Moving to Washington

Tacoma has many of the problems typically seen in larger cities.

Bremerton (and all of Kitsap County) has a large military presence with the resulting frequent turnover. Consequently a sizable portion of the population has little to no "investment" in the community.

Both cities have quieter and "better" neighborhoods and small towns surrounding the city proper.

If I worked in Olympia I would live in Lacey, if I worked in Bremerton I would live in Poulsbo (where I was raised), Kingston or in the Belfair/Port Orchard area.

Thanks for responding...I really appreciate the info! :)

:) Hi there I am a California girl transplanted to WA, so here's my take on moving here having lived in CA (North and South) now in WA (King County 20 min from Seattle). I'm prenursing so can only tell ya about the area. Here's my 2 cents:

1. WA is safer! What they describe as "tough" or "bad" neighborhoods around here is really nothing compared to what in CA we'd call a bad area :rotfl:

2. May not be an issue for you but we severely underestimated how depressing the long gloomy rainy weather is here for folks used to sunshine

3. Housing is more affordable, even in King County, than CA. However it is not all that cheap. Seattle is still one of the top 10 or 20 most expensive metro areas. In my opinion some areas housing seem like bubbles about to pop. We pay more property taxes on a 330k house than my parents in LA with a $500k house. No state income taxes, but they'll get your $$$

4. Lack of freeways. Get used to there being a handful of highways versus the massive network of freeways in LA.

5. Education is badly mismanaged by the state in my opinion. UW is the only major U in town, with overenrollment problems amongst other things. WA state lacks the UC system, the Cal State system, or any comparable equivalent. Result? very limited higher education opportunities. This is a very real problem for me as a student and one reason we don't want our kids growing up here past age 12 or so.

6. The quality of life is better if you're an outdoorsy type and generally the commute is a fraction of any CA communte, although there's no Metro nor BART equivalent. Nice scenery here but IMHO CA is more beautiful :)

There are pros and cons to moving here. We're planning to move back to CA within the next 5 years. We miss the vitality of CA and our friends and family because almost everyone we knew from CA stayed in CA and never left.

Hi Washington nurses..I have joined you in this beautiful state and am getting settled into an apt in Port Orchard (for now) then we will save our $$$ and look for a home. DH wanted to retire in this gorgeous area, we just got here a little early...LOL! :)

Right now I am learning my way around and getting us settled, then will get my license transferred and look for some decent part time work with no weekend requirement ..(per DH request...he is sick of me working weekends) So..it may not be in a hospital, altho that is my forte. Anyone here work in a Tacoma hospital that has perdiem positions NOT requiring weekends?

I've looked into the Bremerton hospital but their per diem positions all have a weekend requirement.

Any suggestions or hints for part time work in the area would be appreciated...:)

We lived in Walla Walla when I was a kid, I can't really tell you much about cost of living ect. but I can tell you it would be a horrible place to raise kids. I was 8-11 y/o when I lived there, all of the kids knew SO much more than they should at that age, looking back it is shocking the things I was exposed to drugs, smoking, sex you name it. I remember when we moved away it was several years before my peers started talking/acting like the kids did there. I actually considered moving back there a few years ago, (my brother still lives there) and the thing that stopped me was the fact that I didn't want my kids to grow up there.

Wow! Did we grow up in the same place? I also grew up in Walla Walla and I don't recall any of that! It could be that you're quite a bit younger than I am - or maybe you grew up in a rougher area.

Welcome Mattsmom81! I'm in Olympia just a little south of you......

Hi Washington nurses..I have joined you in this beautiful state and am getting settled into an apt in Port Orchard (for now) then we will save our $$$ and look for a home. DH wanted to retire in this gorgeous area, we just got here a little early...LOL! :)

Right now I am learning my way around and getting us settled, then will get my license transferred and look for some decent part time work with no weekend requirement ..(per DH request...he is sick of me working weekends) So..it may not be in a hospital, altho that is my forte. Anyone here work in a Tacoma hospital that has perdiem positions NOT requiring weekends?

I've looked into the Bremerton hospital but their per diem positions all have a weekend requirement.

Any suggestions or hints for part time work in the area would be appreciated...:)

Hey I did not know you moved here! Wow Port Orchard is about 30 min from me, just gotta cross that dang bridge, yuck. I would not want to do that on a daily basis.

I hate to tell you this, but I know of no hospital perdiem positions that don't require at least SOME weekend commitment from you. They all seem to. I have worked in Tacoma and Olympia, and I have to say they all ask that of you. If you find one that does not (clinics don't count obviously), then let me know, ok????? good luck and welcome here. there was a time I considered living up in Port Orchard, but like I said, I hate crossing the Narrows, esp on a daily or even weekly basis. Would drive me nuts. Welcome to WA!

I can't say I would live in Lacey. Growing WAy too fast, like so many areas here. The infrastructure CANNOT seem to keep up w/the growth of population, schools, homes etc. I am not a fan of either Lacey or Puyallup for these, among other, reasons. Kitsap is beautiful. I would love to live up there, but only if I worked in Bremerton. Traffic to Tacoma is the pits, unless you work nightshift! The Narrows is really bad during weekdays....

I have to agree with Smiling Blue Eyes on Lacey. The schools aren't nearly as good there either.

Wow! Did we grow up in the same place? I also grew up in Walla Walla and I don't recall any of that! It could be that you're quite a bit younger than I am - or maybe you grew up in a rougher area.

Welcome Mattsmom81! I'm in Olympia just a little south of you......

I am 28 now, what school did you go to ? I think the name of the school was blue ridge or something like that, it was fairly new then, and it was built under a hill. How long did you live there?

I have to agree with Smiling Blue Eyes on Lacey. The schools aren't nearly as good there either.

Schools in WA are not very good, period, is my experience. So, I homeschool. At least, WA is very homeschooler-friendly. That is a great thing.

I went to Walla Walla High School and graduated in 1982. I lived there until 1984 so it could be that things have really gone down the tubes!!