Thinking of moving to Seattle, Washington? Then you are in the right place.
Moving from one place to another can be stressful but sometimes it is worth trying. New environment, new neighborhood, new people, and new friends and of course, a new job too!
There are some things you need to consider and might want to know first before moving to Seattle, WA. Wondering where exactly you want to live in Seattle, or what you need to do? Here we talk about things that a lot of buyers and sellers in this area are wondering about. I find there are three main questions.
Questions You May Ask Before Moving To Seattle, WA – What Neighborhoods Are Best?
Number one, where am I moving to? If you’re from out of the area (or even within), you may know that the greater Seattle area is not only huge geographically, huge in population, but there are a lot of different cultural enclaves. In the North End where we have a naval base in Everett, WA and Boeing airplane facility, Monroe where it’s farm country, and Marysville, WA where there’s an Indian Reservation across the highway. Most consider Everett (and maybe Marysville) the MAXIMUM distance north they’d want to live in order to commute into Bellevue or Seattle on a daily basis.
The Redmond/Bellevue corridor on the east side of Lake Washington, is where Microsoft is headquartered. Home prices there tend to be a bit more expensive and the construction newer/mor recent. Bellevue has skyscrapers, though not as many as Seattle, and Amazon and other businesses are looking to expand there.
The city of Seattle itself is the largest city in the state and intersected by a large freeway, Interstate-5 (I-5 to locals) which runs from Bellingham, WA bordering Canada, down through Oregon and California to Mexico. Within the Seattle city limits we have a huge, very diverse, heavily IT-oriented economy (Amazon, Facebook, Google), with a lot of different jobs including doctors, lawyers, the enormous University of Washington, banking, manufacturing, another Boeing facility, international shipping, Alaska Airlines, and more.
Down into the south end, south of Seattle, we have many areas which have historically been less popular, but are experiencing a huge surge in interst as people leave the city center in search of affordable housing. Renton and Kent are down there all and commutable suburbs into Seattle…. all the way down into Sea-Tac where the airport is, and Tacoma. Most consider Tacoma too far from Seattle for a daily commute, but some do it regularly, and there is a train that makes it easier.
What About Real Estate Prices In The Seattle Area?
As you’ll find when exploring moving to the Seattle, WA area, we have a wide diversity in terms of what price points are available, what types of homes you’ll find, the age of the homes and the culture and the people who live there.
One of the things we like to highlight when we talk to clients moving to Seattle, Washington or its suburbs is the variety of neighborhoods you can pick from, and what makes them unique and special. So if you’re thinking about moving to one of them, then you can choose the one that’s going to be a best fit for what you and your family are looking for.
The second thing we talk about is how to actually navigate the real estate market here in the Puget Sound. The Seattle market has historically enjoyed persistently strong growth in housing values, but that can make it hard to kind of jump in when you’re a first time buyer if you don’t have 20% down, or if you just want to keep your payments something affordable. The good news is there are many loan programs that DO NOT require a large down payment and there can be some tricks to the trade here. Especially since it does tend to be a perpetual “sellers market,” it’s just good to have some advice.
We Love Advising People Buying Homes In Seattle, WA
So we take a regular look at what’s going on, statistically in the marketplace, and then interpret those statistics, what it means to you, if you’re a buyer or a seller.
And then the third thing I really like to focus on is kind of the negotiation, the transaction, the investment value of your property. My background is as a real estate investor. I started investing in rental homes almost 20 years ago now, and so I take that perspective and your home is going to be a wonderful place for you and your family to live, and also here it tends to be a great investment.
So kind of joining those two goals of making a wise financial decision and also choosing the right home and getting that all taken care of whether you have a home to sell or you’re coming out of a rental, even coming out of the area into the Seattle market. There’s a lot to know, and it can certainly be overwhelming.
