New to Seattle Area, need advice on neighborhoods

[Ananya Mohanty]

Hello , 

We are a couple in early 30s. We have just moved to Washington state and have no idea where to buy  our first home.

looking for  atleast 3bed 3 bath with a backyard ,  budget = max 1mil.

We know seattle, bellevue, redmond are out of our budget. Would love some advice on upcoming nearby cities that make sense to buy now considering light rail is expanding? 

[Mike Hern]

Quote from @Ananya Mohanty:

Hello , 

We are a couple in early 30s. We have just moved to Washington state and have no idea where to buy  our first home.

looking for  atleast 3bed 3 bath with a backyard ,  budget = max 1mil.

We know seattle, bellevue, redmond are out of our budget. Would love some advice on upcoming nearby cities that make sense to buy now considering light rail is expanding? 

It's more important to know if you need to commute and if so to where. Traffic is "very interesting" especiallyin the rain.

[Sherief Elbassuoni]

Quote from @Ananya Mohanty:

Hello , 

We are a couple in early 30s. We have just moved to Washington state and have no idea where to buy  our first home.

looking for  atleast 3bed 3 bath with a backyard ,  budget = max 1mil.

We know seattle, bellevue, redmond are out of our budget. Would love some advice on upcoming nearby cities that make sense to buy now considering light rail is expanding? 

 @Ananya Mohanty, where do you work?

Do you work full time from home, or you will be commuting?

[Ran Iarovich]

I would highly recommend that you check out Bothell. The average appreciation in that area is around 6%. Close to Kirkland and Seattle. Home prices are also fairly cheap in that area as more and more expansions are being made. I made a quick search for you for off-market and active listings and have found plenty of options. Adding on, sometimes you can afford much more than you think you can. I would recommend talking to private lenders to develop a preapproval on your specific income - you might be surprised how low of an interest rate you can score yourself. 

[Michael Haas]

@Ananya Mohanty are you looking for investment potential (HouseHacking, Airbnb, live in flip, short plat, etc?) in this next home? You didn’t mention it but since we are on Bigger Pockets figured I’d ask ;). 

A 3-3 for under $1M is 100% achievable in Seattle and almost all surrounding neighborhoods except maybe Bellevue/Kirkland/Redmond on the Eastside. shoot me a message if you want to get on our off market / on market property opportunity list or talk more about the area and your search. Happy to help and welcome to Seattle!

[Albert Bui]

Quote from @Ananya Mohanty:

Hello , 

We are a couple in early 30s. We have just moved to Washington state and have no idea where to buy  our first home.

looking for  atleast 3bed 3 bath with a backyard ,  budget = max 1mil.

We know seattle, bellevue, redmond are out of our budget. Would love some advice on upcoming nearby cities that make sense to buy now considering light rail is expanding? 

HI Ananya,

Looks like a lot of great contacts on this thread from the local area already. Would love to talk investing and network. 

I invest myself and typically I look for solid employment centers and areas that would provide mid to upper mid tenants (upper end are a bit too fussy for me) and the lower end are a bit to high touch for me.

If you buy a home its good to plan how this purchase will not only achieve your short term housing goals, but possibly how it will fit in the overall long term strategic plan as well. 

We have a local in Bellevue meetup monthly to freely chat about ideas, experiences, and sharing contacts to help curate a better real estate experience in the community.

@Matthew Kwan

@Carlos Valencia

[Lawrence Potts]

Quote from @Ananya Mohanty:

Hello , 

We are a couple in early 30s. We have just moved to Washington state and have no idea where to buy  our first home.

looking for  atleast 3bed 3 bath with a backyard ,  budget = max 1mil.

We know seattle, bellevue, redmond are out of our budget. Would love some advice on upcoming nearby cities that make sense to buy now considering light rail is expanding? 

I'd get connected with a lender that invest in real estate first, they typically work with agents that get deals done. They'll have connections to local agents in the areas that make sense for your budget and that have an investor mindset. I recommend @Grant Schroeder, he's helped a lot of investors in that area!

[Marcela Hoag]

Hi Ananya,

Tacoma is a great place to invest right now. Many of my investor clients are looking either south or north of Seattle. I also own a few rentals south of Seattle in Des Moines & Tacoma. You can find some great deals if you're willing to buy off-market and put in some work. Really depends on your goals!

[Eric Yu]

Quote from @Ananya Mohanty:

Hello , 

We are a couple in early 30s. We have just moved to Washington state and have no idea where to buy  our first home.

looking for  atleast 3bed 3 bath with a backyard ,  budget = max 1mil.

We know seattle, bellevue, redmond are out of our budget. Would love some advice on upcoming nearby cities that make sense to buy now considering light rail is expanding? 

 Hi Ananya! You could totally find something in the Seattle market at that price point. Would love to chat more to see if I could help you out. 

Alternatively, there's options in Renton, Seatac, and Burien if you're looking for something more budget friendly. $1m is a lot to work with here :)