Seattle Washington?

Question

Is Seattle Washington a good place to live.

Answer 1

Seattle is very diverse and each part of the city is different.
The scenery is beautiful and the grass almost always looks lush. Because the place is so diverse, there is a great variety of restaurants to go to. American to Viet to Afghan cuisine -- lots of different kinds of cuisines have restaurants in Seattle.

The people are okay. Whether you would think that they are nice or snobby is very relative. They're nicer than most people in the cities in the Northeast but compared to Southerners and people from the Midwest, they come off as more standoffish.

The quality of public education (from K-12) in Seattle is not that great but I'd say its better compared to other big cities. Also, there are lots of suburbs near Seattle that offer high quality public education. However, we do have the 20th best university in the world -- the UW.

The big thing I don't like about Seattle is how expensive everything is. The tax here is 8.8% as opposed to 7% in Florida and 4% in Virginia. The average price for a house is about $400K. Compared to some places in California, things here are cheaper but if you compare Seattle to other places, you will find that things here really do cost more -- even groceries cost a bit more. Then again, the minimum wage here is higher than in most places and Seattle has the highest percentage of educated people compared to other cities. It is actually considered to be the most educated city in the US which, of course, means that many people make good money. The headquarters of Microsoft and Boeing are also in this area. And Harborview Hospital is one of the top hospitals in the country and serves 4 states so there are a lot of good jobs especially for people who have received college education. The UW and Harborview (which are actually affiliated with each other) together have about 35,000 employees. I do admit that we have a number of homeless people as well (just like any other major city) but there is an ongoing campaign to reduce homelessness (actually, more like rid the whole city of it) in the next 10 years.

The crime rate is relative to the area of the city. I believe that the south has a higher crime rate than the north. But in 2001, the whole city did rank as the city with the 18th highest crime rate in the US but I personally don't think it's that bad (then again, I live in northern Seattle).

As for the weather, it rains a lot but people kind of exaggerate about that. Seattle rain is usually very light and people usually don't even use umbrellas. Seattle isn't even in the top 10 wettest cities! It can get pretty hot in the summer (it got up to 98 F in the summer of 2006) and it usually gets down to the 20s in the winter (but not for long periods of time). But most of the time, the temperature is pretty moderate averaging at about 40-45 in the winter and in the upper 70s and low 80s in the summer. The weather is nice enough that people are still always out and trying to get fit. Seattle has consistently been in top 5 fittest cities in the US. I can personally attest to that. A lot of people here really ARE fit especially compared to people in other places in the US where I've lived / been to.

And as for the coffee addiction? Well, I guess that's kind of true :P Even in high schools, people walk around with their coffee mugs! In most schools in other states, teachers won't allow this but it's acceptable in schools in Seattle because even teachers sometimes drink coffee while teaching. And within a 5 mile radius of where I live, there are about 35 Starbucks stores (there are usually about 10-15 in other places)

Anyways, it's all very relative, of course, but I do think Seattle is a good place to live in.

Answer 2

You know what? My family and I got "stuck" in Seattle for 2 weeks. Everyone I ran into was very nice... and this was surrounding the airport. Everything looked clean and professional. The drivers were courteous. I had no complaints about where we got "stuck". Hope it helps.

Answer 3

Yes it is. Its a beautiful city, the environment surrounding the city is really beautiful--Mt. Rainier, then the lakes, the sound, and the Olympics across the sound. Its progressive, too. It has a reputation for getting a lot of rain.

Answer 4

It is probably one of the best places in the country to live. But we don't want others to know this, because then they all move here. So forget everything I just told you, and only remember this:

It rains all the time, people will stab you, and there is no drinking water, just coffee.

Answer 5

Yes, I love it. It rains a lot, but the upside is that everything is green and beautiful! :)
Be warned, it's a fairly expensive area to live.

Answer 6

Yes, it is. I wish my family could relocate to the West Coast on the Pacific today.

Answer 7

People are nice,
education is average,
fairly expensive,
lush plants and wildlife,
beautiful city.

Answer 8

JXT is right on its a very nice place i go there every year i wish i lived there!

Answer 9

George: I don't like pesto sauce.
Jerry: How could you not like pesto?
George: I dunno, I just don't like it.
Jerry: Everyone's having pesto on pasta and sandwiches these days.
George: And what's with everyone moving to Seattle?
Jerry: I dunno. Seattle is like the pesto of cities.
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Jeffy: So, where you from?
Laura: Seattle.
Jeffy: Oh, I hear it rains there, in Seattle..........and they have coffee there.
Laura: We have all the major beverages.

Answer 10

I love it