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Seattle proper is a mess now with mega-construction going on for amazon.com and other big firms. It has become very hostile to conservatives, and property crime leads the nation, so I've heard. Crimes against persons are comparatively rare (18-22 murders in a typical year).

It is also very expensive to buy or rent. The main advantages are the mild, 4-season climate, and the spectacular views of the mountains and water - very scenic. Up north are the San Juan Islands and Vancouver B.C. But there are a LOT of gray misty days here.

I would recommend that someone moving to the area select one of the northern suburbs such as Shoreline, Edmonds, or Lynnwood. The east side suburbs (east of Lake Washington - Bellevue, Issaquah, Redmond) are very nice and somewhat upscale, but the commute to Seattle can be a real pain since it's all funneled through two bridges.

The southern suburbs (Kent, Auburn, etc.) aren't as well known to me, but they are more middle-class and more accessible to the airport, to horse racing, and Mt. Rainier.

One other note: contrary to widespread belief, Seattle is not on the Pacific Ocean, but rather Puget Sound. The ocean is a several hour drive and/or ferry ride.

A little more detail on Seattle weather:

4 distinct seasons

lots of rain and cloudy days

summer temps usually 65-78 daytime, 80 and above infrequent, 90 and above, rare

winter temps 45-55 usually, about 10-15 days below 35 degrees during day, rarely below 20 degrees at night.

winter snowfall typically 3-12 inches spread out over 2-3 snowfalls, but we can have more or less

skiing about 70 minutes east at Snoqualmie Pass

Seattle area geography is hilly and rolling, heavily wooded, with quite a few lakes (Lake Washington borders the entire east side of the city, Puget Sound the west side).

I have a brother who lives in Olympia. I visited him several years ago in August. Had very nice weather, and the scenery is great. As far as sights in Washington, seeing Mt. St. Helen's was the best sight.

My bro took me any wife up Mt. Rainier. It was great except it was so misty we never actually saw the mountain. It wasn't until several days later when we left to go southerly that we actually saw Mt. Rainier in the distance.

Seattle proper is a mess now with mega-construction going on for amazon.com and other big firms. It has become very hostile to conservatives, and property crime leads the nation, so I’ve heard. Crimes against persons are comparatively rare (18-22 murders in a typical year).

It is also very expensive to buy or rent. The main advantages are the mild, 4-season climate, and the spectacular views of the mountains and water - very scenic. Up north are the San Juan Islands and Vancouver B.C. But there are a LOT of gray misty days here.

I would recommend that someone moving to the area select one of the northern suburbs such as Shoreline, Edmonds, or Lynnwood. The east side suburbs (east of Lake Washington - Bellevue, Issaquah, Redmond) are very nice and somewhat upscale, but the commute to Seattle can be a real pain since it’s all funneled through two bridges.

The southern suburbs (Kent, Auburn, etc.) aren’t as well known to me, but they are more middle-class and more accessible to the airport, to horse racing, and Mt. Rainier.

One other note: contrary to widespread belief, Seattle is not on the Pacific Ocean, but rather Puget Sound. The ocean is a several hour drive and/or ferry ride

Thanks so much for so much information. My friend mentioned that Amazon is putting up a number of warehouses, etc. and the very competitive high rent. Not sure where my daughter’s friend lives except I am guessing it is close to a military base as friend’s fiance is military.

Thanks for the tips on location, commute, etc.

I live in the Kent-Auburn area, well, actually I’m up on the Enumclaw plateau.

It’s pretty good here. But then I don’t commute, and rarely go out. But I have a few local friends.