Help me narrow down some areas? (Seattle, Vancouver: real estate market, buying a house, buyer)

[MechAndy]

My kid was out bid on 4 properties about 6 months ago.

I recently had to take one of my pooches to the vet.
Most all turned me down or offered an appointment 3-4 weeks down the road.
Before they did this they asked if we had been there before.
It seems most vets don’t need any new customers.

I also found it hard to get my haircut.
Seems like they don’t need new or value customers either.

Oh and ha ha ha just try to find a contractor that is reliable .

[trailtramp]

The farther from the cities you go the nearer you will be to your newfound redness and those like minded. Sounds like east of the mountains is where you should be considering.

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by MechAndy

My kid was out bid on 4 properties about 6 months ago.

I recently had to take one of my pooches to the vet.
Most all turned me down or offered an appointment 3-4 weeks down the road.
Before they did this they asked if we had been there before.
It seems most vets don’t need any new customers.

I also found it hard to get my haircut.
Seems like they don’t need new or value customers either.

Oh and ha ha ha just try to find a contractor that is reliable .

You think it is different anywhere else in the country?

At least anywhere else that is a desirable place to live?

[happygrrrl]

Originally Posted by texasdiver

You think it is different anywhere else in the country?

At least anywhere else that is a desirable place to live?

You missed the point. It was not like this in this area until about 3 years ago.

There are NO JOBS. COL is CRAZY for this area. It was possible for lower income families/individuals to live here in the past. IT IS DIFFERENT NOW. You need lots of $$$$$$$$$.

[MechAndy]

The cost of houses has really gone up here.
Some locals are being hurt by either not being able to afford homes or are being priced out.
When property values go through the roof the tax man cometh and has made people move because they can no longer afford to pay property tax.

Work from home has been a game changer.
Work from home has been here before Covid but dramatically increased during Covid.

Skilled tradesmen have left due to cost and quality of living.
Those that are still here are too busy to provide their best service.

This last 6 or so months I am not seeing the constant large price increase for my WA property on Zillow.
My Ca property is still increasing but not at the absurd rate 6-8 months ago.

With unaffordable housing costs for lots of locals it has a domino effect.
One of my hair cutters can’t afford to live nice here so he had to move.
One of my young friends is a dental assistant and had to move because of house prices.
Unless you make or have big money living here is not easy.

There are still people migrating here with more money than most locals so this issue won’t go away anytime soon.

I never thought buying here would be a good investment.
Heck there wasn’t any high paying jobs here.
We bought here because we like it.
I guess I wasn’t the only one with that idea .

[Where2Next2022]

Originally Posted by homesinseattle

Hi Whereto! I'm a little late to this thread. I'm a UVM graduate, grew up in Florida but often went to Vermont in the summer. Lots of people with Vermont roots have made their way out here, I've been here 33 years. There are properties that fit a lot of what you are looking for in Darrington WA. Arlington would be the "walkable town" that you drive into. Stunning mountains around Darrington, organic growers/hippies and country folk/country boys living pretty well together.

Hi there! Thanks so much! I will check out that area.

I'm sorry for my delay in responding here. I wasn't getting notifications so didn't realize that I'd had all this fabulous input. Reading through now!

[Where2Next2022]

Hi everyone - I just want to thank you all for your input - I appreciate all of it. My apologies for only just now realizing that I had so many replies.

I've been utilizing realtor.com to its fullest extent, combing the entire state (also dipping into Northern CA and some parts of OR) where fire and flood are not hazards, overlapping that with the plant hardiness zone map (which is very out-of-date) and will now add in the soil map (fabulous suggestion - thank you). I've got about 50 homes saved and will narrow that down further. I'm also utilizing this climate map (may come in handy for others).

I hear you about prices. The same is true in VT. We are getting an influx of "Climate Refugees" and, for a little while, this was considered a place to get away from C19 -not true now but they aren't counting anymore of course :-)

The housing market does appear to be cooling off - realtor.com notifies me much more often than not with price reductions. That's good, except I need to sell my property pronto. I do believe we're going to hit a major recession, soon.

Interesting to learn about property tax rebates in WA for seniors, and no income tax. Here in VT, my property taxes are $12k a year; I don't get a rebate because I have two rentals on the same acreage.

Please know that your input will be used to the max - I'm printing off the key comments and areas so I can easily refer to them during the search and will likely have more questions that are more detailed/precise.

Thanks again!

[Where2Next2022]

Originally Posted by happygrrrl

You live in Vermont? I would stay there, or maybe New Hampshire or Maine.

6 months of winter and extremely high property taxes are a deal killer for us.

[Where2Next2022]

Originally Posted by mayfair

Culture shock could a problem in Darrington for someone from the East Coast. Darrington is an old logging town and farming isn't big up there. Horses are though and they have a rodeo. Most of Arlington isn't walkable except the small downtown. There are homeless living under the bridge by the Centennial Trail and a lot of property crime in Arlington's downtown area. There's no grocery store there.

Definitely visit Arlington/Darrington and get the REAL vibe before moving. Especially coming from the East Coast.

Sage advice and we will plan a trip once we can narrow down the areas a bit. We both used to live in CA so not originally from the East Coast. :-)

[Where2Next2022]

Originally Posted by MtnSurfer

While not the color of Vermont, you can find some nice fall colors in the PNW if you go out to areas known for it. Plus, there are lots of trees in and around town which may or may not be native. But they definitely brighten up the area during fall. And there are some unique fall features that are pretty awesome. I went to MRNP during fall for first time last year and was blown away by the beautiful color. Its just different, not the same kinds of trees and other plants, but still very nice and certainly not without color. Here are a few pics from last fall. Still haven't visited Leavenworth which I hear is gorgeous during fall as well.





























Derek

OMG - absolutely gorgeous! I miss the mountains!