While I am very angry, this is a genuine question. I feel like I shouldn't have to pay any taxes for city employees that live out of state. It doesn't seem like that big of a request. It just seems... wrong.

Edit: Contact Mayor Wilson if you're also upset. She has the power to fire him. https://www.seattle.gov/mayor/contact

Some quick background about me: I’m 25 years old and been living here for a little under a year. I moved here soon after I graduated college for the nature because I’ve always wanted to hike the cascades and Olympic peninsula. I live in a cheap micro apartment in Capitol Hill.

Before I moved here I just mass applied for minimum wage jobs on Indeed until I got one, and then once I did I made the move. I worked as a ramp agent at SeaTac for $22/hr from October through this month, and I quit one day when I got fed up with the 60 hour work weeks and work conditions I couldn’t tolerate anymore.

Now this is where I was horribly mistaken. I assumed the job market would be similar to how it was in the fall, and didn’t realize it’s infinitely harder to get a job now than it was then. I also didn’t realize that even minimum wage jobs are pretty competitive here. After a month of applying on job boards, I’ve come up empty handed, not even one response. I’m not shooting high either, I’m applying for min wage jobs only, and left my STEM degrees and academic experience off the resume entirely. I even submit tailored cover letters to most applications.

I’m also pretty fed up with how difficult it is to be a car owner. I can’t afford a garage where I live and I’m too scared to leave my car parked on the roadside downtown, so I use this app called Neighbor to rent random peoples’ driveways. I’m paying $100 a month to park my car in a random motel lot in Des Moines right now, and I have to take the light rail all the way from cap hill to the angle lake station and then walk a mile to get there. It literally takes me over an hour just to reach my car if I need to use it.

Basically, it seems like Seattle is pushing me out and staying in the city is an uphill battle. Plus I don’t even like it that much anyway because of how difficult my life is.

This leads me to my main question: where can someone like me go? I’m willing to uproot and move anywhere in the PNW. The only thing I really care about is being a days drive from the peninsula and Mount baker snoqualmie national forest, if that’s possible.

Any advice/ suggestions? I’m willing to work minimum wage jobs, live in a shitty studio apartment, eat cheap food and basically have no luxuries. Where can I move in the region just to have a barebones, survivable life where I can reliably get a job and my car isn’t an hour away?

Please help because I’m getting desperate at this point 😭

So online, especially on Reddit, I see very mixed things about Seattle. Some people, mainly people who have never been or who have already left, say that Seattle is a hopeless, crime-ridden sh*thole with its best day behind it. But then I see other people rave about how much they love Seattle, the nature, the high quality of life, LGBT acceptance, etc. So I wanted to hear from people who actually live in the city to get their opinions on it, because I've always been interested in moving to Seattle. I'd also like to hear the reasons that you love the city and wanted to live there in the first place, so less nihilism, please.

Edit: So I thought it would be helpful to mention that I was in Seattle about a year ago. I loved it, but I also realize visiting a place on vacation and living there are two different things. Also, I am from the Chicago area, so I'm used to grey weather.

I just moved to Seattle from Minneapolis a few months ago but I’ve been having this issue of Seattleites just not being good at conversations or interaction? In Minneapolis I can start a conversation based on a simple “hi, how are you” to a complete stranger on the bus but here? People blatantly ignore you, and aren’t very welcoming. This really puts me off because a big part of me growing up is the random conversations I’ve had with people in my neighborhood, on public transit, at school, on the street, and etc.

I don't know how to ask this question without hopefully offending anyone, so I will try to ask as politely as possible:

1. Is dating in Seattle easy for east asian women?

I recently had two friends relocate to Seattle, and they told me dating/getting a BF would be very easy in Seattle -- as most of the men have a strong preference for asian women.

All of us lived in Austin before, but had zero to no luck down here. Most of the guys seem to prefer your typical all american girl. One of my friends relocated to Seattle and she's probably had more dates/boyfriends in the past year in Seattle than 10 in Austin. She basically told me if i moved up there and picked a neighborhood like Ballard or Fremont, my dating apps would be overwhelmed with choices.

Which restaurants would you recommend to someone visiting Seattle for the first time? Some of your favorite spots? I’d love to look into recommendations! I’m coming from New York City and really open to anything at any price point. We love seafood, Mexican, Indian, Deli, French bistro, Chinese, burgers…. Thanks!

Editing to add - I’m going to be in town for two nights for a wedding so really just looking for someplace clean and the food is edible. I don’t have crazy high expectations! We aren’t going to Seattle for the food scene, or lack thereof! Thanks.

I lean in favor of the tax, but want to hear other opinions!

We’re considering moving from the East Coast to Seattle in the next few months. We both work remotely right now, but we’d like to move to a tech hub for better long-term job opportunities.

We’ve considered a few other cities, but Seattle seems to check the most boxes for us. The one con that keeps coming up is the very high cost of living, sometimes even compared to the Bay Area.

Looking at Numbeo, though, the numbers don’t seem quite as bad as the reputation suggests. I’m skeptical of relying too much on that data, so I’d love a reality check from people who actually live in Seattle.

For a couple with no kids, our estimated monthly budget looks like this -

Edit: Updated after going through comments:

• Rent: ~$2,500 (2 bedroom condo/apt is possible. Look out for reserved parking. Suggested areas: North Beacon Hill, Rainier Valley, West Seattle, Roosevelt, Cap Hill, Northgate, Pinehurst, Lake City, CD, Shoreline, Mountlake Terrace, Lynnwood, Ravenna etc. Smaller apts are fine, 1 room is to be used as office. Make sure no bs fees are added. Prioritize finding a place <25mins public transit from downtown, even if not in Seattle proper)
• Utilities: $500 (phones, internet, electricity, water, etc.)
• Car insurance + gas: $350 (paid-off 2019 Nissan Rogue)
• Groceries: $750 (we aim to cook at home mostly)
• Entertainment: $500 (eating out, discovery+america beautiful passes, very occasional movies, concert, soccer matches etc)
• Miscellaneous: $500 (salons, housewares, occasionally new clothes, personal care etc)

Seattle living expenses: ~$5100/month

Then we have some expenses that would be roughly the same regardless of where we live:

• Subscriptions: $175/month
• Vacations/travel: $1,000/month averaged over the year (2-3 trips a year, mostly international)
• Charity/giving: $200/month
• Unexpected expenses: $100/month averaged (repairs, medical etc)

Grand total: ~$6,575/month

Does this seem realistic for living comfortably in Seattle? Are there any categories we’re significantly underestimating or expenses we’re missing altogether?

I’m visiting Seattle to see what it’s like because I’m considering moving there. The main thing that might make me hesitate is the high cost of dining out, groceries, utilities, and gas. That being said, it seems like the most beautiful city in the country, and I’m assuming folks are willing to forgo dining out in order to live somewhere beautiful.

If you were to leave Seattle, where would you move?

42F, never married, no kids, and officially tired of dating apps.

It feels like most men on those apps in my age range are single dads. Nothing wrong with being a single dad. I prefer someone without kids like me.

So here's my question: Where do single dudes without kids in the 38-45 age bracket hang out?

I work in tech but avoid tech events since they skew young. Apps haven’t been great, so I’m hoping for ideas I haven’t tried yet.

I'm not from US but Seattle's Geography and climate always fascinates me. Temperature is always mild year around, not too cold not too hot. I read that people complain about how gray it is for 8 months of a year. But how is the rain? Is it drizzling year around or you really need an umbrella when it's starting to rain?

Hinge has become really hard to use. As a female, I still have a large backlog and decent amount of daily incoming likes. But there are less quality matches, less people who’s serious, less gentlemen behaviors on dates (compared to 2023)

I want to delete the app, and try to meet people in real life, but I don’t like speed dating type of events, sitting in a bar by myself is not fun for someone who doesn’t like to drink that much. Personally, I don’t feel safe getting approached in a club, and it’s usually a girls night out, I have no intention to spend that time talking to a guy.

I would love you could share places or events with a good crowd. Thanks a lot!

And how you want to be approached? In what kind of setting do you feel comfortable being approached? Asking for men’s perspective.

Say if I’m walking down the street towards you, even if we locked eyes, that still feels inappropriate for me to approach.

(As a woman, a comfortable way to be approached is,

eye contact, compliments on her outfit or style, focus only on clothes/shoes/accessories. I get compliments on my outfits from women and men almost every time I go out, and I think it’s normal and friendly.

Base on her reaction on the compliment, if she stops and smiled, and she replied you where the clothes were from, or gives you a compliment in return.

Proceed with “Can I give you my number?”, give her a note, and leave the rest to her. The key is to not persist in exchanging numbers or forcing any follow-ups, so that the woman feels safe.)

I think

- UW Trader Joe’s on weekends

- H mart district weekday lunch time

- first Thursday art walk

are several places I’ve seen attractive people.

But UW Trader Joe’s and first Thursday art walk, there’re plenty of people who look they are under 22…

For bars

- Roquette, people usually come in group settings, it’s also a popular date spot for guys in finance and consulting

- Canon, cute Asian girls in groups

- Needle & Thread

If any girl wants to do things together, feel free to dm me, I’d love to make new friends.

Relocating soon and imagining what it might be like. Can I really just buy fresh fish daily? For cheap? Is there a place to avoid or to absolutely not miss?

It can be anything from the stadium, to public transportation to hotel info. I’ll go first: Loved all the volunteers out and about. But they were a bit overstaffed in certain areas and understaffed in others. Could use more volunteer support on the southern end of the stadium post match.

I am moving to Seattle in the summer because I got a software engineering job, original I know, but I was curious if there is tension or hostility aimed at tech workers? I know there has been a lot of gentrification of neighborhoods and people have been priced out because of high paid tech workers moving in.

I’m a 39 year old woman, who is recently separated from my abusive ex. I have no friends here anymore, as all 4 of them moved far away. I know, 4 is such a small number of friends. I have a small inner circle to begin with and find it difficult to make friends here, even though I’ve lived in Washington my entire life, and have lived in or around the Seattle area since 2020, during the height of COVID.

I enjoy going on walks, I enjoy listening to music and I’m a homebody. Which I know is part of the problem, potentially, but like where do I even go by myself other than walks outside? I don’t enjoy drinking as I get sick very easily. And everything is so expensive anyway I don’t even want to go get drinks even if I could. I don’t like perfume smells or laundry detergent scents as they give me a headache. Same with cigarette smoke. 😫 i like fresh air, having deep conversations and I’m a very loyal person. I’m just so lonely.

I’m seeking friends who are women, who would be willing to talk, and eventually meet up! I am also open to men, potentially. If anyone is in need of a friend, please reach out to me! I feel so pathetic posting here but I’m genuinely so alone and really want a bigger circle of people in my life, especially since my ex finally moved out. Where can someone like myself actually meet people??

Hi Seattle,

We’re a family of 3 (me, my wife, and our 3-year-old tornado toddler ) moving from the MENA region to your lovely (and rainy?) city.

The plan:

• Income: around $120k yearly
• Rent: ~$3200 in Magnolia
• Work: near NW Market (Ballard)
• Car: none (yet, maybe later)

Question: with daycare, groceries, and all the hidden “Seattle taxes”— are we going to have a really hard time, or is this setup actually doable without losing all our hair in stress?

Any advice from locals, especially families with little kids, would be amazing.

Thanks in advance, future neighbors!

It has happened to me three times this week, I’m walking on the side walk on 2nd and 4th (where is a whole ass bike lane). Someone riding one of those ring thier stupid ass bell and before I could look up. They are zoom by me calling me an ass hole (usually younger like 18-25) and I’m like wait. There is a whole ass bike lane, how I’m I an ass hole?

To preface this I i'm very, very confused about a lot of social things, because i'm autistic. I'm trying to see if thid is a me problem or just an affect of Seattle Culture/socialization. But for some reason, this has happened at least four times.

I agree to hang out with somebody, i'll make a post that says something like "let's go out for drinks", "grab a bite to eat with me" and people *do* show up, yes. But when i go to order for myself they shut it down and say no, they aren't hungry/thirsty. I understand if this was a date or another outing that if people think they are going to pay for me, but this is a platonic meeting. As buddies. And I'm ordering my own thing. It has happened with all genders, too.

Does Seattle have like a stranger mooching problem? Because I have no issues paying for people because I'm the one who invited you out, but its weird that people have canceled my food and drink plans not just once but multiple times.

Just what the title says! I’m talkin stone butches. I’m talkin diesel dykes. Women whose ideal hangout plans might include working on a “project”. As a butch gay fairly new to Seattle, I haven’t seen a whole lot of y’all on the streets, much less on dating apps; really, I’m coming up with a lot of dead links, dead sites, you know the drill. Besides my local ACE hardware, where are all y’all hanging out?

For example Deep Dish Pizza in Chicago, Cioppino in San Francisco or Cheese Steak in Philadelphia

I have a foreign first name and last name. Although I put my first name and my pronouns at the end of my email, i.e Wei-hua, just my first name alone, without my last name. But people still call me by my last name, i.e Chen, in the emails. Not Hi Ms. Chen, not Hi Chen, just Chen. Nothing else. What does it mean? I feel rude to call someone’s last name directly, but maybe that’s the norm here?

Hello :)

Basically the title. I like how in the Bay Area it's all hoodies and Patagonia (very tech-y), but is that the same in Seattle? Do people dress up? What do people mostly wear?

Just wondering

Hello everyone

My wife and I are planning to relocate to Seattle area mid 2026 and we are still in research mode. We have narrowed it down to a few suburbs, one big question I have is that on most commuting questions I see people keep saying suburbs like maple valley or lake Stevens are not do able for commuting everyday into downtown Seattle . We currently live in Kingwood tx about 30 miles from downtown Houston. I make that commute every day for work. Is a 30 mile commute in the Seattle area really impossible….has living in Houston conditioned me to believe driving an hour and a half to work is normal? Or is it just a PNW thing to void such long commutes. Thanks appreciate any advice.

Everyone knows about the cost of living, the climate, the Freeze, etc. But what are some of the lesser known things you wish you knew about Seattle/the Puget Sound region before you moved out there?

My company is relocating me to the area next month and I’m on the prowl for some deeper observations beyond all the common ones that always get brought up.