Pinpointing Seattle’s most expensive (and cheapest) neighborhoods for renters
Jan 16, 2020, 10:08 AM
Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood. (Emmett Anderson, Flickr Creative Commons)
A new interactive map from Apartment List pinpoints Seattle’s most expensive — and most affordable — neighborhoods for renters.
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Unsurprisingly, the most expensive areas can be found in the center of Seattle, in neighborhoods closest to the city’s job centers. That’s topped by the city’s most expensive locale, Belltown, where median rent sits at a whopping $2,525.
Coming in second is the center of Amazon’s Seattle operation, Lake Union, boasting a median rent of $2,250. Rounding out the top three is the downtown core, with a median rent of $2,200.
If you’re looking to save some scratch, you’d be best served living in either the far north or deep southern fringes of Seattle. Taking the title as the cheapest neighborhood is Lake City in the northeast corner of the city, with a median rent of just $1,375 a month.
That’s followed by Laurelhurst at $1,425, and Greenwood at $1,450. Georgetown/Beacon Hill and Northgate are tied in the 4th position at $1,500 a month for median rent.
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In terms of finding a middle ground with solid transit options and decent bars, Apartment List lays out a handful of choices, led by Capitol Hill, where median rent sits at $1,750 a month. That said, the thriving nightlife and restaurant hotspot is densely populated, with most of its better deals found in smaller units.
“This disparity is attributable to the small median unit size in Capitol Hill, so while it may be possible to find a relatively affordable apartment in Capitol Hill, it will most likely mean sacrificing on space,” said Apartment List.
Other recommended neighborhoods include Columbia City ($1,626 median rent) and Wallingford ($1,825).
As of January 2020, median rent across all of Seattle for a one-bedroom apartment was $1,345, and $1,675 for two bedrooms. The city has also seen a decrease in its rental rates for three straight months, dating back to November 2019.
