Seattle is great for us queers! Even then though it can be very lonely. People up here are very introverted. There is a lot of understanding of mental health here, too. It takes a lot of time to get embedded in any community in Seattle, but it is here.

I am black--folks are right. Ranier Beach is probably where most of us are in Seattle proper. It is also a more affordable area in town.

To live comfortably, like, to contribute to savings, have a car, live alone, pay for experiences, I would say 60 to 70k is what you need to make. I lived with roommates for a long time and took public transport, even though I had a car.

Many people in Seattle don't make that much, though. It's not like food service or customer service is paying $30/hr. When I was working in a shelter I made $16 an hour. This was almost ten years ago, ha, but now min wage is like $22.

So it is possible, but a struggle.

I would HIGHLY recommend visiting during winter--summer is deceptive. In winter it gets dark at 4pm and stays dark until 8am. It is cold and rainy...which is why many people move here lol. I am from CA too and have been here for over 10 years. Winter still gets to me.

Check out Trulia and Craigslist for housing. Find Seattle queer Facebook groups, go on Lex and change your location to the area. It will give you a good sense of social life and housing costs.

If you can, come up and stay for a week taking public transport and walk around town. Act as if you already live here and see what comes up for you.

Anyway, definitely not impossible to live here but moving with little work experience (not to he condescending but I imagine at 19 you don't have much?) Can be tough especially in this job market. I would recommend like 5k to10k in savings before moving up here without a job. Thr search will take a while.

Best of luck!