moving to WA (Seattle, Olympia, Dayton: real estate, rent, house)

[pikabike]

I used to live in PT, renting a (let’s just call it) substandard place for a few months as our own house was in the last stages of being built.

Your rental range is too low for PT. It was on the low side at least 6 years ago, assuming you require a decent neighborhood and something bigger than a glorified shed. And judging by the way things went since then, rent didn’t go down in the years after that.

Blocks that used to have 1/8 acre or 1/4 acre lots with medium size homes on them have sprouted ADUs so that the entire block looks like an urban infill. I don’t think most of those are intended as tenant rentals. And who wants to be jammed in that tightly anyway, on the equivalent of 1/16 acre? Most likely will be “guest cottages,” a.k.a. Air BnB cash cows.

Slightly farther away, a street that WAS moderately priced newer family-raising homes on 1/4 acre lots has turned into a hangout for druggie/drunk/violently-inclined bums spreading out from their squatting domicile, FORMERLY the county fairgrounds and public campground (a genuine campground until the bums moved in).

PT has its cutesy tourist face that the powers-that-be zealously promote. That veneer is getting thinner and thinner. Like see-through thin.

The natural beauty is there, and hopefully people won’t destroy that, too. BUTbutbutbut you stated a desire to have city things nearby. If this means “Seattle” to you, beware the Hood Canal Bridge! The delays caused by it can be hours. My neighbor missed a medical apptmt sitting there waiting. Seems like everyone had similar delays at some time, or many times. I actually stayed one night in a SeaTac hotel just to make sure I would not miss a late-morning flight the next day.

PT felt like a town with very rich people and very poor people, and not much of a middle class.

[StealthRabbit]

Luv the twist on ALL us rural smut in WA.

So Californian !

Enjoy your suburban digs, privacy fencing, friendly and loving neighbors!!!.... And....screwing up our rural locations using them for your frequent recreation! I just got the usual weekend dose of that in rural California! Perfect, a familiar home, WA is becoming just like it! Congratulations, soon to succeed as has Colorado... Reservations for NP, campgrounds, hiking, wildernesses. Those hanging out all day on the fastest internet get to nab ALL the rural recreation. (And Covid tests and vaccines). What a wonderful quality of life for all, just like home. (As you desire it).

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by pikabike

I used to live in PT, renting a (let’s just call it) substandard place for a few months as our own house was in the last stages of being built.

Your rental range is too low for PT. It was on the low side at least 6 years ago, assuming you require a decent neighborhood and something bigger than a glorified shed. And judging by the way things went since then, rent didn’t go down in the years after that.

Blocks that used to have 1/8 acre or 1/4 acre lots with medium size homes on them have sprouted ADUs so that the entire block looks like an urban infill. I don’t think most of those are intended as tenant rentals. And who wants to be jammed in that tightly anyway, on the equivalent of 1/16 acre? Most likely will be “guest cottages,” a.k.a. Air BnB cash cows.
.

I remember that. There were very nice 3-br. houses available very affordably. Quite a few over a couple of years.Then, suddenly....there weren't. They were gone. *POOF* It took awhile for me to find out what had happened. I have friends there, and even they didn't know. But eventually the truth came out (thanks, in part, to pika, here ^^^): they'd been sold or turned into Air B&B's. Now you really have to scrape to find a rental, mostly you'll turn up old 1-br. cottages. The son of a friend in Seattle said, he went to Pt T and drove around looking for "for rent" signs, and found an old farmhouse outside of town. Apparently that's a VERY rare occurrence. He was extremely lucky.

I went there to see if I could scout something out. Talking to people around town, I was told that all the rentals now pretty much go by word-of-mouth. You can find a few by checking the local newspaper online regularly. Otherwise, you pretty much need "connecciones". I got a listing from the local paper and called. It was a couple, former residents of Pt T who moved to Alaska, but kept their home in Pt T as a rental. I kept their number for future reference. Those places are rare.

Alternatively, you could look for rentals and have better luck in Port Hadlock and Chimacum. There's more availability in Pt Hadlock. Chimacum is small, but rents are cheaper, when something opens up. You may also find rentals outside the city limits of Pt T. Also check the property management companies in Pt T. There may be listings there that aren't on sites like Craigslist.

[pikabike]

Originally Posted by StealthRabbit

Luv the twist on ALL us rural smut in WA.

So Californian !

Enjoy your suburban digs, privacy fencing, friendly and loving neighbors!!!.... And....screwing up our rural locations using them for your frequent recreation! I just got the usual weekend dose of that in rural California! Perfect, a familiar home, WA is becoming just like it! Congratulations, soon to succeed as has Colorado... Reservations for NP, campgrounds, hiking, wildernesses. Those hanging out all day on the fastest internet get to nab ALL the rural recreation. (And Covid tests and vaccines). What a wonderful quality of life for all, just like home. (As you desire it).

If you are addressing me, I never lived in CA and I don’t care about “smut” as long as they aren’t committing crimes.

The substandard rental place (NOT owned by “smut”) I lived in for a few months in PT had the following problems that I can remember off the top of my head:

- Unventilated propane heater in wall
- Gas range burner less than 6” from drywall (nothing in between)
- Paper towel hanger immediately above that burner
- No electrical ground at all
- No bathroom sink, though there was a toilet
- No insulation in walls or floor

There were a total of 10 problems, but I don’t remember the rest of them. The above were the most hazardous.

Yeah, at least it was cheap, and temporary. I don’t think OP would want to rent a place like that, no matter how cheap.

[pikabike]

Originally Posted by Ruth4Truth

I remember that. There were very nice 3-br. houses available very affordably. Quite a few over a couple of years.Then, suddenly....there weren't. They were gone. *POOF* It took awhile for me to find out what had happened. I have friends there, and even they didn't know. But eventually the truth came out (thanks, in part, to pika, here ^^^): they'd been sold or turned into Air B&B's. Now you really have to scrape to find a rental, mostly you'll turn up old 1-br. cottages. The son of a friend in Seattle said, he went to Pt T and drove around looking for "for rent" signs, and found an old farmhouse outside of town. Apparently that's a VERY rare occurrence. He was extremely lucky.

I went there to see if I could scout something out. Talking to people around town, I was told that all the rentals now pretty much go by word-of-mouth. You can find a few by checking the local newspaper online regularly. Otherwise, you pretty much need "connecciones". I got a listing from the local paper and called. It was a couple, former residents of Pt T who moved to Alaska, but kept their home in Pt T as a rental. I kept their number for future reference. Those places are rare.

Alternatively, you could look for rentals and have better luck in Port Hadlock and Chimacum. There's more availability in Pt Hadlock. Chimacum is small, but rents are cheaper, when something opens up. You may also find rentals outside the city limits of Pt T. Also check the property management companies in Pt T. There may be listings there that aren't on sites like Craigslist.

It ramped up starting in summer of 2015. Some people were panic buying and bidding wars became more common.

[Diana Holbrook]

Originally Posted by StealthRabbit

Luv the twist on ALL us rural smut in WA.

So Californian !

Yeah everyone seems a little grumpy this morning.

I'll be cheerful and optimistic just to provide balance!

It's so foggy out this morning, I can barely see the confederate flag on the shack next door.






PS - Apologies to the OP! - Mostly joking! Obviously, no place is perfect, but I do think this area is still pretty good, warts and grumps and all

[MechAndy]

My daughters boyfriend is giving up a decent 3-2 house in PT he is renting to move in with her.
His rent is $1,600 per month.

I live in the sticks far away from everything and found urban smugness in those statements as well.

[MechAndy]

Yes apologies to the original poster.
Most all these peeps here are really nice.
This is our version of living in the sticks.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by pikabike

It ramped up starting in summer of 2015. Some people were panic buying and bidding wars became more common.

Oct. 2015 is exactly when I was there. After the good rentals vanished that summer. Crazy.

[Ruth4Truth]

Originally Posted by MechAndy

My daughters boyfriend is giving up a decent 3-2 house in PT he is renting to move in with her.
His rent is $1,600 per month.

I live in the sticks far away from everything and found urban smugness in those statements as well.

My recollection is, that when I was looking (2014-15), those were going for around $1200. And some were nice: craftsman style, or other historical styles in good condition.