Husband got job in Kent- where's a family to live?? (Seattle: best neighborhoods, for sale)

[fjb903]

I've scoured these boards- thanks for lots of good info. I'm still unsure, though, about where I can find the *perfect* place to raise my family. My husband will be moved within the family trucking business to a position in Kent, so I don't want him to be sitting in traffic for hours. Is it possible to live in Bellevue, Redmond, Issaquah, Covington, and still have a pretty hassle-free communte? Any other ideas of places to live? I'm guessing that there are probably some really nice areas in most places- even those slammed on these boards (like renton, spanaway, kent, etc.) I just need to find out where they are. We are coming from Chicago burbs- we're down-to-earth, friendly people who have never lived anywhere else, so of course we're completely nervous about such a big change. thanks

[scirocco22]

Those areas you mentioned should be "ok" when it comes to commuting to Kent during the normal rush hours in that it is essentially a reverse commute. In other words, he'll be going against the heavy traffic down I-405 and SR167 during the morning commute. The trip home will be worse but still the majority of traffic will be flowing in the opposite direction.

As you've probably deduced, there is no such thing as a "hassle free commute" in the Seattle metro area.

Good luck!

Thanks.

--'rocco

[MomInVA]

Try looking into Auburn or even Sumner where I grew up..

[AzDreamer]

If you don't need to be near all the congestion I recommend you avoid it. There are good areas near Kent where down-to-earth, friendly people will be happy.

[MomInVA]

Originally Posted by MomInVA

Try looking into Auburn or even Sumner where I grew up..

O.k. I changed my mind about Sumner.. It stinks when you enter, because of the sewer plant right off of the freeway.. That is why my little small town that I grew up in always got called Scumner.. However it is growing....

[delftblue]

My husband and I are from the Chicago area and moved to Washington in 2000. After looking for the perfect place for 3 years, we chose Sumner.

Sumner is one of the few towns that is actually serviced by Seattle's major commuter train, the Sounder.

Sumner is very charming, very well kept as there is tremendous pride in home ownership. Gorgeous yards and some beautiful views of Mt Rainier. The downtown core is historic and is full of great little shops, cafes and restaurants. Many fun places are within walking distance if you were to choose one of the older, more charming homes in the downtown area. There are also many new housing areas to choose from as well.

We lived on the eastside (Issaquah, Redmond) and in Bothell for a while and unless you are willing to spend your life sitting in traffic and are ready to spend over $500K on a semi decent condo or starter type home- don't even waste your time. We didn't enjoy life there at all. There is a nice selection of restaurants (some great ethnic) and shops and you are closer to Seattle (20 or so miles compared to 30 from Sumner), but that's about it. I'd spend my lunch hour in Issaquah driving one mile to take my dog out. Literally- 30 minutes each way. The homes have been built on top of each other and have no land. Don't be fooled by the pretty pictures- especially Issaquah and Sammamish, Redmond, Kirkland, etc. It was one giant headache.

Being from Chicago, you understand that most people commute pretty far from the city, if that is where they work. Sometimes an hour or more. For some reason, people out here don't consider anything directly outside of Seattle a suburb. No one seems to be too willing to commute to what they consider the "boonies", which would be like saying someone working in Chicago wouldn't live north of Evanston. Can you imagine Glenview, Northbrook, Lake Forest not being considered a suburb? Being called the boonies. That's how it is here. Unless it's under 15-20 miles, you live in no man's land apparently. Very Strange and we haven't quite been able to figure that one out.

We are extremely picky people when it comes to the community we want to live in and we wouldn't pay to live somewhere like Bellevue or Issaquah as much of it is very trashy and way overpriced (think chain link fences and beer bottles and trucks in the front yard). These are the "affordable" homes at $500K a pop if you're lucky. Plus, these so called great suburbs aren't even serviced by the Sounder train (the only commuter train in Washington). Funny. There are definitely some gorgeous homes- if you want to spend over a million and live on top of your neighbor to boot.

Sumner, as well as a few of the surrounding areas, is clean, safe- almost Mayberry-esque. There is a fantastic hospital 8 minutes away in Puyallup. There is easy access from the freeways as well as back roads and next to no traffic in the town (which you'll really appreciate coming from Chicago).

Stay away from Tacoma, Lakewood, Auburn, Kent, & Covington as these are pretty sketchy as far as safety and a there isn't much of a consistent feeling of pride of ownership. Kent also houses a huge correctional center.

If you want class and more house for your money, look south at Sumner, Bonney Lake & Lake Tapps/Lakeland Hills (no train, but close to Sumner and gorgeous views of Mt Rainier) or Puyallup.

Our second choice would've been North Bend. It's about 30 miles east of Seattle, directly on I-90. It's beautiful. The downside for us was lack of close and decent healthcare and no commuter train. It's a lot more expensive than Sumner (although a little less than the eastside), but very charming and absolutely breathtaking. Worth checking into.

And as far as the smell goes...... I usually smell it 2 or 3 times a year- and only as I'm passing the little building that sits at one of 6 entrances to Sumner. It's not bad at all (especially compared to Tacoma- but that's another topic!).

Hope this helps. Good luck!

[milodeamara]

Stay away from Tacoma, Lakewood, Auburn, Kent, & Covington as these are pretty sketchy as far as safety and a there isn't much of a consistent feeling of pride of ownership. Kent also houses a huge correctional center.

I tend to agree with a tiny part of this, but even in these areas there are nice places. In Auburn and Kent you can also catch the Sounder train. Kent does have the Regional Justice Center downtown, but I guess I don't really pay that much attention to it since I work in property management and have had to go to court there several times. It is not an unattractive building at all that screams out "JAIL HERE".

So whatever you decide, I wish you the best!

[PNWAlex]

If I were looking for a family friendly place that would be an extremely easy commute to Kent it would be the Fairwood area, which is just southeast of Renton and is in the Kent school district. It is in the Kent school district which some consider to not be the greatest but the schools in the Fairwood area are quite good and while some of the surrounding areas are somewhat sketchy they are not areas that I would consider unsafe or unpleasant. I feel that the people in this area are more down to earth and a little bit of diversity never hurt anybody.

[delftblue]

Originally Posted by milodeamara

I tend to agree with a tiny part of this, but even in these areas there are nice places. In Auburn and Kent you can also catch the Sounder train. Kent does have the Regional Justice Center downtown, but I guess I don't really pay that much attention to it since I work in property management and have had to go to court there several times. It is not an unattractive building at all that screams out "JAIL HERE".

So whatever you decide, I wish you the best!

This is absolutely right, there are always "good" and "bad" areas of nearly any town. However, I really feel that all things being equal, there are proportionately many greater vicinities of Tacoma, Lakewood, Auburn, Kent, & Covington that are very questionable.

The train is available in Kent and Auburn (Auburn has fantastic parking). I was trying to stress that it wasn't available anywhere on the eastside- which I find ironic since the eastside is such a "hot" place to buy real estate apparently.

Another bonus to working in Kent is that if you choose to go south- your commute options are greater for driving somewhere other than the main arterial (hwy 167). You can take one of two smaller freeways that basically run parallel to hwy 167 and are a straight shot all the way to Sumner. Sure, they can get busy at times, but you will not find anything equal going from Kent to the eastside that isn't a complete nightmare and stop and go through little neighborhoods that take you far, far off the beaten path.

Give the South Sound a chance- don't be swayed by the Bellevue/Kirkland/Issaquah game. You'll get much more for your money and find a friendlier crowd in any number of gorgeous and well maintained communities just a few miles south.

[kgrove]

Fairwood is not yet incorporated so a lot of the addresses will say Renton or Maple Valley. The zip code is 98058 for Fairwood. It borders Kent to the north, Renton to the east and Maple Valley to the west.


The schools are INCREDIBLE. You can check out the schools by going to GreatSchools.net Some of the elementary schools are Ridgewood, Carriage Crest, Lake Youngs, Fairwood. The Junior High is Northwood. The High School is Kentridge. Make sure that you pick homes that are in the Kent school district NOT the Renton school district. My kids attend Ridgewood and it has incredible test scores, not to mention the best PTA. Carriage Crest also is an AWSOME school, the test scores are not quite as good because they have an ESL program and a special needs program that brings them down a little bit but they are a really good school. ]

If you go to Windermere Real Estate and type in the zip code it will pull up Fairwood homes for you.

ALL the neighborhoods are very nice, very family/kid friendly. Lots of parks, walking trails, etc. The homes are still pretty reasonably priced for seattle. There are a TON of large homes for sale for under $500k. We live in the neighborhood of Carriagewood and I think it is one of the best neighborhoods on earth. EVERYONE is super nice, the homes are all well-kept and there are kids in every other house.

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