Moving to Seattle, WA: A Bellhop City Guide

Living in Seattle: The Basics

A Brief Overview of Seattle

With an estimated 730,000 residents, Seattle is the largest city in the Pacific Northwest. Its climate is temperate all year long, with relatively dry summers and wet winters. There’s a common misconception that it rains more in Seattle than in other cities, but Seattle actually receives less precipitation than New York, Chicago, Miami, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Houston, Baltimore, and many other places.

It used to be known as the “Queen City” but its official nickname became “Emerald City” in 1981, as a reference to the lush evergreen forests in the area. It’s also referred to as “The City of Goodwill,” which was adopted right before it hosted the 1990 Goodwill Games.

The (Rising) Cost of Living in Seattle

According to a study reported by Seattle Refined, a lifestyle publication devoted to the area, you need to make $72,092 a year to live comfortably in the city. Of course, this really depends on your definition of comfortable. Seattle residents, according to the same article, tend to earn an average of around $67,000.

According to Numbeo, it costs a four-person family around $3,845 a month to live in the city (excluding housing), and expenses for a single person run a little over $1,000 a month (excluding housing).

When it comes to renting, apartments tend to range from $2,161 to $2,492, depending, of course, on where you want to live.

If you would like a more thorough review of the cost of living in Seattle, Expatistan is a great site that will provide you with an extensive list of expenses such as health care, groceries, clothing, and pretty much anything else you can think of.

Jobs in Seattle

The local economy is driven by a mix of older industrial companies and newer technology companies: Amazon, Starbucks, Nordstrom, and Weyerhaeuser are a few Fortune 500 companies headquartered in Seattle. And Costco, Microsoft, Nintendo of America, T-Mobile, and Expedia are headquartered in nearby Puget Sound cities.

Seattle is also a hub for global health, with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Infectious Disease Research Institute, the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. The state’s largest health-care system, Providence Health & Services, is also in the area and employs more than 100,000 people.

Getting Around the City

Due to the city’s rapid growth, traffic in Seattle is now considered among the worst in the country. In an effort to escape the gridlock, one local went without a car for a year, and then wrote about her experiences, concluding: “All forms of transit have their moments of exasperation...I’ve just come to believe that they’re rarely as maddening as the ones I experienced behind the wheel.”

If you decide to conduct your own experiment with public transportation, rest assured that Seattle has quite a few options:

• Sound Transit’s Link Light Rail: These trains arrive every 6 to 15 minutes, depending on the time of day, and take about 40 minutes to make 14 stops along its way through Downtown Seattle to the Sea-Tac International Airport. One-way fare for adults ranges from $2.25 to $3.25.
• King County Metro Transit: This bus service provides transit in Downtown Seattle and outlying neighborhoods in King county. Timetables and route maps can be found online, and are also available at the Transit Information Center beneath the Westlake Center at 4th Avenue and Pine Street. King County Metro also has a mobile app available for both iPhone and Android.
• Seattle Streetcars: The South Lake Union Streetcar arrives every 10 to 15 minutes and makes 11 stops through the South Lake Union area. It runs from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sundays and holidays. Adult fare is $2.50. The First Hill Streetcar arrives every 10 to 25 minutes and makes 10 stops from the Chinatown-International District through Capitol Hill. It runs from 5 a.m. to 1 a.m. Monday through Thursday, 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sundays, and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on holidays. Adult fare is $2.50.
• Seattle Center Monorail: These iconic trains, which carry more than 2 million passengers a year, travel between Westlake Center and Seattle Center. Regular operating hours are between 7:30 a.m. and 11 p.m., Monday through Friday, and from 8:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Trains depart every 10 minutes, and the trip takes only 2 minutes each way. One-way fare for adults is $2.50.

Crime in Seattle

According to The Seattle Times, the overall crime rate in the city is down, but it really depends on the neighborhood. This interactive map is a handy resource for determining the level of safety in particular areas.

Living in Seattle: The Lowdown on the Best Neighborhoods for You

Seattle’s neighborhoods are diverse and ever-changing, so we’ve tried to simplify things by briefly highlighting some of our favorites. If you’re interested in a more extensive review, make sure to check out our other guides to the best neighborhoods in Seattle, the best up-and-coming neighborhoods in Seattle, the best neighborhoods for families in Seattle, and the best suburbs in Seattle.

Fremont

Located on the north bank of the Lake Washington Ship Canal, this neighborhood’s boutiques, bars, and bohemian spirit make it a popular hang-out spot for both residents and the employees of nearby tech companies. It also happens to host the Fremont Solstice Parade, where many participants ride their bicycles naked. Really. (That link is a little NSFW, obviously.)

Belltown

Another waterfront neighborhood, Belltown is known as a trendy area that offers an abundance of boutiques, art galleries, restaurants, and nightclubs. Many consider it one of the most walkable neighborhoods in the city, so if you paid particularly close attention to our "Getting Around" section, this is where you want to be—unless, of course, you're set on owning a home. (Due to the area's zoning ordinances and proximity to the water, condos and apartments are the primary type of residence.)

Pioneer Square

Seattle's oldest neighborhood, Pioneer Square is known for having a large number of historic brick buildings that have been renovated into upscale loft apartments and galleries. These features—along with a few impressive restaurants and shops—are highlights, however, and not the best way to define the area. Its wide selection of bars and nightclubs attracts a younger, single, party-going crowd, but many tend to outgrow the area after a few years, especially when they tire of the prevalent homelessness in its nearby parks.

Magnolia

As is the case with many affluent neighborhoods around the country, opinions abound about Magnolia, a residential neighborhood situated on a peninsula with beautiful views of the Puget Sound. Some locals believe it has a crime problem, while many others think it is has a snobby-locals problem. If you can afford the median home price of $1,000,000, then you’re welcome to find out the truth for yourself. What can be agreed on by everyone, however, is that Magnolia’s Discovery Park offers both residents and visitors the chance to explore a bucolic landscape with beaches, hiking trails, meadows, and tide pools.

Seattle Culture and Nightlife

The Arts

Seattle is one of the greatest arts cities in the world, and its legendary music scene is a big reason why. Not only is it the birthplace of Jimi Hendrix, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and many others, it also has the Seattle Symphony, the Pacific Northwest Ballet, and the Seattle Opera—if you’re more into, shall we say, refined music. Historic music venues such as Easy Street Records, The Crocodile, and the Moore Theatre are all great places to catch a show.

Seattle has plenty of attractions for art-lovers as well. In fact, there are far too many to list, but we’d be irresponsible if we didn’t mention the Museum of Pop Culture, the Chihuly Garden and Glass, the Seattle Art Museum, and the Seattle Center.