Where to Live in Seattle?

[CrazyDonkey]

my job requires me to travel to various client sites around the greater metro area, so the faster I can get on the freeways and the less time I can spend in traffic, the happier I'll be.

You're better off being centrally located, in Seattle. Driving across town can be tough, so that eliminates Ballard, Queen Anne, West Seattle, etc. North U District, Roosevelt, Ravenna, east Capitol Hill, and the Central District could have free parking available on the street. You should be able to find a studio for under $1,300 or a one-bedroom for under $1,500 in those areas.

[robin325223]

Crossroads area of Bellevue has some decent areas.

[CrazyDonkey]

Apartments for less than $1,500 (let alone $1,300) are in very short supply in Bellevue. $2,000 would be more realistic. For north-south travel, I'd rather be close to I-5 than I-405 (and getting to I-405 or I-90 from Crossroads, especially in peak periods, is NOT easy). For what he's going to be doing, visiting clients all around the area, he'll be much better off being centrally located in east or central Seattle in a neighborhood where he can find street parking fairly close to where he lives. Seattle also has a much more robust street grid than Bellevue, which means it is much easier to get to and from the freeways (I-5, I-90, and 520). The key to getting around Seattle is learning the "secret routes". Bellevue and the Eastside in general have no secret routes - when one is crammed, they all tend to be.