muimei

Hello everyone,

I'll be starting my grad studies at UW next month and I'm going apartment hunting in Seattle next week. I don't know anything about Seattle since I've only been there once on a short visit. Now, I'm trying to figure out which neighborhoods I should look at. I'm moving up from the SF Bay Area, so I'm hoping that Seattle would be more affordable ($1000 max for one-bedroom). I'd rather not drive to the campus, how good is the public transportation there? I wouldn't mind a commute that is up to 1 hour each way. I want some place clean and quiet. Have you got any ideas as to which neighborhoods I should focus my search on?

Thank you.

Pang_J

Muimei,

Ni hao. Welcome to Seattle. I can't say much about the UW district since I didn't go to school there, but I've been plenty of times and have lived around seattle my whole life (I was actually born at the UW hospital). I lived in Federal Way, about 30 minutes south of Seattle, but on the morning bus it takes about one hour on the bus. Since I know of it, I'll mention it: there is a specific bus that goes from Federal Way to Seattle--the 197. You have to go over a long bridge (you wont be walking it) to get from downtown to the UW. Downtown Seattle has many transfer busses to the UW to accomodate the high demand. As you get into the evening the busses aren't as convenient. You can find a few maps that you should check when considering communities. http://www.metrokc.gov/tran.htm My experience with the Metro Bus system is that the more urban you get, the less on time the busses can be. the UW and downtown bus times are pretty reliable. I don't really know the neighborhoods, sorry about that.

Orcas

Don't set you expectation so low that you are willing to sit in traffic for an hour twice a day!!! You will not find decent long distance public transportation. You will be living in your car in a parking lot called a freeway. There is no need for that. Grad school is demanding and the U is a vibrant community, with many lovely neighborhoods nearby. My niece graduated from the U last year and she lived in Greenlake for some time. There is the U District itself, Capital Hill. Students rent rooms and apts in houses. They share houses. They share flats. They find comfortable places near the U and have a great life. Is there a university housing office you can check with? If not, why not call up the head of the program you'll be in and ask who can help you sort through this. Just don't settle for a one hour commute!

Orcas

I should clarify, Capitol Hill is a separate neighborhood from the U district. Not far. I hope you get a lot of good ideas from your post here. Don't move far away!!!

PamSF

I'd check out Greenlake. I like Capital Hill a great deal but I think the rents might be higher than Greenlake. The U district is hoppin' but since it's grad school, you might not want hoppin'. I would, however, check out Mama Malina's in the U District for a great neighborhood Italian meal. I agree with the do not commute for an hour if you don't have to. I found the commute traffic in Seattle alarming even by Bay Area standards. I might also suggest you check out guide books like Best Places Seattle which will break down the neighborhoods for you and also provide maps you can check out the neighborhoods in terms of their proximity to the U.

Gardyloo

The UW is, apart from downtown Seattle, the best-served area in town by Metro, the county's bus system. Even if you don't live close enough to walk to the campus, chances are that you can live within a wide radius and still have an easy commute. I would caution about the "1 hour" range you mention - consider nights at the library, things like that - when the buses become less frequent, and the drippy Seattle weather means your bike is not an attractive option.

There is a lot of rental inventory in the U. District, Wallingford, Fremont, and Eastlake (on the east shore of Lake Union) areas. Greenlake is more a single-family housing area, as is the Ravenna neighborhood (where I live) immediately north of the U District. I would frankly look at the Eastlake area most intensely - it's got a great location, walkable from the south end of the campus, lots of great shops and restaurants along Eastlake Ave., and some very nice older apartment buildings. Plus houseboats on Lake Union, Gasworks Park, and plenty of places to walk or bike. A quick search in the paper shows a number of 1-BR rentals in the $650-$800 range.

I would limit my search to the following zip codes if I were you: 98102, 98103, 98105, 98112, 98115 and 98122. Those will form a "ring" around the UW and there ought to be plenty of housing choice inside that donut. Also make sure you consult the wantads constantly: http://classifieds.nwsource.com/rentals/ and also the Seattle Weekly, www.seattleweekly.com and Craigs List, http://seattle.craigslist.org/

jimshep

Capitol Hill has a lot to offer and it is convenient to downtown. There is good bus service from there to UW on the 43, 7, and perhaps others. You should be able to get a nice one-bedroom for under $1,000. Look first in the area farther up the hill (e.g., between John and Aloha and 11th Avenue East and 16th Avenue East) rather than close to I-5.

sharbar

As everyone has cautioned, you don't want (or need) to live within an hour's commute to Seattle. Apt prices in Seattle are more than reasonable (particularly compared to SF!); I have friends with studios ~$600, so finding a one-bedroom under $1000 shouldn't be a problem.

If you're into a social scene, Capitol Hill is the place of choice; the area is youth- and gay-centered. Fremont is anothe area, dubbed the "center of the universe" by its inhabitants.

If city life doesn't interest you, you can live farther out and take the train, the Sounder, which stops in various towns (South: Tacoma, Puyallup, Sumner, Auburn, Kent, Tukwila; North: Everett, Edmonds) before hitting Seattle. That way you don't have to deal with sitting in rush hour traffic, which is horrendous here. Be warned, the trains don't run that often; the last outbound train leaves Seattle at 5:13PM (northbound) or 5:40PM (southbound), so if you have a class in the late afternoon or early evening, it will be the bus back home for you. You can check out their website www.soundtransit.org for more info.

Orcas

Forget the Sounder. My sister's family just moved closer in to Seattle as her husband's job moved from Tacoma to Seattle and the Sounder was extremely inconvenient, with its infrequent service. Traffic on I-5 is a nightmare. I-405 is even worse, on the eastside. The 520 bridge to Bellevue/Kirkland/Redmond is also a nightmare. I-90 is the only sane east-west route, but I-90 runs south of the university, and you'd have to go north on I-5. Forget it. Move in close to the University and, after you live here for awhile say, "Thank you Fodorite!" five times every day!

artlover

Absolutely agree with Orcas! Especially as a grad student you want to be NEAR the U--the nearer the better, really. When I was in grad school I spent hours at the library and even though the Internet has cut some of that time, you still want to be near campus. Really, that's part of the experience (and it's a beautiful campus).

Good luck and I hope you enjoy being here.

ALF

I was formerly a TA coordinator at U-Dub, and almost all of the grad students I worked with lived north of the U District, in Ravenna. This is a quick bus ride, and within bicycle distance (although there is a longish uphill climb to the U. There are many quiet areas that are away from major traffic arterials, but still reasonably close to stores and bus lines.

jimshep

I never cease to be amazed at the great advise available here.

Suggestion: check out the neighborhoods mentioned here for housing options, transportation, shopping, whatever else interests you (bars, restaurants, movie houses, etc.).

I wish I had done so when I moved here in 1990. I ended up living on Queen Anne Hill for ten years that I could have spent on Capitol Hill if only I had known in which part of CH to live.

artlover

Second the Ravenna neighborhood recommendation--I lived there when I was at the U and it was a great neighborhood.

Gardyloo

As a minor former non-elite member (inactive - no, inert) in so-so standing of what passes for the Ravenna neighborhood association, I will state that rental housing in the neighborhood (depending on how you define "neighborhood") is not as plentiful as it was during, say, the Carter administration. Ravenna has got seriously yupped in the last 20 years. You'll be able to find rental housing for sure in your price range, but honestly if you're willing to shell out up to a grand for a one-bedroom apt, it will go lots farther in other neighborhoods with equivalent transit access to the UW.

Much depends on what field you'll be studying - it's a big campus, and the med school, for example, is lots more convenient to the Montlake or Eastlake neighborhoods than some of the upper campus schools.

Solduc

I live on Capitol Hill, near Pine and 12th, and I would say that CH is probably your best choice. It has the widest variety of housing options in the city and has good transit access (esp. if you live on the downtown side of the Hill, west of Broadway). Perhaps best of all, Capitol Hill has a youthful energy that isn't dependant upon a university to provide, which I think is a rarity in American cities. The neighborhood doesn't die during inter-quarter breaks, and it offers a much needed break from the university scene. When I attended UW, I started off by living in the U-District, but eventually migrated to CH for its more diverse environment.

The 7 and 43 Metro routes connect CH directly with the U-District, and the 70's series (70, 71, 72) connect downtown with the U-District.

A quality 1-bedroom on CH (assuming it doesn't feature a view or isn't abnormally large) will probably run $850 to $900. There are reasonably clean "dives" that can be had for considerably less than that, esp. if you look east of Broadway.

My favorite part of CH is 15th Avenue, north of Madison Street up to Volunteer Park -- it's a great, walkable neighborhood. The 43 runs through it, there are 3 grocery stores within short walking distance (with a Trader Joes to open this Fall); it has a lively, small commercial strip, and it has a beautiful, tree-lined streetscape. I've come to regard it as the quintessential, older neighborhood in Seattle.

Here's a citizen's bulletin board that gives an insight into the neighborhood, warts and all: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/15thAve_Community/

Good luck!

Plato1

Have a similar situation. Since these post responses are dated 2004, I'm wondering if the neighborhoods have changed much and if responses would be different now. Many said look close to campus for an apartment. Still agree? In what areas would you encourage me to look?

5alive

This post is 10 years old, and I'd advise you to start a new post.