Seattle as Most Secure City (Tacoma, Vancouver: rent, condo, mortgage)

[goldengrain]

This is a blog that cites studies that show Seattle as a very favorable place to be, for those who gravitate towards cities.

Don't sweat it: Seattle named most secure city

Hhmm - most fun and 'least manly', whatever that means. ( Ok, lack of monster truck rallies).

For all it's worth, the 'fun city' 10 top, based on spending on entertainment and attendance of block parties and surrounding scenary, among others:


1. Seattle, WA
2. Minneapolis, MN
3. San Francisco, CA
4. Chicago, IL
5. Washington, D.C.
6. San Jose, CA
7. Los Angeles, CA
8. Boston, MA
9. San Diego, CA
10. New York, NY


They are almost all taken from the northern half of the country, where there are also lower divorce rates.


l

[pw72]

You know, I'm beginning to wonder if Seattle reaches the top of a lot these polls not based on anything factual or scientific, but because 1) Seattle has become somewhat of a unique, superstar type of city, based on Microsoft, Amazon, Starbucks, grunge rock, etc., and 2) it is so apart from the rest of the U.S., it always demands attention (kind of the black sheep of the family, so to speak). The best example would be, Seattle is the most frequent users of libraries (implication it is so gloomy there is nothing else to do.) I think Seattle stands out as an example of a city that many pollsters MUST include for these reasons. Also, I notice many of these polls originate on MSN.com. (Hometown research?) Kind of a weird phenomenom.

[Ira500]

They based this "most secure" ranking on job growth and minimal housing depreciation.
While it's true that some neighborhoods in the city like Phinney and Wallingford and North Capitol Hill have seen home prices drop less than other cities, neighborhoods like Rainier Beach and West Seattle and Lake City have gone down a lot, and some of the outlying areas have really tanked, but we didn't start our descent in home prices until maybe a year after a lot of cities...
And it seems like everyday I'm reading about another local employer laying people off...seems to me that secure and layoff don't fit.
Maybe it's all relative, and maybe there are fewer job losses here, but people are worried about losing their jobs while their home values plummet. That doesn't sound like secure.

[Anders15]

The site is based on Seattle anyways, is this biased maybe?

[goldengrain]

Originally Posted by RonMaverick804

The site is based on Seattle anyways, is this biased maybe?

maybe, dunno.

[KGreene]

Job growth? hmmm. Housing depreciation is a good thing and might actually give people a chance at owning a $250K 700 square foot studio condo now. Yay! My time has finally come!!!! I am so lucky!

[Ira500]

KGreene,
I agree with you. If people can't afford houses, and they're coming down in price, isn't that a good thing?

[KGreene]

Originally Posted by Ira500

KGreene,
I agree with you. If people can't afford houses, and they're coming down in price, isn't that a good thing?

Its sad. My husband and I work really hard, make almost 60K combined (which in Seattle is basically poverty level- sorry but its true- we spend money on NO extras) and we can only rent. Granted, we want to stay in the city limits. Right now we're renting a small house in Queen Anne for $1700/mo. ouch! People say we're crazy because thats a mortgage- yes, but it is a mortgage on a TINY condo- That is just a no go for us! So, yes Its a great thing for people that housing is coming down!

I hope one day we will own...

[Jake840]

That list is a bit old. I did a post on my blog about it in December.

Here are the top 5's:

Large Metro Areas (500,000 or more residents)
1. Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, Wash.
2. Portland-Beaverton, Ore./Vancouver, Wash.
3. Honolulu, Hawaii
4. El Paso, Tex.
5. Tacoma, Wash.

Mid-Size Cities (150,000 - 500,000 residents)
1. Olympia, Wash.
2. Las Cruces, N.M.
3. Salem, Ore.
4. Bremerton-Silverdale, Wash.
5. Bellingham, Wash

Small Towns (Fewer than 150,000 residents)
1. Corvallis, Ore.
2. Bismarck, N.D.
3. Logan, Utah
4. Wenatchee, Wash.
5. State College, Pa.

[JesseJames34]

Originally Posted by KGreene

Its sad. My husband and I work really hard, make almost 60K combined (which in Seattle is basically poverty level- sorry but its true- we spend money on NO extras) and we can only rent. Granted, we want to stay in the city limits. Right now we're renting a small house in Queen Anne for $1700/mo. ouch! People say we're crazy because thats a mortgage- yes, but it is a mortgage on a TINY condo- That is just a no go for us! So, yes Its a great thing for people that housing is coming down!

I hope one day we will own...

keep wasting 1700 a month on rent and you may never own. you can rent for half that in a 2 bedroom and save the other half. then maybe in 5 years you will enough for a substantial down payment and your salary will be less important than it is without a substantial down payment.