What are the best neighboring cities in Seattle area for young couples to live? (Tacoma: low crime, affordable houses)

[Malfiore]

My fiancee and I (25 years old), want to move in together, from Pennsylvania to Washington. He is a dental assistant and I have bachelor's in history but I wish to get back to school and study psychology. My ideal job would be librarian or working in a museum.

So we are looking at some cities close to the Seattle area that have affordable houses, good schools, low crime rates of course and place where jobs are not scarce and/or have low wage. We like the nature, the beautiful pine trees and being close to the sea or a lake would be perfect but having a downtown vibe not too far away as well. We don't care much for night life, we don't go out to bars and clubs. The music scene in Seattle is pretty good so we could drive there from time to time to see a good concert. Having public transport available would be nice. And I hopefully not having 300 out of 365 days of the year rain. I don't mind the cold as long as it's sunny and not cloudy and depressive every single day.

The other option is Houston, TX area but I won't talk too much about it here, not to violate the forum rules. Anyway I would really appreciate if some of you could compare the quality of living for what we're looking for in both places (aside from the extreme weather differences).

[Kayela]

I don't mind the cold as long as it's sunny and not cloudy and depressive every single day.

We average <80 sunny days a year (during a normal year). Seattle has somewhat of a reputation for being overcast much of the year. Lots of people move here, claw their way through the first year because 'hey, I don't mind rain', but don't consider the effect of very short days and low, dark cloud cover for a good chunk of the year. By year 2, they completely lose their s***, move to CA, and then come back to this forum repeatedly to spew bitter hate against Seattle, like it personally betrayed them.

I wish I was exaggerating, but it's truly unpleasant to watch. And I'm one of those who loves our cool, grey, misty, drizzly days, but I can easily see how it would get to people (and it does - just search for all the threads with 'grey' in them here and how to deal with the lack of sun).

If you know you need sunshine, why would you do that to yourself?

We do have natural beauty galore, cool neighborhoods, etc, but the lack of sunshine is a deal breaker for many, and from your post, that sounds like it should be something to consider carefully. Please consider visiting in the winter before you move.

[Malfiore]

Thank you so much, I appreciate your sincere response and it means a lot! I personally am very pale and no spf in the world helps to protect my skin from burning. So I don't like the hot & dry climate. I prefer cold and sunny days where the sun doesn't burn like fire in the pits of hell.

[Kayela]

Well - we're a pasty lot allright. Comes from not seeing the sun for months. Have you considered being snowbirds? Live in NM or AZ for the moderate sunny winters, and then move up here for our perfect summers? Otherwise I don't know how to get sunny and cold without also getting sunny and hot (during the summer). Denver/Boulder CO is probably the closest I've come. The summers get pretty hot, but the elevation helps alleviate it quite a bit since the thin air doesn't hold the heat well. The winters are a combination of postcard-perfect snow, that quickly melts in the sunshine.

[GraceKrispy]

Houston metro is more affordable in general. You'll find good schools and relatively safe living in Seattle. I don't think you're going to find the colder/sun very often here in Seattle, however.

I prefer cold and sunny days where the sun doesn't burn like fire in the pits of hell.

Like Kayela said, even when it's not raining, it is very often overcast. You're not going to find a plethora of cold and SUNNY days here. If you like overcast, you'll probably be fine. If you truly want sunny, this may not be your best bet.

I used to live in Northern NM, and then later in Northern AZ. I think that weather is just about perfect and maybe what you're looking for. Lower cost of living, lots of outdoors, lakes in Northern AZ. TONS of sun, but very moderate temperatures (not as cold in winter as some places, although there is snow, and not as hot in summer). Dry, but I never felt like I was burning in the pits of hell

[CrazyDonkey]

I knew someone who was working literally seven days a week at Boeing (massive overtime) who went three months straight without seeing the sun once, because she arrived at work before the sun rose and left after it set, and her workplace had no windows, nor were they allowed to leave for lunch. She later said she was suffering from SAD...

Note: We don't actually have a lot of "pine" trees, in the wild anyway, in western Washington. What we do have is a lot of "fir" trees. There are lots of pine trees on the eastern side of the Cascades, however.

Based on information from your post, I'd say you should look at Everett and Tacoma as possible places to move.

[mkarch]

You're going to pay a lot of money to have what you want here, and that's not even including the cost of frequent flights to places where it isn't dark and gray for 6 months of the year...

[seasallyttle]

Originally Posted by Malfiore

I prefer cold and sunny days where the sun doesn't burn like fire in the pits of hell.

With this you should cross Houston off your list.

[BATCAT]

Originally Posted by Malfiore

Me and my fiancee (25 years old), want to move in together, from Pennsylvania to Washington. He is a dental assistant and I have bachelor's in history but I wish to get back to school and study psychology. My ideal job would be librarian or working in a museum.

So we are looking at some cities close to the Seattle area that have affordable houses, good schools, low crime rates of course and place where jobs are not scarce and/or have low wage. We like the nature, the beautiful pine trees and being close to the sea or a lake would be perfect but having a downtown vibe not too far away as well. We don't care much for night life, we don't go out to bars and clubs. The music scene in Seattle is pretty good so we could drive there from time to time to see a good concert. Having public transport available would be nice. And I hopefully not having 300 out of 365 days of the year rain. I don't mind the cold as long as it's sunny and not cloudy and depressive every single day.

The other option is Houston, TX area but I won't talk too much about it here, not to violate the forum rules. Anyway I would really appreciate if some of you could compare the quality of living for what we're looking for in both places (aside from the extreme weather differences).

I think you should visit the Seattle area, if you haven't already.

"Neighboring cities"... if you mean places like Tacoma, Olympia, and Everett, well, those will check your "close to nature" box, but you're not going to get much of a "downtown vibe" anywhere but metro Seattle. I'm not sure what "not too far away" means, but all three of those are pretty far from downtown Seattle.

There's Bellevue, which is close to Seattle itself, but most would not consider Bellevue when they're looking for affordable housing.

The whole area gets a plentiful clouds and rain except during the summer.

[homesinseattle]

Take a look in the Columbia City and Beacon Hill areas of Seattle, West Seattle too.