Moving from Miami, fl to Bellevue, wa or Issaquah, wa (Redmond: apartments, rent)

[Dnlmiami10]

well where do I start, my wife , myself and our six year old son are planning on moving to the seattle Bellevue area or Issaquah area, now my big question is its a good move for my family, my wife and I have researched seattle for about one year now, and yes we are aware of the weather , rain, and cloudy days so please we are not here for a lecture on how miserable the weather is, we just want to know a little more , and the most important if its a good move for our little guy. and my wife and I are in our late twenties, my wife is a medical assistant and I specialize in the public safety area as well as own a commercial cleaning company which I can operate and run anywhere in the world. we are coming from the horrible city that so much think is great Miami fl, full of violent crime, ignorant people, poverty, horrible schools in the nation, unemployment at its worst, low paying jobs, and the list goes on and on oh yeah and try paying 1,200 minimum to 1,500 in rent ,off of a 8.00 to 10.00 an hour paycheck, that's pretty much anywhere you can find work here, due to the immigrant competition we have here, example, why pay you 12 an hour when they can pay someone 8.00 an hour to do the same thing,just go on craigslist or careerbuilder and see for yourself , thats how Miami employers think here.. my wife and I are Cuban American and can care less about culture and all that other stuff we have experienced it here more than enough our whole lives, Miami is full of Cubans and ignorant at that. its really a dog eat dog city and we do not want to expose our son to this madness ever! he is our main concern in regards to school and safe areas to live, I mean my wife likes Bellevue and Issaquah for its safety and schools I know the rent is pretty high but hey coming from Miami trust me I have seen the worst in people here and been through some tough stuff you don't see anywhere so I can pretty much adapt anywhere in seattle. just would appreciate any insight on choices and fun caring advice and most important motivation!!!!!!! lol

[Blondebaerde]

LOL: Cuban Americans slamming Miami. I'm Irish American and had little use for Boston, in a similar way: looking for something more-interesting outside of our respective "ethnic enclaves", sounds like. Less about ethnicity than grinding poverty and ignorant, ghetto behavior.

Not sure where to go with this, will cherry pick a few comments from the stream of consciousness:

* If you've researched heavily, sounds like the revenue stream and COL thing isn't scaring you off. It scares off many.

* That being the case, however, rent in Bellevue and Issaquah is obviously at least comparable to what you're coming from, on-average. More, actually, and rising. (Source: Trulia.)

* The "violent crime, ignorant people, and horrible schools" can stay somewhere else, indeed: Bellevue and rest of eastside (Redmond, Issaquah, Kirkland) mostly self-screens for those who can't afford to be there. Yay economic forces.

Exceptions seem to be those in my neighborhood (Norkirk, Kirkland WA) who have been there for thirty or more years. There are more than a few rather-quaint tumble down shacks among nicer, newer stuff. I think it adds character, though such homes are objectively eyesores. Astounded they aren't selling out and moving to retirement condos going the other way. In, say, Miami (cough).

Well, all things considered, I've watched my buddies with kids move to exactly where they want to be on the eastside, ensuring their kids are in the best schools (Bellevue, mostly). There is a big cost associated with that, all part of that $225-400K people spend on each child to raise them to age 18 (shudder). ("If" Wikipedia is right: they have an interesting cost-of-raising chart based on income.) Guess that doesn't count college: LOL. Count me out.

Best of luck with all that. If you're moving a business, I'm sure you've also done a comprehensive analysis of the competitive climate in NW WA State for whatever it is you're selling.

[Hemlock140]

This whole area is going to be higher rent, figure a studio for what you paid there, add at least $400 a month for 1 bedroom in the cities you mentioned. Child care is also very high, most preschools/day cares charging $1,200-$2,000/month. I don't know what they charge for just after school, if you need that, but that's hard to get into with waiting lists. Either city would be great for schools, and since our minimum wage is $9.32 now and like FL, we have no state income tax, you would likely make more here for the same work. We do have a nasty Business & Occupation tax on businesses, that you have to pay on your gross revenue, regardless of whether you make any profit. There are plenty of commercial buildings in Bellevue, many use a big company like ABM but maybe you can get some of them to switch. Even the least expensive apartments in Bellevue and Issaquah are in safe areas with very low crime. Just make sure to bring some funds with you to manage on until you find jobs and get the business going.