Ex-Western Washingtonians........why did you leave??? (Seattle, Lacey: low income, transplants, rentals)

[Boxkicker]

I left last month from the Seattle proper. I got tired of the traffic and the commuting.

Now, I am enjoying the easy commute (15 minutes) to my job.

For a $3K a year raise and less cost of living it was worth it.

Sold my house in 1 day over there and took home $40K after commission/fees, etc...Not bad for living in it for just over 4 years!

[carolochs]

I've heard what a nightmare Seattle proper can be.... Where did you go? (Spokane?)

[Boxkicker]

Originally Posted by carolochs

I've heard what a nightmare Seattle proper can be.... Where did you go? (Spokane?)

Yes.

[Ultrarunner]

The one thing that put a crimp on my Western WA plans was buying a home at the assessed value and 18 months later the assessor decides it is worth 80% more than I paid for it... no remodel/additions/improvement to my 1977 home.

It was a real shock and totally unexpected and something to consider.

In my case, a speculator paid a huge price for a parcel of land and the following year me and all my neighbors saw our tax bills skyrocket.... it was also during the time when WA I-747 voter approved tax initiative was struck down by a judge.

When the Real Estate crashed the speculator bailed... and we were left to deal with the aftermath... all the locals knew the guy was crazy because subdividing as planned was not possible due to wetland setbacks and such.

Taxes went from $550 per month to $1000 per month!

[MarciaMarshaMarcia]

Originally Posted by carolochs

You guys have me scared into just staying put in San Diego cuz that's surely the answer....
I get it..wink-wink

Why in the world did you ask people their experiences/opinions if you just want to argue? Have you even visited here?? Have you been here in winter??

Read Inkpoe's last paragraph. Then read it again. And again.

[carolochs]

Originally Posted by TurquoiseOne

Why in the world did you ask people their experiences/opinions if you just want to argue? Have you even visited here?? Have you been here in winter??

Read Inkpoe's last paragraph. Then read it again. And again.

Hehehe....No desire to "argue" at all. But if you want to paint it that way, be my guest. Just observing inconsistencies/mixed messages.....

Interesting that "some" make aspects of Western WA sound terrible, not worth enduring, ...yet... THEY seem to stay there regardless. (?) If it's so bad, why haven't you left yet? And if you did, where would you choose to go???

Some are the same ones who express resentment of any newcomers. So which is it? Don't come cuz it's so awful? Or don't come cuz we want to keep it the way it is and plan to *freeze* you out if you do come? It's sometimes difficult to get the gist of whether this is a forum that promotes areas, or is a citizen's platform to keep people away. Also interesting to me is.....I've visited other platforms that discuss specific towns there that I'm interested in, and can get a very different picture painted and sense of community from residents. So yeah...it gets confusing trying to read between the lines, and warnings, and other schtuff.

For clarity, and as said before---when I speak of Western WA, I'm not referring to Seattle proper. I'm more interested in the Hood Canal area. There's no way I want to leave one big city for another.

Is it so hard to imagine anyone else might be willing to go/stay there as well? There seems to be an assumption that gloomy/wet/long/dark winters are an awful thing *for everybody*. Maybe they are for a majority (?) But some actually thrive in that environment. But the warning, and MORE warning, and MORE WARNING is much appreciated. Thanks. I consider myself warned.

Truly....why do any of you stay if the terrible awfuls are so terrible awful???
Have you adapted? Or is it one big endurance test you have to get through?
My follow-up question to the the title of this original thread would then be......
Why do those of you who stay, STAY....despite all the self-described drawbacks?????

[carolochs]

Originally Posted by Ultrarunner

The one thing that put a crimp on my Western WA plans was buying a home at the assessed value and 18 months later the assessor decides it is worth 80% more than I paid for it... no remodel/additions/improvement to my 1977 home.

It was a real shock and totally unexpected and something to consider.

In my case, a speculator paid a huge price for a parcel of land and the following year me and all my neighbors saw our tax bills skyrocket.... it was also during the time when WA I-747 voter approved tax initiative was struck down by a judge.

When the Real Estate crashed the speculator bailed... and we were left to deal with the aftermath... all the locals knew the guy was crazy because subdividing as planned was not possible due to wetland setbacks and such.

Taxes went from $550 per month to $1000 per month!

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++

Hi Ultrarunner....

Yes....I remember your story. It really got me looking into the whole property tax angle, deeply! Thank you for sharing your experience! I really sympathize with your situation. A huge burden for you and your neighbors, not to mention resale value of your home with that monkey on your house's back! When the development project did NOT go through, the City couldn't re-assess tax back to where it was previously??? Or are they keeping it high in anticipation of a new project coming through???

I'm still trying to find out just how protected DNR land is and we're specifically looking for homes that are near, or abutte DNR land so we know no development can occur there *forever*. Do you happen to know (through all of your experiences with this) where I can find this info. on the Kitsap Peninsula....re: land that can/will be open for development....and what lands are protected lands???? Your story has us specifically wanting to avoid big empty spaces that look empty now, but could be parceled out and developed later.....

[Deserterer]

General DNR land may be protected from subdivisions and shopping malls (unless they decide to sell or trade it for the trust) but very little of it is permanently protected from other activities that you might not want in your back yard, like clearcutting. You would have to look for specially protected management areas like parks, wildlife management areas, and the like.

[Deserterer]

Its crowded and getting more crowded and more developed. The same sorts of things you are trying to get away from. Many people come there from places that are even worse, thinking "oh this is nice" and by so doing make it worse too. At least you are talking about buying, rather than building, so I'll give you credit for making that responsible choice.

Originally Posted by carolochs

Hehehe....No desire to "argue" at all. But if you want to paint it that way, be my guest. Just observing inconsistencies/mixed messages.....

Interesting that "some" make aspects of Western WA sound terrible, not worth enduring, ...yet... THEY seem to stay there regardless. (?) If it's so bad, why haven't you left yet? And if you did, where would you choose to go???

Some are the same ones who express resentment of any newcomers. So which is it? Don't come cuz it's so awful? Or don't come cuz we want to keep it the way it is and plan to *freeze* you out if you do come? It's sometimes difficult to get the gist of whether this is a forum that promotes areas, or is a citizen's platform to keep people away. Also interesting to me is.....I've visited other platforms that discuss specific towns there that I'm interested in, and can get a very different picture painted and sense of community from residents. So yeah...it gets confusing trying to read between the lines, and warnings, and other schtuff.

For clarity, and as said before---when I speak of Western WA, I'm not referring to Seattle proper. I'm more interested in the Hood Canal area. There's no way I want to leave one big city for another.

Is it so hard to imagine anyone else might be willing to go/stay there as well? There seems to be an assumption that gloomy/wet/long/dark winters are an awful thing *for everybody*. Maybe they are for a majority (?) But some actually thrive in that environment. But the warning, and MORE warning, and MORE WARNING is much appreciated. Thanks. I consider myself warned.

Truly....why do any of you stay if the terrible awfuls are so terrible awful???
Have you adapted? Or is it one big endurance test you have to get through?
My follow-up question to the the title of this original thread would then be......
Why do those of you who stay, STAY....despite all the self-described drawbacks?????

[carolochs]

Originally Posted by Deserterer

General DNR land may be protected from subdivisions and shopping malls (unless they decide to sell or trade it for the trust) but very little of it is permanently protected from other activities that you might not want in your back yard, like clearcutting. You would have to look for specially protected management areas like parks, wildlife management areas, and the like.

Thanks, Deserter!

Originally Posted by Deserterer

Its crowded and getting more crowded and more developed. The same sorts of things you are trying to get away from. Many people come there from places that are even worse, thinking "oh this is nice" and by so doing make it worse too. At least you are talking about buying, rather than building, so I'll give you credit for making that responsible choice.

I understand that.

In my own area here, I don't personally resent newcomers who want to come to the area for all it's beauties, etc. I resent politicians and developers who are all about *the money* and exploiting the beauty. To me, Big Difference. So I try not to displace my anger & resentment on the wrong entities......