aiiright, How about Bremerton? (Seattle, Tacoma: apartments, renting, condo)

[Rage]

More and more it looks like I'll be moving to the Bremerton area, since Harrison hospital has a 20 bed ICU unit and has asked me to come by and tour the facility which I will do so on the 18th.

Does anyone have any views on that area, how are the cultural aspects of Bremerton and surroundings? How are the housing conditions? Would it be better to be on the water or more inland (thinking about winter winds)? Are there malls there and if so are they indoor or strip malls? How is the traffic? How expensive are the utilities? If you were moving to Bremerton what aspects would you consider to be important and how do you think the area would address those issues or could the area address them?

My fiancee and I will get married when I come up there (around May of next year) and she lives on Vancouver Island, is Bremerton similar in geography to the island? As I understand, the weather conditions are identical, but of course that understanding could be faulty.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated, thank you in advance.

[St.Croix to Seattle]

Bremerton is a good place for the right budget,it used to have the distinction of having the highest crime rate in Washington State,but that may not be so anymore...With my frequent trips to Seattle I found myself spending quite a bit of time on the ferry between Seattle-Bainbridge and Seattle-Bremerton.

Bremerton is more racially diverse than Seattle,a water view home is quite affordable in comparison,don't know about schools I have no kids...
The best area would be along Chico way where a 1/2 acre waterfront home runs 500k into the millions..But there is a place called Manette where 350k buy a very nice 1800 sq view home with a 5 min drive to the ferry..The entire city is undergoing a transformation,there are huge shopping malls in nearby Silverdale,but Bremerton has great shopping as well...
The Illahee section of Bremerton in my opinion is the best,they have a nice beach,remote country feel,views with most homes and 250-350k gets you in,about 9 min from Seattle Ferry.You can actually drive around back to seattle and take the newly build Tacoma Narrows toll bridge,think it is 3 dollars..from Illahee section to Seattle airport takes me about 1 hour 12 minutes obeying the speed laws.
Not wanting a Commute I have started looking around Bremerton or Bainbridge Island,Bainbridge is quite a bt more expensive and more upscale but condo's start around 250k but they won't be new.
Around the shipyard I would avoid all together they have new condo and great restaurants nearby,The area just North of Downtown still has about 2 years before I consider it very safe but Manette,Illahee,Chico way,Bremerton hills are all great affordable areas without the commute.
98310
98311 are great areas
98312 will be very good in another 2 years or so
another intersting fact the average home in 98312 has gone up in value an adjusted 21% year over year going back to 2001...it has slowed right now to about 7% but in this area I doubt a downturn will have any effect...

[fmpitw]

You might also look at Poulsbo. It is only about a 15 minute drive to Silverdale/Bremerton and is a really cute town. Poulsbo is also only a short drive to the Bainbridge ferry or the Kingston ferry.

[joebarb]

I'm happy to have found this site. My husband, son, and I are thinking of moving to the area from the North SF Bay area. We would most likely be renting for awhile. I would really like opinions of the friendliest and most affordable towns. We are looking for a place where we can be near the water, where someone might actually say hello in the grocery store, where working-class people can actually work and live in the same area, and where a 20 mile commute might actually take less than an hour. We don't want to be judged by the car we drive or the size of our bank account. We work hard for a living and would just like to live in an area where people matter and life isn't always in the fast lane. We are considdering Bainbridge Island, or Bremmerton but have noted that there are several small towns in the Kitsap County area. Would love all imput and suggestions.
Thanks

[St.Croix to Seattle]

Moderator cut: move it to classified

[joebarb]

I really appreciate your reply. What a great picture. Looking more and more like the type of place we are looking for.

[Idunn]

"Separated by less than a mile of water, the Kitsap communities couldn't be further apart."
quote from article

An article, 'The Bremerton/Bainbridge Divide,' in this week's 'Seattle Weekly' should answer a lot of questions:
News: The Bremerton/Bainbridge Divide (Seattle Weekly)

[St.Croix to Seattle]

that is a very good article...I am leaning more towards Bremerton Illahee area but definately has Bainbridge on my short list of where to live...if you are the keep up with the Joneses type then nothing less than Bainbridge will do,if you are the "I care not what anyone thinks" then Bremerton Might do...There are bad parts of Bainbridge,and very bad large parts of Bremerton...But at the end of the day if you buy a 400k water view home in Illahee or a 700k water view home in Bainbridge with the same sq ft & amenities when you sit down on your deck to enjoy the expansive views you are still steering at the same water...on either side you will still have to invest in security for your home and vehicles as Washington state has a very high rate of property crime everywhere...

[portorchardsweetheart]

Hello,
I have just moved to 'this side of the water' from Shoreline near Seattle and if you know anything about that area, as my daughter says, Bremerton is just a baby Everett. It is a port town, through and through. It's rough and very transient. People come, people go. I don't even think I'd want to walk any main streets at night. If you are looking for a little more upscale, search the Silverdale area. It has a nice, very spread out, mall area and some very nice homes going towards E. Bremerton. Come to think of it, maybe even E. Bremerton would be OK. We chose Port Orchard, right around the beautiful little bay area (Gorst). Port Orchards' population is only 8750, sorry to say no mall but...to go to Silverdale Mall it's only about 10 miles or so. Port Orchard has some very nice areas, some established and some new such as ours in the Quadrant homes in the McCormick Woods, called "The Ridge". Brand new homes start at $240,000. We've been here about 4 months and I have never heard a siren! I feel safe and I love it!

[maniabeatle01]

I visit my family in Bremerton once a year and they live in the Weatherstone Apartments. I have to say from what I have seen and I have spent a lot of time here, it is very safe and very nice. As a matter of fact, I am considering moving from NYC to Bremerton. That is how highly I think of the city.