Where is a good place to live off-post near Fort Lewis?

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 14:39:14 -0500

Just looking around the area and trying to find a good place to live with my family. Descent pricing and no more than an hour away any info would be much appreciated!

Response by TSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 17 at 2016 2:40 PM

TSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 14:40:55 -0500

Spanaway is a great place to live. It has easy access to both bases. I owned a property when I was stationed there.

Response by SSG Daniel Miller made Feb 17 at 2016 2:41 PM

SSG Daniel Miller — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 14:41:46 -0500

Puyallup is the popular place, Lacey is nicer, but small. I recommend living on post unless you want to fight I-5 every day

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 17 at 2016 2:42 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 14:42:26 -0500

Graham... it's about 30 mins from post past Spanaway and Puyallup... about 45 mins or so from Mt. Rainier and seatac, Seattle.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 17 at 2016 2:43 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 14:43:36 -0500

Ask about the RPP when u get there. It's where people who lived there rent out houses to other military and apartments and duplexes at a discount rate.

Response by SSG(P) Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 17 at 2016 2:56 PM

SSG(P) Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 14:56:57 -0500

Find out what side of post you would be working on. It would suck to live in puyallup and work on North Fort. Avoid I5 travel to work as much as possible

Response by 1SG John Keefer made Feb 17 at 2016 2:57 PM

1SG John Keefer — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 14:57:42 -0500

There are many good areas. DuPont and Lacey are very close (5 - 15 miles) and the prices are comparable. Lakewood, Tacoma, Spanaway are between 5 and 25 miles. Prices may be cheaper depending on what you're looking for. However, there are some less desirable living areas in those locations to be wary of. Do your research and check the post housing as well.

Response by 1SG Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 17 at 2016 3:04 PM

1SG Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 15:04:23 -0500

One thing to keep in mind is the commute. I-5 is the main corridor to the base. That region of Washington is one of the worst areas for rush hour in the state

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 17 at 2016 3:09 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 15:09:26 -0500

Yea I believe im going to 2BDE from what my ask and erb say ive been hearing that on post is pretty backed up so just looking outside of post for now!

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 17 at 2016 3:17 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 15:17:30 -0500

I would echo the statements saying that you should live on post. One option that isn't highlighted as much is that you can live on either Fort Lewis or McChord AFB with it being a Joint Base. You will still have to fight some traffic, but not as much.
If you do choose to live off base I would advocate for Dupont as it is a bedroom community for JBLM. There are plenty of rentals within any BAH.

Response by CSM Michael Poll made Feb 17 at 2016 3:20 PM

CSM Michael Poll — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 15:20:08 -0500

When I lived there the best place was across the street from Pierce Collage in Steilacoom, WA. It is just outside the back gate to North fort.

Stay away from Tacoma as it is in the takeoff lane of the AF Base. You will hear jets all day and night.

Steilacoom is just off the Puget sound, it is a small quant town good school district

It was on 92nd st SW just off of Farwest RD.

Beautiful little apt complex small 4 units, 4 apts each

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 17 at 2016 3:36 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 15:36:12 -0500

If u want on post u need to call and see how long the wait list is... it was 6 to 12 months when we was there. Graham and Spanaway u can skip the i5... also most of the on post housing isnt that big

Response by SPC(P) Jay Heenan made Feb 17 at 2016 3:53 PM

SPC(P) Jay Heenan — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 15:53:37 -0500

There are a lot of places that are quite nice, but you will be fighting traffic both on the I-5 and the leaving and entering the gates. Traffic is crappy, just be prepared. I thought that DuPont was a nice little town. Lacy is nice, but a ways away. One thing to keep in mind, you only get 10 days to stay in the hotel and it is pretty pricey after that. Also, you will be attached to reception when you first get there, in-processing takes about 10 days and you will have plenty of time to house hunt during that time.

Response by 1SG Justin Little made Feb 17 at 2016 8:54 PM

1SG Justin Little — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 20:54:16 -0500

If you want a quiet less populated place try Yelm. Lacey is nice and growing quickly those are my two faverates everwhere else is too crowded for me.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 17 at 2016 11:17 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 23:17:12 -0500

Depends on where you want to live and how much you want to spend. You have Puyallup., Lacy, Olympia, Yelm, DuPont, and graham.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 17 at 2016 11:34 PM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 23:34:28 -0500

It really depends if your kids are in school. If so, then I suggest Lacey, they have some of the best schools and it's about 15 miles (30 minute drive) from base.

Response by CPT Catherine R. made Feb 17 at 2016 11:51 PM

CPT Catherine R. — Wed, 17 Feb 2016 23:51:50 -0500

Age of kids? (if any?)

Bethel school district - Spanaway, Graham, Roy - is a huge district, kids who need more help can get lost in the system. It somewhat depends on the child and how involved you're able to be. You'll spend about $1,300 for a 3 bedroom house in the Spanaway area. I can get to the back gates in 20 minutes or less although I don't go at PT time. This is obviously the area I know best since I live here.

If you're willing to sit on I5, I'd go to Tumwater or Olympia. 30 minutes to post and a nicer community. Lacey is nice too although the schools are huge.

If you want a more country feel look at Roy or Yelm, both are easy enough to get to.

I'd avoid Tacoma proper (it can be sketchy if you get in the wrong part) and personally think Puyallup is overrated for the price.

Response by Nancy Cross made Feb 18 at 2016 2:30 AM

Nancy Cross — Thu, 18 Feb 2016 02:30:07 -0500

When I lived there before yelm and Roy were nice . DuPont , Lacey , steilacom.

Response by SFC Bill Graham made Feb 18 at 2016 10:00 AM

SFC Bill Graham — Thu, 18 Feb 2016 10:00:26 -0500

When I was there with 1/84th I lived in Lacey. Nice, quiet and close.

Response by SPC Paul Jennings, J.D. made Feb 18 at 2016 10:22 AM

SPC Paul Jennings, J.D. — Thu, 18 Feb 2016 10:22:33 -0500

If you live on post, chances are you'll have a nice new house. It's not a guarantee though, there is a lot of new housing, but there are still sections of old run down housing that haven't been replaced yet and unfortunately their lower enlisted housing.

As others have said, I5 is just crappy to drive on. DuPont and Steilacoom are your best bet for comfortable housing. DuPont is a master built community with low crime rate. There are three gates it has easy access to, none of which require you to drive on I5. The downside is of course that housing is more expensive. Expect to pay at least $1,600 to rent a house, $1,400 for an apartment.

Response by SGT Cody Skinner made Feb 18 at 2016 4:39 PM

SGT Cody Skinner — Thu, 18 Feb 2016 16:39:40 -0500

When I was up there I lived in Fife and hated it. Then we moved to Steilacoom on the North side of North Fort. We had a beautiful view of the Pudgett Sound and wildlife in our yard. It was a great place to live. Nice and quiet.

Response by SPC Larry Armstrong made Feb 19 at 2016 1:04 PM

SPC Larry Armstrong — Fri, 19 Feb 2016 13:04:32 -0500

Spanaway over on the Gem heights side is a nice place to live and the bethel school district is real good, It's only about 30 minutes from the base.

Response by SPC Marcus Mayfield made Feb 19 at 2016 11:14 PM

SPC Marcus Mayfield — Fri, 19 Feb 2016 23:14:01 -0500

When I was stationed there, I lived in a town called Graham. It's just south of South Hill, and you don't have to get on I-5 to get on post; you can use East Gate. The prices are reasonable and there's a Wal-Mart and a WinCo just a few miles away.

Response by SSG(P) Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 20 at 2016 1:44 PM

SSG(P) Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 20 Feb 2016 13:44:40 -0500

DuPont... Easily accessible from Main Post as well as North Fort... Without having to touch I-5...

Response by SGT Kristopher Lather made Feb 23 at 2016 9:50 AM

SGT Kristopher Lather — Tue, 23 Feb 2016 09:50:43 -0500

Lacey ! Higher cost of living means less Trashy people, lakewood was a dump. Puyallup was nice, but that I-5/I-512 Interchange can be a disaster in the mornings. EVERYONE rushed to Madigan and main gate when I was stationed there. Few people used dupont and access from the south. Things may have changed, I left there in 2010 after 7 yrs

Response by CW2 Private RallyPoint Member made Feb 23 at 2016 5:38 PM

CW2 Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 23 Feb 2016 17:38:35 -0500

Fort Lewis has a lot of great places around it to Live. Lacey is where most families go and is about 15 minutes or so and reasonably priced . I lived in Graham which is about 25 minutes away and is smaller. Yelm and Roy are around 15 to 30 minutes away and you can get more bang for your buck in those areas. Spanaway may look terrible as far as looks but has some great neighborhoods. Puyallup is also about a 30 minute commute but traffic can be bad depending on your route. Dupont and Steilacoom are wonderful areas but a little more price. Stay away from Lakewood. Tacoma has some nice areas and some bad areas but the commute can be bad. Lots of great areas and lots of things to do on Fort Lewis.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Jul 5 at 2017 4:57 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 05 Jul 2017 16:57:07 -0400

Roy, or Yelm. Easy access to post from East Gate Road and 507. If you work on North Fort, just continue through post on Pendelton to North Fort. This road takes you there without having to go through the main gate from Main Post to North Fort, it just dips below the freeway and takes you past the Post Museum...eventually putting you into 2-2 SBCT Land. Roy and Yelm are reasonable cost wise, and the schools are good. Or try Steilacoom, it is a little more expensive than Roy/Yelm, and in Roy, where I am, I have 4 acres. My drive to work takes about 30 minutes. Stay away from I-5, Southbound from Tacoma down past Olympia is stop and go up until 2000 hrs most days.