Issaquah Highlands v Talus (Seattle, Bellevue: townhomes, construction, to live) - Washington (WA) -Seattle and King County Suburbs - City-Data Forum

seattleboy49 · 12-01-2011, 09:16 PM

Hi everyone,

I am looking to move to Issaquah and I was wondering what people thought about Issaquah Highlands v Talus? They both seem like they are situated nicely near trails and the mountains. Is one more isolated then the other in regards to being next to restaurants, coffee shops, shopping in general, etc? Any advice or things I should take into consideration would be much appreciated.

and just to give you a little bit about myself, I am a single guy though I plan on getting married and possibly having kids at some point....though not anytime soon.

So I don't necessarily need the biggest place in the world or one that is next to playgrounds or what have you. I would love to live next to mountains and nice trails to go on hikes with my dog, but I don't want to feel too isolated at the same time. I guess I am looking for a rustic setting with a nice town nearby. In regards to price, I am looking to spend somewhere around $400k-500K.

Thanks in advance!

texastrigirl · 12-01-2011, 09:19 PM

Highlands hands-down. Talus is nice but a large component of it is retirees with long term care options. You might even consider Issaquah proper. Some cool little houses scattered throughout off Front Street.

seattlenextyear · 12-01-2011, 10:27 PM

I'd actually choose Talus over the Highlands for childless people: Cheaper townhomes, and more centrally located to the transit center to get to work and Issaquah's shopping centers. There are Cougar mt Trails right off the development, and you're not far from Squak Mt. 1 exit closer in to Seattle too. We live fairly close to Talus and we like the central location.

When you get the wife and kids, move to the Highlands or other places in Sammamish: family friendly, playgrounds, etc.

If you want a more woodsy place, there's a lot of 400k houses to be had further out on SR900 or on Squak Mt., or, if you're not worried about commuting, down towards Mirrormount.

texastrigirl · 12-01-2011, 10:51 PM

Hmmm...maybe. But I have single friends that live in the Highlands too. I like the walkability to Zeeks, Ben and Jerry's, Cafe Lladro, etc in Highlands. The Sunset trailhead is a zip down the hill. Highlands has the Park N Ride right there. You can drop down Sunset Way right onto Front Street.

My inlaws are retired and they wouldn't seriously look at Talus because they said it made them feel like they had one foot in the grave with the retirement center right there front and center. Maybe I have the wrong impression of it because of them.

Ira500 · 12-01-2011, 11:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by texastrigirl

Hmmm...maybe. But I have single friends that live in the Highlands too. I like the walkability to Zeeks, Ben and Jerry's, Cafe Lladro, etc in Highlands. The Sunset trailhead is a zip down the hill. Highlands has the Park N Ride right there. You can drop down Sunset Way right onto Front Street.

My inlaws are retired and they wouldn't seriously look at Talus because they said it made them feel like they had one foot in the grave with the retirement center right there front and center. Maybe I have the wrong impression of it because of them.

I think you do have the wrong impression of Talus. While they do have a retirement community within Talus, there are also families there and direct access to the Cougar Mountain trails.. If I were young and single, I'd probably not want to live at either Talus or Issaquah Highlands, but different strokes for different folks.

katykat46 · 12-05-2011, 08:04 PM

Highlands. It has more of the features you are looking for. Nicer shops, restaurants and you can go down the backside of Front Street and avoid some of that congestion.

Hemlock140 · 12-05-2011, 09:15 PM

There's nothing rustic about the Highlands, a cookie cutter community with a very few places to eat. At your age I'd think you would prefer downtown Bellevue or Kirkland, but if you really do want rustic then for the money you can get a nice older home near Beaver Lake in Sammamish. Unfortunately rustic and being next to restaurants and shopping doesn't really exist. The closest to that of the two is Talus.

wsugrad03 · 12-09-2011, 02:44 PM

Highlands 100%. Talus lacks infrastructure and access. Highlands is designed far better and still have a lot more development to go in the commercial space, so you will have more options across the board.

Ira500 · 12-09-2011, 03:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wsugrad03

Highlands 100%. Talus lacks infrastructure and access. Highlands is designed far better and still have a lot more development to go in the commercial space, so you will have more options across the board.

Issaquah Highlands is definitely better looking.

MaikeerinWA · 12-10-2011, 03:05 PM

We've been looking at both of these (and also the Pine Lake area of Sammamish) for several months, but we haven't decided on either location or timing.

Not sure I would agree with an earlier comment about access being better for IH than Talus. They are both easy to get to (if not get around in), and WA-900 is much improved now, for getting to Talus. There is also a Park and Ride practically at the foot of Talus. For all the "urban village" hype about IH, the reality is there is very little there in terms of restaurants and shops. Then again, there is nothing on Talus, and over time IH should get better in this regard. Gilman does have tons of shopping and eating within a 5- or 10-minute drive from Talus, and of course IH is within easy driving distance of businesses also. Downtown Issaquah is easily reachable from both locations.

Some of the houses that we have been looking at on Talus have splendid views of the mountains, but we have been warned in some cases that that those views will be obstructed by planned future construction. I guess Talus wants to be as dense and congested as its IH big brother at some point.