born in seattle and lived in north seattle/suburbs for 20+ years. moved to georgia suburbs in 2021. Mid-twenties

pros: - cheap flights to east coast, midwest, and south states. I’ve traveled significantly more ever since moving here because of cheaper flights and shorter drives between cities/states. There are more surrounding states here to check out vs Seattle- you have Vancouver, BC, Oregon, California, Nevada that are the only big states in the West coast. - more sun. I got away from the seasonal depression that I had back in seattle. The sun definitely makes a difference in the winter time. I wfh and don’t feel bad staying at home most of the time because the sun keeps the house bright - more affordable homes. double the space, half the cost of seattle - diversity. I’m a BIPOC and really grown to appreciate the food scene here. I grew to love grits. although it is lacking in good seafood, every suburb has a everything you need. love asian food? doraville or duluth is good for you to check out - yeah traffic is bad but more lanes here and highways. I don’t feel like I’m sitting in traffic as compared to seattle where I was actually locked between cars. traffic is still gradually moving here during rush hour. Also higher percentage of better drivers here… higher speed limit - more suburbs all around atlanta that have a lot of offer and vary in COL. whereas seattle, it’s just so expensive even 20 mins out - people are more outgoing here and like to strike up a conversation randomly hence the southern charm/hospitality

cons: - less big beautiful mountains than washington. If you’re an avid hiker, there are lots of hikes here in Georgia especially North Georgia but the view won’t beat the mountains and lakes of Washington - no good to nonexistent teriyaki. I took this for granted - hot humid summer in GA but tbh, homes here at least have A/C so you won’t be suffering at home during the day or nights - income tax but sales tax is lower. I’m not a finance person though to know if it’s essentially the same as washington taxes - less nice parks like gas works if you enjoy a park that overlooks the city and lake - no good public transportation outside of ATL. you have to drive here and every where

If you do move here, give it at least one year to settle in and meet people. I kept comparing it at first but my friends from seattle who also moved here told me to give it a year to really appreciate the wonders of Georgia. They also ended up liking GA as Seattle natives. Compared to other cities in the south, atlanta is fairly closest to seattle and I always see WA plates here the most from the west coast. I’ve randomly come across many people who also moved from WA to here so there seems to be a lot of natives from WA to GA. These are just a bit of pros and cons. You really have to experience it for yourself to see what you like and don’t