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From the sounds of it, you might have headed right back to Arizona by the fifth of July!
I will try to answer more tomorrow about your thread. It caught me off guard and I'm giving your situation a lot of thought.
If my answers are too particular, I'll send you a private note instead.
Good night for now.
Moving back to Arizona won't happen. I was talking with my old boss on LinkedIn recently, and told him I was never going back to the hot place. He said he didn't blame me and called Washington 'God's Country'. He's right, why would I ever go back to all that heat and congestion, when this is such a great state to live in? Just not this area.
I appreciate it Diana, but there is nothing to do except relocate. I've got to get this house ready to sell over the next year and all the painting, fixing and cleaning that will need to be done is on me.
Olympia was mentioned and there are horses and horse people out Boston Harbor way...
Can honestly say never had a neighbor issue and same for my friends...
That said if someone has acerage and an old tractor out in the field or similar it doesn't bother me in the least... if I wanted manicured and tight regs it would be an HOA and never again.
OP, inventory is down and it's a seller's market, have you thought about building? First let me caution about a couple of things, with a recent court ruling make sure any land has access to water or a well already installed, buying a tear down is great because you can already have water, power and septic (which means forgoing a perc test) at the build site.
Doing an actual custom site built home is going to be a test of patience and money, all the good builders and subs have more then enough work for them, so if you go down this route I would look at doing modular building. Costs are controlled, the county and banks view them exactly the same as a site built home.
I know that there is a modular home builder in Auburn so it might be worth scheduling a tour and learning a little more about the process, but there are companies all over the Pacific Northwest. The Joint Base Lewis-McChord went with a company out of Idaho when they needed a bunch of new housing for military families.
How many horses do you have? Pole barns are not too expensive to build or if you just have a couple a mini shed is a very popular and are a cheap quick solution.
I am in the same boat as you are, trying to find the ideal little chunk of land and it's not easy, but I know persistence will pay off. If you have any questions about the difference between modular, manufactured or site built homes ask away I have been researching this for awhile and Stealth might chime in, they have actual experience in this area.
Olympia was mentioned and there are horses and horse people out Boston Harbor way...
Can honestly say never had a neighbor issue and same for my friends...
That said if someone has acerage and an old tractor out in the field or similar it doesn't bother me in the least... if I wanted manicured and tight regs it would be an HOA and never again.
Thanks for the Boston Harbor tip. I recently recommended that area to a friend of mine who may move here from Phoenix. He can no longer afford the San Fran prices and I thought Boston Harbor might be a good place for him to start looking. As far as Olympia, honestly, we're kind of lukewarm, and will probably move further north.
Tractors in a field are fine, but several houses around here have major trash dumping going on in the front yard. My spouse thinks it's because they don't want to pay a dump fee. Whatever, it looks disgusting and I wonder where their heads are, to want to live like that. Agreed on the HOA, and spouse dosen't want that either, he's afraid they'll hit us with expensive fees.
OP, inventory is down and it's a seller's market, have you thought about building? First let me caution about a couple of things, with a recent court ruling make sure any land has access to water or a well already installed, buying a tear down is great because you can already have water, power and septic (which means forgoing a perc test) at the build site.
Doing an actual custom site built home is going to be a test of patience and money, all the good builders and subs have more then enough work for them, so if you go down this route I would look at doing modular building. Costs are controlled, the county and banks view them exactly the same as a site built home.
I know that there is a modular home builder in Auburn so it might be worth scheduling a tour and learning a little more about the process, but there are companies all over the Pacific Northwest. The Joint Base Lewis-McChord went with a company out of Idaho when they needed a bunch of new housing for military families.
How many horses do you have? Pole barns are not too expensive to build or if you just have a couple a mini shed is a very popular and are a cheap quick solution.
I am in the same boat as you are, trying to find the ideal little chunk of land and it's not easy, but I know persistence will pay off. If you have any questions about the difference between modular, manufactured or site built homes ask away I have been researching this for awhile and Stealth might chime in, they have actual experience in this area.
Happy [property] hunting.
Perigee, I'd love to build! The thing is, the spouse is opposed to building, so it will never happen. It would be fantastic to just walk into a new place with nothing to do but unpack. Every house we've lived in was a fixer and the next one will be too. Especially in a more expensive area. A fixer will be a given. So, I'm resigned to tearing out old stinky carpet, painting, and updating bathrooms, kitchens and so on.
It sounds as though you get to live my dream. It's great you can build to suit yourself. I'm guessing Snohomish will be your county of choice. I really appreciate all the good ideas and who knows, if we get a house there too, I'll invite you out for a coffee.
I have six horses, although my oldest is 30 so it may be five soon. Anyway, she's doing good so far and seeing the horses enjoying the acreage and no scorching Phoenix summers has made it worthwhile to live here. We just need to find a new place, so everyone's happy.
The question I would ask of all our Northern friends is, are any of the other counties in Western Washington any better than Thurston with fireworks ordinances? Is everyone loud around here? I know this is something you probably didn't have in Arizona.
I admit our county has poor fireworks enforcement, both in the type of fireworks allowed, and the dates they are supposed to be legal. But is that the same everywhere? I don't know. I never go anywhere for the fourth, I'm always home taking care of my own animals. I am on acreage and can't even see any neighbors from my house, and it still sounds like a war zone here for the week of the 4th. Sound travels a mile. And the aerials are visible far away.
I think law enforcement is fighting an impossible challenge, as long as the tribes can sell the unlimited professional grade fireworks on all the reservations. Right now I think the issue is between the tribes, and the state, or the feds. Not much the counties can do to stop them.
I would not assume it's just the junky yard folk spending all the money on fireworks. Fireworks are expensive! It's the nice places with money too. Fireworks habits are not something you'd be able to identify with a drive through the neighborhood... unless you did it in July! Even if you ask the neighbors if they shoot off fireworks before hand, (I have!) they lie. They don't want confrontation, so they say "oh no! We never do that!" And come 10:00 on the fourth, suddenly they have a party they didn't expect... every year.
I'm not a fan of fireworks, I've hated them as long as I've had horses. Funny thing is, the horses cope pretty well with them now, actually. It's my dog who hates them more, and hides in the back closet.
The question I would ask of all our Northern friends is, are any of the other counties in Western Washington any better than Thurston with fireworks ordinances? Is everyone loud around here? I know this is something you probably didn't have in Arizona.
I admit our county has poor fireworks enforcement, both in the type of fireworks allowed, and the dates they are supposed to be legal. But is that the same everywhere? I don't know. I never go anywhere for the fourth, I'm always home taking care of my own animals. I am on acreage and can't even see any neighbors from my house, and it still sounds like a war zone here for the week of the 4th. Sound travels a mile. And the aerials are visible far away.
I think law enforcement is fighting an impossible challenge, as long as the tribes can sell the unlimited professional grade fireworks on all the reservations. Right now I think the issue is between the tribes, and the state, or the feds. Not much the counties can do to stop them.
I would not assume it's just the junky yard folk spending all the money on fireworks. Fireworks are expensive! It's the nice places with money too. Fireworks habits are not something you'd be able to identify with a drive through the neighborhood... unless you did it in July! Even if you ask the neighbors if they shoot off fireworks before hand, (I have!) they lie. They don't want confrontation, so they say "oh no! We never do that!" And come 10:00 on the fourth, suddenly they have a party they didn't expect... every year.
I'm not a fan of fireworks, I've hated them as long as I've had horses. Funny thing is, the horses cope pretty well with them now, actually. It's my dog who hates them more, and hides in the back closet.
Every 4th while we lived in Phoenix, we were treated to a fireworks show that could be seen from the backyard. I think it was the Marriott that put on the show. Anyway, it was nice, lasted about 15 minutes and with the exception of a couple of loud firework pops set off by a neighbor, things got quiet again. Around here, it's total craziness that goes on for days. Add to that gunshots, and it gets scary. A lot of these people are likely druggies and drunks and the thought of them having weapons is not something I like to think about.
When we first moved here, one of our immediate neighbors who live in a decent house, had security cameras and no trespassing signs everywhere. We didn't understand then, now we know why. The thought of one of these sleazy neighbors wondering around at night is a real concern. From listening to all the gunshots the week of the 4th, I'm guessing a fair number of people out here have guns. Dosen't make me feel better about this neighborhood.
Yeah - I have spent summers in AZ. I know they don't have personal fireworks like we do here. The good news is, I think personal fireworks limits and bans may be coming here... lots of people no longer like them. And the fire danger is real so that's enough reason too, IMHO. Maybe we need to get active in trying to limit them.
I would suspect most of the "gunshots" you're hearing on the week of the fourth are in fact, fireworks of various kinds. Firecrackers, M80s, etc. No real reason people would be shooting guns more on the fourth, when there happens to also be a lot of better explosives readily available. I've spent a lot of years hearing both, and we're not far away. I might expect you might hear gunfire occasionally, but more often during hunting season than in summer.
People have guns in rural Washington, that's true... but most of them you'll never know or see. That's not only true in Tenino... It was probably also true in rural AZ. They have very similar gun law to here. I would not expect gun law to change either place. But most rural gun owners are no threat to anyone.
Security... I believe in good security systems, as do a lot of people, not so much because there are a lot of threats, but because help is further away in the country. Such systems are not expensive now. No reason not to have them.
I've been thinking a lot about you. I really hope you can find some peace. I'm just afraid all of the things you're unhappy about, you'll find someplace within a mile, anywhere in most of Western Washington, or anywhere in rural America for that matter. Some people have a bunch of crap laying around and yet, the messiest person on our road, is probably the nicest and most harmless. Was the first to call and see if we needed help when we had the fire nearby last week. It's the guy who mows his yard all the time who is the bad neighbor, for us. Can't always tell from appearances.
As for the fourth, I hope in addition to looking for better places to live, you also give some thought to at least being more prepared for it next year. At least next year it won't be a surprise.
We put our horses inside for the fourth, our barn is pretty well insulated for sound. For you, it would depend on whether your direct neighbor shoots off fireworks? If he does, that's pretty close to the barn, I might switch to the tactic I used to use in town, of standing out in the far end of the pasture holding on to my lead horse. If the leader doesn't run, neither did the rest. I'd sit out there and watch everything and give them hay to keep them with me. Seemed to help. At least with the horses. May not help with the hubby at all. :/
Last edited by Diana Holbrook; 09-02-2017 at 06:45 PM..
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