Lynden/Bellingham (Starbuck: apartments, townhouses, high school)

[rwk68]

My daughter is looking about going to college in Bellingham Washington this fall Being that she will be 2500 miles from home I am looking at apartments and townhouses in the Lynden and Bellingham area We come from a very small town in Louisiana and I want her to feel safe and secure in the area she will be living at We will be flying up the end of August to look for places in the area to live can you please recommend some in the area I am looking for a studio or a 1 br apt in the price range of 600 to 800 a month

[StealthRabbit]

Don't make her drive from Lynden everyday!!!

There are plenty of nice and safe places within your price range in Bellingham or Fairhaven.

Are you sure you want her on her own (no room-mates?) I'm sure there are ways to connect with places that can help her network into a freindly and suitable room-mate situation. (and she may feel safer, more 'engaged') My kid that went to Bellingham had terrific roomates, and his girlfriend and her sisters did as well. (They lived on opposite sides of Bellingham (Girls lived in Fairhaven, as it is pretty 'girly-girl' quaint and granola...).

She might want to live North Bellingham if she is going to Jr College for the first couple yrs (much cheaper). IN WA many kids go to Jr College instead of High School, so enter U @ 18 as Jrs (only 2 yrs to have to pay the big bucks)

You may want to come earlier, as you can often take summer semester courses w/o paying out of state tuition.

Good jobs can be had at Costco or Starbucks (benefits for some PT workers)

There are some really great (Quality) churches in Bellingham area that you could link up with to get referrals and connections. (and to go home 'resting-assured') She will have a great time and get great friends and edu in Bellingham.

[Bill Loney]

Originally Posted by rwk68

My daughter is looking about going to college in Bellingham Washington this fall Being that she will be 2500 miles from home I am looking at apartments and townhouses in the Lynden and Bellingham area We come from a very small town in Louisiana and I want her to feel safe and secure in the area she will be living at We will be flying up the end of August to look for places in the area to live can you please recommend some in the area I am looking for a studio or a 1 br apt in the price range of 600 to 800 a month

Not so sure I would recommend waiting until late August to look at places. That can get dicey as the inventory in and around Western gets swallowed yup before that.

As Stealth suggests, Lynden is a pretty long drive for a student. ( 40+ miles each day RT). And unless your daughter is a member of The Future Stepford Wives Club, she's not going to like Lynden much anyway.

[trm1388]

I live in Lynden and have been commuting to college in Bellingham for the past 4/5 years. It's not too bad of a drive. It takes me about 25 minutes each way (17 miles each direction) and there really isn't ever any traffic to deal with. Lynden is very safe, but there's not much to do there. I would recommend just getting an apartment near whichever campus she will be going to so that she could avoid the commute altogether. I'm guessing that she will be going to WWU. If that's the case, the north side is a bit lower class for apartments, so I would recommend the south side which is pretty much entirely a student population. Tons of options for apartments in the area, it's safe, and she could avoid all commuting fees (tuition includes a bus pass at WWU).

[StealthRabbit]

While Lynden is a lovely town, and would be a personal choice of mine... I would not expect it to equally serve my college aged kids. Commuting is costly and very dangerous. Due to extra classes, working, activities, friends... the trip could add undue burden to the life of a student.

I had my kids commuting over 100 miles / day during their last 2 yrs of HS, I regret their many hours of driving and the expense burden it brought to them, AND my nights of lost sleep knowing they were out 'somewhere' in the LONG dark rainy nights of the PNW. Not the best of times were had by all during those years. My WWU student did end up working in Lynden, but it was part-time and 3 roommates shared the trip and carpool expense.