Job Offer in Tacoma!

[gizmo980]

It's me again... haha. After months of interviewing and turning down a couple other offers, I finally have one I'm strongly considering; it's a full time position in Tacoma (Summit area), pays pretty well at around $80K + benefits and 4-6% annual raises. County/union job, so that's all set in stone. Does that sound like a good salary for the area?

Now the question is where to live if I take it. I'd mentioned some of my needs and wants in the other thread, so I'll try to summarize quickly here. Probably won't convince my friend to live with me, as I'd been hoping, since she doesn't want to leave Seattle proper. But I'd like to get closer to her if possible, so we could at least hang out regularly. Here are my details:

- 47 year-old woman
- Single, no children; cis/hetero but not overly concerned with dating.
- Politically far left, willing and able to live peaceably with "the other side" as long as they don't provoke me lol.
- 2 dogs (huskies) + 3 cats
- Somewhat outdoorsy, mostly because of the dogs; they like to run free but need secured areas, so local dog parks or semi-closed-in beaches are ideal for them.
- I play classical music/viola, so local community orchestras or chamber opportunities would be a bonus.
- I also ride horses, beginner but would love to continue improving. English currently, but maybe interested in revisiting Western riding too.
- Work hours might be variable; planning to negotiate for the latest hours possible, which would be better for my sleep schedule + commutes.
- House budget? Maybe $700K, if I sell my house down here.
- Looking for a small house on a large lot, so the dogs have a yard to run around in.
- Not concerned with driving to amenities, and I can handle 30-40 minutes (each way) of commute since I've been doing longer for years now.

Anything else? I've been looking at maybe Des Moines, Federal Way, Gig Harbor, Puyallup, and Kent. I don't know much about these towns, just going on location and what others have suggested so far. I usually prefer a more rural-ish and quiet setting, surrounded by trees rather than close neighbors and subdivisions. Yuck. Appreciate any thoughts or ideas, and I hope to be a Washingtonian soon!!

[gizmo980]

FYI: In the interest of full disclosure, the reason I'm more casual than most about housing budgets is because I'm also sitting on a large inheritance. It's mostly in a money market account + equity in my current home, but total value is around $600K. Plus I have a vested pension through CalPERS, which I could start collecting as soon as age 54. So that's all being factored in, and making it so my salary isn't the only financial factor. I'd rather not dip into all that quite yet, though!

[gizmo980]

Sorry, more questions/info… after speaking with my sister, I think we both agree I’m better off commuting from Seattle and living with my friend there. Since the place I’d be working is open until 8pm most nights, I’m going to ask for 11/11:30-8 schedule. Would it be a doable commute at that time, if I’m able to negotiate those hours?

[homesinseattle]

Hi gizmo! It’s not rural but you might seriously consider the Historic Proctor District of North Tacoma. Full of character, liberal, groovy, connected, dog-friendly. Besides great farmers markets, music, cafes and community events, there are beaches and parks closeby, even the ferry to Vashon. Really good house value for money, imo. Here’s the community link: https://theproctordistrict.com/

[Hemlock140]

I would not recommend the Seattle/Tacoma commute, though it would definitely be better at those hours, there are frequent problems with accidents and/or construction. That 45-60 minutes twice a day would be hard on you and costly. I have family in Gig Harbor and they love it there, woodsy and more rural, only 15-20 minutes but a bridge toll going into Tacoma.

[homesinseattle]

Originally Posted by Hemlock140

I would not recommend the Seattle/Tacoma commute, though it would definitely be better at those hours, there are frequent problems with accidents and/or construction. That 45-60 minutes twice a day would be hard on you and costly. I have family in Gig Harbor and they love it there, woodsy and more rural, only 15-20 minutes but a bridge toll going into Tacoma.

Agree Hemlock. There are some Gig Harbor places that the OP can slide into in her price range and GH is definitely less Trumpy than other surrounding Pierce County rural areas.

[Diana Holbrook]

Hello Gizmo

I would start out with a search around the wider Tacoma/Pierce County area for homes that suit you. You will find out that generally you will get more for your money the further South you go, so that will be the challenge competing with your desire to be closer to Seattle. There are places available between, but you will pay more for them.

*My* advice would be to try to give yourself the best commute, stay as close to work as you can because you will have to do that every day, and traffic during commute times is a lot harder to control than trips to Seattle during recreation time. Buying something further from Tacoma will mean a lot of time spent in freeway traffic. It just will.

As far as areas around Tacoma, I agree with those who like Gig Harbor... We have a family beach house there and it's a neat town and close. Lots of big doggable yards... However, the tolls are $4.50-6.50 per round trip and I wouldn't want to bake that in to a commute every day or to the cost of friends coming to visit.

East of Tacoma in Puyallup/Graham/Buckley, there are a lot of great homes with big dogable yards and more horse properties and stables. It may be a good option, but it's an area that has really been growing fast and freeway traffic there too will be an issue during peak times.

Update... I now see in your post that your job opportunity is in the Summit area. That puts you east of Tacoma on 512, which means going east from Tacoma (Puyallup/Graham/Buckley) makes absolutely the most sense for a commute... The I-5/512 exchange is a bottleneck and highway 167 is perpetually under construction so it's not smooth to plan on that for a commute between Tacoma or Seattle, but if your timing can be more occasional and off peak, it will be better.


Older neighborhoods will definitely have the bigger yards for the dogs, usually, and more privacy from existing fences, trees and mature landscaping. You'll find as a trend in newer developments smaller lots and removal of all the big trees, and the landscaping takes time to mature.

As far as riding, I think you'll find there's a good choice of boarding and lesson stables for you to check out when you get here... Western or English, this is a pretty horsey area. Hopefully you'll get to do that, and eventually enjoy some of our beautiful trails too.

Update: I see you've updated in a lower post about a plan to at least start out in Seattle. I would say that off peak commute times like you mention will make a huge difference, and you will do better commuting from Seattle to Tacoma than the other way around. That said, once you're here, if you decide to stay, there are good places further South for you to look into when you're ready to do that.


Good luck!

[CrazyDonkey]

A West Seattle (from Fauntleroy and Westcrest Park areas) to Tacoma commute is possible. For example:

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/9...49038062_zpid/

Here's the North Tacoma house I linked in your Seattle thread:

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/7...49203109_zpid/

[homesinseattle]

Check out Normandy Park, nice part of the area with larger lots/garden, beaches and woods nearby. The commute to Tacoma would be manageable too.

[jabogitlu]

The I-5 and SR-67 corridors between Tacoma and Seattle are among the heaviest trafficked corridors during rush hours which go from 7-9:30 am and 3-6:30 pm (at the very least). If you can negotiate those off-rush hours that you mentioned, it wouldn't be so bad. But during rush, anytime you'd need to get south of Tacoma (like your Summit location) from Seattle you'd want to budget over an hour in the car to be safe.

Even though you might be in a position to buy, maybe you should start off renting. Your friend might not like your location requirements, or you might not like your location you picked... much easier to try things out for a year then go from there.