Moving from Florida to Washington. Help? (Seattle, Spokane: rental car, real estate, 2015)

[daniek]

Okay, let me start by saying no we're not crazy. Visiting Florida is one thing. However, we have lived here our whole lives (besides my husband who has lived in Washington for business for a bit and loved it). EVERYONE is moving to Florida. Therefore we can't breath! Seriously, FL is running out of space. The road rage had gotten way out of control, the trees keep coming down left and right for new construction so more people can move here and no matter how much the media tries to hype it up, it really just isn't that great. It's dirty, a lot of pollution, manners are lacking, and dealing with tourists all of the time is just annoying. I know we are all people, but when you get a HUGE amount of tourist within one given area, and can be very stressful. And you can never get away. It's like tourist hell. On top of it, we live in the #1 city for moving to in FL right now. Yay us!

Therefore, I brought up to my husband about checking out Washington. Two of our closest friends are also wanting to check out Washington as well. So, I am looking for experienced help in the state.

1) The 4 of us are into fitness. We love working out, hiking, surfing, paddle boarding, canoeing, fishing, etc... We also want to try snow boarding and skiing. I have always wanted to do those!

2)The other thing is I personally have an autoimmune disease that requires a very healthy diet. I have been on the Paleo diet for a while now. It seems to be the only thing that is keeping my antibodies down. FL doesn't offer much in the sense of really anything healthy unless you go to the health food store and spending crazy prices. I currently get most of my cooking items online to save money. So having restaurants that I could actually eat at without having to worry about them using soy as a base or putting hidden gluten in things is a very big deal. I have lost a good portion of my social life because there aren't any places I can dine at here without having to make a big deal.

3) We love outdoor events like concerts, festival, etc..

4) Two of us are Network Engineers, my husband is a Mechanical/Power Gen Engineer, and our other friend is a Property Manager. So, of course, jobs are a factor.

5) Two of us are married and looking for eventually a place to buy that has an "out in the country" feel, but isn't too far from the city. We would need a detached garage or storage building to store our boat and 3 cars.

6) Two of us are single and are looking for nice apartments.


With all of that said we REALLY need ideas. When does the rain let up so we can come for a visit? It rains here a lot as well. So that doesn't scare us. We just want a dry time while we get in and out of our rental car to scope things out.

Thank you soooo much!!!!
Danie

[perigee]

So you don't want a place that is growing or filled with tourist and you are choosing WA? The parts of WA that are not growing, or do not have tourist are places you probably don't want to move to.

Our rain is very different from FL rain. If anything you want to plan your trip so that you can experience the worse a state can offer, if you are planning on moving there.

Food wise, your social circle wouldn't go to a place where you could get a salad and either chicken or some other protein on top, with maybe oil vinegar on the side? Sure Seattle and PDX areas will probably have a variety of places that will cater to your dietary needs, but they are growing and filled with tourists.

Hopefully some other CD'ers can figure out a good fit for you.

[Seacove]

If you want to check out Olympia, Bellingham or Eastern Washington, fine but Seattle-Everett-Tacoma is growing very quickly too so it's probably not much better than where you are.

Redfin broker explains why Seattle real estate is so hot - and it's not all on Amazon - GeekWire

[perigee]

Bellingham and Olympia are growing.

[PS90]

I would look at Spokane or possibly Couer d' Alene, Idaho.

Upsides of Spokane:

1) All of the outdoor-type activities that you listed are easily within a 45-minute drive. And you can easily live out-of-town and actually feel like you are living "out-of-town".

2) Spokane has multiple fairly well-run outdoor events in the summer, including concerts, and has two nationally-recognized events - Bloomsday and Hoopfest.

3) Much better weather than Western Washington. Although it does snow a decent amount. As stated before, Western Washington's rain is nothing like Florida - it drizzles for months at a time in the winter in Western Washington. Depending on when you visit, it's highly possible that you won't see "a dry time while we get in and out of our rental car to scope things out" in Western Washington. But Spokane does not have the same climate - much drier, but also warmer in the summer and colder in the winter.

Downsides of Spokane:

1) It's not growing very quickly. To me, that's a good thing (and it sounds like it may be to you as well) but that may hamper your job search. Spokane's job market hasn't been great in years.

2) Spokane has a few "high-class" restaurants, but is certainly not known for it's food scene, and your specific dietary requirements will probably not be met. But, having said that, I have never looked into anything like that, so I can't say for sure.

[Jumpindogs]

Paleo can be accomplished pretty much anyplace that has delivery from Amazon and a SAMs Club or Costco. Restaurants are another story but that's the case most places for true Paleo peeps.

This Celiac was thrilled to find a 100% GF restaurant and another cafe able to make nearly everything on their menu GF on our first visit to Sequim. Our dining partners who don't eat GF were also impressed with the scrumptiousness and the service at both.

Have you tried this link? 18 Tips for Eating Out Like a Paleo Pro

[CrazyDonkey]

Tourists mostly congregate in the downtown area, from the Seattle Center to Pioneer Square. Other than at the Ballard Locks, you just don't see them that much outside of downtown.

[Dirtysouthjay]

Hello Daniek,

I moved to Washington from Florida a little over a year ago. I lived in the Orlando area for 25 years, went to Lake Brantley High School and am a UCF alum. That being said I don't miss Florida at all. Well....the only thing I miss is Publix honestly, lol. I should have left years ago. Washington is a truly beautiful state. You really can't go wrong with the Spokane area or anywhere west of the Cascades. I would probably steer clear of central Washington, It's a desert, which I wasn't expecting when I interviewed out here. However Wenatchee is very nice and I also like the Tri-Cities. I am currently in Moses Lake and will be transferring out of here this November. As far as concerts go I feel that most bands hit Seattle and Portland over Spokane. And many bands hit the Gorge Amphitheatre which isn't too far from where I currently live.

I agree, Florida has become a cesspool. Way overcrowded with no soul or real culture. People around here thought I was crazy to leave Florida. The thing is I would take the desert here over the humidity in Florida anyday. I liked Orlando 20 years ago...ya know when there was actual orange groves in the suburbs and when I-4 wasn't a parking lot

[PushRod]

Originally Posted by Dirtysouthjay

Hello Daniek,

I moved to Washington from Florida a little over a year ago. I lived in the Orlando area for 25 years, went to Lake Brantley High School and am a UCF alum. That being said I don't miss Florida at all. Well....the only thing I miss is Publix honestly, lol. I should have left years ago. Washington is a truly beautiful state. You really can't go wrong with the Spokane area or anywhere west of the Cascades. I would probably steer clear of central Washington, It's a desert, which I wasn't expecting when I interviewed out here. However Wenatchee is very nice and I also like the Tri-Cities. I am currently in Moses Lake and will be transferring out of here this November. As far as concerts go I feel that most bands hit Seattle and Portland over Spokane. And many bands hit the Gorge Amphitheatre which isn't too far from where I currently live.

I agree, Florida has become a cesspool. Way overcrowded with no soul or real culture. People around here thought I was crazy to leave Florida. The thing is I would take the desert here over the humidity in Florida anyday. I liked Orlando 20 years ago...ya know when there was actual orange groves in the suburbs and when I-4 wasn't a parking lot

I'm contemplating a move out to PNW myself, in florida now it's many people from up north (snow birds) they love the heat and humidity. What's the equivalent to publix over there? Also did you have a job when you moved?

[Dirtysouthjay]

The closest thing to Publix they have out here is a chain called Safeway. Similar to Publix in that the groceries are a little more expensive than say Wal-Mart, but the breads, produce, and m eat are superior to anywhere else. But......they don't have the BOGO deals that Publix has, and they don't have Publix subs!!. I did have a job lined up when I drove out here.