Moving to Seattle - Seattle,WA

Hi, congratulations! July is a great time of year to move here.

Usually big companies like Virginia Mason have relocation specialists, especially if your husband is being assigned for a year. I'd ask your husband to ask his HR contact who you should talk to about local area schools and housing near his work. They'd probably have great contacts and recommendations for you since most big companies here are interested in the whole family - not just the employee - being happy.

Also, when you get here, a great resource to sign up for is Red Tricycle http://redtri.com/seattle-kids/
they have an email newsletter and are always promoting free things to do with the kids, so it's a great resource for a family on a budget!

Yup. Go further north (Greenwood, Maple Leaf, Northgate, Shoreline) or south (Mt. Baker, Columbia City, West Seattle) for cheaper rents. In-city is really expensive. The neighborhoods listed are more diverse with more low-income folks, but Seattle overall is still a pretty safe city.

Full day kindergarten is under $300 a month. (It was $270 last year. I'm not sure what it is this year.) You could always have your kiddo in half-day kindergarten for no cost, but not all schools can accommodate half-day. Also, some schools provide full day kindergarten for no cost. These are typically in lower income areas where a high % of the students qualify for free lunch. Daycare is really expensive here as well. Contact King County for a list of in-home providers, who are generally somewhat less expensive than daycare centers. If you won't be working outside and only want preschool, you can find a coop or community center program to help lower the cost.

Seattle is way more expensive than Cincinnati (housing, food, entertainment), and I assume that Cincinnati is more expensive than Akron. But, it is a beautiful city with a lot of amenities, and it's relatively easy to find cheap/free things to do with kiddos.

Once you decide on a neighborhood, post again for more advice. There are a bunch of folks on this site from the area.

Hi. I live in Seattle. I'm a native here and it's a beautiful city! I think you'll really like it.
If you'd like cheaper rent and living I'd consider the south-end of Seattle. About 10 mins south of downtown are neighborhoods like Mt. Baker, Beacon Hill, Columbia City, etc. I've been in Mt. Baker for 9 years and I LOVE IT! There's parks, co-op grocery stores, shops. The neighborhoods are diverse, lots of different cultures living together.
If you're willing to go even further south, like along the Light Rail line (Othello Station) you'll find even more affordable rents. Personally I prefer Columbia City/Mt. Baker Seward Park.
Let me know if you have any questions. I'd be happy to answer them.
Best,
E.

My best advice is to find a place that is in the greater Seattle area because Seattle itself is expensive. We live just barely in Seattle and are living in a two bedroom one bath apartment that's 1200 a month. I love the city because everything is close, but it's not cheap. A great resource is Walkscore.com. They will tell you what's in each each city or neighborhood (like restaurants and apartments) and they have crime reports as well. I don't know much about the schools around here because I have a two year old. Good luck and I hope you enjoy Washington. It's a beautiful state.

The Highline school district does not charge for full day kindergarten. They have some high poverty schools (some with excellent instruction, but still dealing with the problems that a high poverty community faces, which can be disruptive to education). If you're willing to live as far out as Des Moines they have some kindergartens that would not be primarily kids coming from high poverty homes. The state has been told it has to fully fund education, so may not be charging for full day kindergarten anywhere for next year, but that remains to be seen. The legislature will be taking up school funding again in the next session. Highline has a very dynamic superindentdent who is setting ambitious goals for improvement, focusing on elementary education. If you're willing to live that far out it's worth checking out.
If you're in Seattle you'll have to be very careful about which neighborhood you move into b/c if you want a school other than your neighborhood school you have to request it in february/march. The quality of schools in Seattle vary widely.

My friend's husband just finished residency at VM and they lived in Bellevue. Their apartment complex was close to 90 and leaving early in the morning he had a pretty short commute. They also qualified for assistance with utilities and the schools are rated very highly.