News, Your salary is $46,075? You can't afford to live in Seattle. (renting, buying a house)

[ttz]

Homes in Tacoma are a lot cheaper than Seattle. That is why a lot of people commute to Seattle from down here. Home prices have dropped a lot this past year. I lost $60,000 on my equity in 1 year. But my home was only worth $260K last year too. I heard other areas lost a lot too, like up to $200K. But again, those homes were in the $800K ranges... It's a good time to buy that is for sure

[jm31828]

Originally Posted by ttz

Homes in Tacoma are a lot cheaper than Seattle. That is why a lot of people commute to Seattle from down here. Home prices have dropped a lot this past year. I lost $60,000 on my equity in 1 year. But my home was only worth $260K last year too. I heard other areas lost a lot too, like up to $200K. But again, those homes were in the $800K ranges... It's a good time to buy that is for sure

Interesting. So do people who live in Tacoma feel it is a very affordable area, or does it still- to a lesser extent- have an overall feel of being "too expensive" as we hear so much from those in Seattle and its metro area?

[70Ford]

The cost of being self-sufficient continues to rise throughout Washington

It's getting more expensive for families to just get by in Washington.

A single parent with one preschooler and one school-age child living in Seattle needs an annual income of $50,268 just to meet the family's most basic requirements, according to the Self-Sufficiency Standard for Washington 2009 report released today. A similar family living in Spokane County would need $38,562. The standard for Seattle jumped 35 percent since 2001 and the increase for Spokane in the same period rose by 28 percent.

East King County has the highest self-sufficiency standard in the state, requiring $57,766 (up 32 percent) for the same size family, while Wahkiakum County has the lowest standard, $29,324 (up 14 percent).


Another gem.
http://www.seattlemedium.com/News/ar...4&ItemSource=L

Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels recently announced that the city of Seattle is awarding $4.3 million in federal and local funding to 10 agencies (for 13 programs) to prevent more than 1,600 low-income households from becoming homeless over the next two years. Another $1.1 million will help more than 100 homeless families move from shelters and the street into affordable housing.

“Especially in these difficult economic times, it is important that we help provide stable housing for our most vulnerable individuals and families,” Nickels said. “This funding will also help quickly move homeless families into permanent housing, supporting our efforts to end the cycle of homelessness.”

The funding, much of it from the federal stimulus, ...
**********************
Hrmmm, Seattle need federal funds to keep people living in Seattle where they can not afford to live.
Makes a lot of sense, if you have like, I dunno, a magic money machine.

[SimplyJodi]

Hi, Jennibc: Thank you! I am a native Houstonian, and I'm glad I'm not the only one a little offended by Casportfan's implications about the South and the Midwest. If you haven't stepped foot in either region personally, how can you open your mouth to comment? Applause, applause!

[grastus]

It's sad to see the lower and middle class disappear from Seattle as more professionals and transplants move in, but meh, Tacoma's looking pretty good right now...

[Radical_Car]

Originally Posted by 70Ford

Population: 563,374
Households: 258,499
Median household income: $45,736
People in poverty: 64,068
Adults with college degree: 53.6%
Median rent: $721

Wait, the median rent in Seattle is only $721? That seems really low...

[Patron of Wrath]

Originally Posted by Radical_Car

Wait, the median rent in Seattle is only $721? That seems really low...

Methinks that reflects the greater Seattle "area", while most people in this post are referencing costs of living in Seattle proper.

[Indie Girl]

Originally Posted by Radical_Car

Wait, the median rent in Seattle is only $721? That seems really low...

According to a recent article in Business Week, Seattle (i.e., Seattle-Bellevue-Everett/Puget Sound area) was the #1 city for biggest drop in rental prices. They list the average monthly rent for apartments at $1,023:

No. 1: Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Wash.

Average monthly rent: $1,023
Annual drop: -13.8%
Q4 2009 drop: -3.5%

[nikdahl]

Did we really need to bring this thread back up?

[Indie Girl]

Originally Posted by nikdahl

Did we really need to bring this thread back up?

Yes--someone had a question about rental prices in this thread (see above).