Sprague?? (Spokane, South Hill: low income, 2013, apartment)

[blueshix]

I may be moving to Sprague, cheap housing, not bad commute to Spokane. Any info on the people, town, ect would be appreciated. Thanks

[ILoveSpokane]

From what I know, it is a very small town. 1 grocery store (and it isn't a main chain). One locally own burger joint (which makes great burgers) and one or two gas stations. Looking at a 30 minute commute I would think (30 miles). Good luck!

[fy10fyr]

Personally, with gas going the way it is, I'd try and be closer in, especially if you'll be commuting every day. Spokane isn't a place that's so expensive that you need to be that far out to find an affordable place.

Just my $.02.

[st33lcas3]

Originally Posted by blueshix

...not bad commute to Spokane.

You won't be thinking that during the winters. It's a long, cold, icy drive into Spokane from Sprague.

[ArcticPhoenix]

I agree with st33l and fy10fyr. You should definitely look at something closer to Spokane, something only a few miles from where you work. This is good for several logical reasons.

1. You're saving on the environment. You're burning less fossil fuels and therefore, polluting the environment less.
2. You're saving money. Gas is expensive and is only going to climb. Even if you're driving a fuel efficient vehicle and maybe commuting by motorcycle during the nice months of the year (usually April to September), you're going to pay through your nose in gas prices.
3. Time wasted. Time is money in our society, and who needs a 30 minute or more commute? I live five miles from my one job, two miles from my 2nd job, and am just 3 miles from my college. My total commute if I do both things never equals more than 15 miles in a day, and it's never more than 25 minutes total driving time between EVERYTHING, multiple trips. It's quite easy to do this. And, this also means less time spent away from home. Who wants to spend an hour and a half or more in their car every day? Especially when you don't have to? A 5 minute commute is much nicer, and doable in Spokane, if you live in the right place.
4. Winter-time driving. We had a near record-breaking winter this last winter.... There were a few days when my car couldn't get out of our apartment's parking lot, let alone onto the freeway. Hell, even de-icer trucks were sliding off the roads. 30 miles in that kind of shiat is impossible, especially when 5 miles was often times difficult at best. And the winters are long. They start in November (a couple of years ago, it snowed pretty heavily and November and stuck around for a LONG time), and don't usually end until March. Sometimes late march, and I've even seen it snow here in May, and I've been here less than 5 years.
5. Vehicle wear-and-tear. Your car will wear out much faster if you're commuting 60+ miles to work every day, as opposed to 10 or even 20. If you commute 10 miles to work, you're cutting your driving time and wear and tear on your vehicle by 2/3s. With today's vehicle prices, gas prices, and low incomes, this can be an incredible expense, even if you have a warranty, because not all vehicles have 10 year 100,000 warranties, and even if you do, you will go through that warranty very quickly.

So, in the end, I would suggest something much closer to where you work. If you work on the South Hill, try to find a place to live on the South Hill. If you work downtown, try to find something in the city of Spokane, maybe on the north side or the like. Either way, don't pick a place where you're 30 miles away from where you work. That's partly what's gotten America into the place we're in right now.

[blueshix]

Thanks for all the input. I will definatley rethink Sprague, due to the long commute.

[ArcticPhoenix]

Originally Posted by blueshix

Thanks for all the input. I will definatley rethink Sprague, due to the long commute.

Would you be able to telecommute to your job?

[xboxmas]

Theres not much out there in Sprague either.

[Dave Thompson]

I gew up in Spokane in what I considered one of the better areas. I thought it would be my city to live for the rest of my life. In reveiwing the atributes of Spokane for our family we found, the police in our yard three times in one week (over a meth bust, stolen car piled up next door, and a joy ride hiting all the cars down the block), unfriendly community, agressive, not able to let our own kids play in our yard with out being right there, oh and love those photo tickets, highest property taxes in Washington. on and on.........So... we moved to Sprague. I found my commute time was the same as the traffic filled Spokane. Very friendly helpful people, who care about you, slower meaningful pace of life, taxes 1/4 of Spokane, milder winters with less snow, a lot of recreation around us..... ie bike trails, fishing, lakes, hunting, hiking. exploring. Why yes.... evaluate. Family or lets just save our environment and be close to our job. Pathetic thinking. (especially when your most likely burning up more gas in traffic) There are many ways to save just as much resources than being miserable. After a year and a half you couldn't pry us away from here. We are seeing many younger families coming in as well as the retired discovering what we have found. Don't get me wrong. If you injoy the big city life and all that goes with it especially the politics and crime (some of the highest in the nation) than Spokane is for you. If you need a break and quality of life and able to easily access the good of Spokane... This is it. Sprague.

[Deena160]

There are some good deals out there for rural home loans right now, too. It was tempting. Unfortunately, the outlieing areas wouldn't have the particular services my family would need.
Don't ask me where to find it, but I've seen stats that when you pay less for a house that's farther away from "town" you end up making up the difference in how much gas you use anyway.
Ultimately, you need to go where your heart leads you for your family's particular needs. I'm a suburb girl myself and will be ending up on a quiet street in the Valley. :~) D