03-07-2013, 11:23 AM
 
38 posts, read 68,915 times
Reputation: 53
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cherry Heart View Post
I would hope we could start out in something small and under $1,000 mo. Our mortgage out here is only $650, but even on our current income we could go up a couple hundred a month and be okay.
Under a $1,000 per month up to and 1 1/2 hour away should be easily done.

With no kids.

One or two bedrooms? House, or apartment?

With your mortgage you have, perhaps you could rent out the house.

Where I will go, one-bedroom apartments are going for $650 (not including utils).

Personally, I feel the Seattle area cost of housing is too high, and I am only returning for a short time.
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Old 03-07-2013, 12:01 PM
 
1,638 posts, read 3,816,417 times
Reputation: 3501
The cost of housing is the killer here. We came from NC where our mortgage was 1/3 less than what we pay to live in a smaller rental home. I guess as long as you're willing to accept that you'll never buy a home, always live in apartments, and won't have extra money for much of anything.....come on up! lol Seriously, we came here on a decent salary but quickly realized it was not enough. Thankfully my husband just got a huge pay increase and a new job, but we also have 4 kids and live on one income. I don't expect we'll ever be able to buy a house here, if not for a very, very long time.
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Old 03-07-2013, 12:15 PM
 
46 posts, read 164,196 times
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I don't really understand how much dog friendlier you think it is going to be. Do they not have dog parks or hiking trails in MO? You are not going to be able take your dog to the movie theater or anything!

Anyway, $1000 to rent a small house is going to be really tough. I don't think you will be able to rent an apartment with 2 big dogs unless it is a really run down apartment. If you work at a big box store I assume you will have to be working near a mall so you will have to be near the Seattle area. Remember that traffic is BAD so you will pretty much be forced to live within 10 miles of a mall if you want to keep the commute under 45 minutes.

Also, just to be real, it is going to be really tough to find somebody willing to rent out their house to somebody with 2 rottweilers.
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Old 03-07-2013, 12:26 PM
 
Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
5,281 posts, read 6,553,690 times
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I'm originally from Kansas City. I haven't lived there in 20 years. But Seattle is a MAJOR jump in cost of living. And I mean major. $650 a month is high end rent in Kansas City. In Seattle it's a run down apartment, probably in the ghetto somewhere. That's just me being real with you.

I'm not sure how much Portland is though. I know it's cheaper, and from what I understand, it has similar weather. I can understand why someone would love the weather in Seattle, because I adore it myself. After living in Missouri, DC, Atlanta, and NYC I love it's mildness. A lot of people can't appreciate Seattle's weather.

Seattle is a nice town though. There some things I don't personally like about it, but that's all personal. You REALLY don't want to buy a house here unless you're pulling in a lot of bank. I gross a 6 figure salary (net substantially less) and I wouldn't dream of getting a house in Seattle. You definitely don't want to handcuff yourself here in case your financial situation change. It's a tough city if you're not in the tech market.
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Old 03-07-2013, 01:11 PM
 
Location: Kansas City, Mo
35 posts, read 105,764 times
Reputation: 51
Quote:
Originally Posted by bxtx View Post
I don't really understand how much dog friendlier you think it is going to be. Do they not have dog parks or hiking trails in MO? You are not going to be able take your dog to the movie theater or anything!
Surprisingly there are not as many conformation shows, agility trials, herding facilities, ect in Missouri. While there is a nice long boring dirt trail we walk, it doesn't quite have the scenery (or weather) for really enjoying it. My friends and family in the Seattle area enjoy taking their dogs to the beach, herding, agility, and multiple other activities. While I may not be taking them to the movies with me, it would be nice to do something besides walk the dirt trail. And I choose not to take my dogs the 70miles to the dog park.
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Old 03-07-2013, 02:39 PM
 
5,075 posts, read 11,005,302 times
Reputation: 4664
There are inexpensive homes in the "Seattle area", some you may even be able to buy with a $650/mo mortgage. They're just older, not updated and/or not located in chi-chi neighborhoods.

There are currently 45 active listings in King County for single family homes priced under $125K. Snohomish County has 50 listings, and Pierce has over 200! Yes, many are in what would be considered "bad" neighborhoods, but others are just smaller or in need of work. If you're not afraid to get your hands dirty fixing one up, there are some decent ones available. Not nearly as many was there were a year ago, but they do exist.

I've seen some recent resale townhomes (newer, nicer ones) in decent parts of Kent for around that price.
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Old 03-07-2013, 03:40 PM
 
7,743 posts, read 15,802,417 times
Reputation: 10451
There are homes in the Seattle area that are less than 150K and you don't even have to be that far from DT Seattle. And like mkarch says: they're usually older, doesn't have as much update and/or location isn't as trendy. Areas like Renton, Burien, Kent, Des Moines, Mountlake Terrace, et. c.
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