Young family looking to relocate (Everett, Olympia: renting, to buy, construction)

[Leannec]

Hello! My husband, two sons and I currently live in the San Francisco bay area and we are looking for a change! We could never afford to buy the kind of land we'd like to have here and we want our boys to grow up in the "outdoors".

My husband visited Washington once and really liked it. I am concerned about the weather, coming from CA... but I think I can get over it.

First question, how is gardening? Is there enough sunlight to grow a veggie garden?

Next... where to look? He's sending out a resume to a place in Everett, but we obviously don't want to live there... we'd love to find a small town close to a lake / body of water where we could have a couple of acres. Strong community spirit and good schools are a must. Charter schools and cute downtown are a bonus. We'd be renting initially, but would want to buy eventually.

Any areas like that in snohomish co? Should we be looking somewhere else in the state? My husband is in the construction business, specifically glazing...

Lastly, anyone have anything to say about WA vs OR? I'm thinking OR, but jobs seem to be harder to find there...

Thanks in advance!

[Inkpoe]

Wa is (personally) a better choice, no income taxes, lower property taxes and better outdoor/water access.

I'd say look into Lake Stevens, Monroe.

There are a couple threads here that talk about gardening in Wa, while I am not a gardener type, I found them to be very insightful.

[Sandy Nelson]

Leannec,

Due to our mild climate and abundance of rain, you'll be in gardening paradise in Western Washington.
If you're not already tied down to a particular location for a job, you'll want to check out the Olympia area. Acreage will be much more affordable than in the Everett area, and Olympia is a quaint downtown, is located right on the Puget Sound, and has excellent schools.
mod cut:

Personally I think Washington State has more to offer than Oregon. More jobs, more commerce, better infrastructure, not state income tax (yet), more interesting geography (rain forests, islands, desert) and an international border.