I moved my family (wife, 2 kids) from SF/Bay Area to Seattle in 2011 after living down there for a decade (and loved most of it). Worked in downtown SF, lived i

I moved my family (wife, 2 kids) from SF/Bay Area to Seattle in 2011 after living down there for a decade (and loved most of it). Worked in downtown SF, lived in the East Bay. For a while there, we could drive our Prius over the bridge in the HOV lane - and bypass tolls - and I could get to work from my house in 18 minutes. We owned a home in El Cerrito near Albany with some initial d/p help from family. It was a very nice neighborhood, walkable, and close to BART (which we also used regularly). The house was small, but we made it work. But the school situation was horrific. Either go to so-so schools which lacked financial support at the time, or pay upwards of 20K for private school kindergarten. Nope! In Seattle, with as much public angst as there is for the schools here, they are light years ahead of the public options we had before us down there. Everything up here just feels easier. Stress reduced, larger house for kids to grow up in, neighborhood where everyone knows everyone else no matter where you go - I've never experienced this type of community my whole life. And the tech sector has plenty of opps here, too. We love it. To be fair, my wife has to commute to SF at least twice a month for her job, so she still gets her SF fix. I, on the other hand, have gone pure North West. I've got my Subaru to prove it. ;)