Originally Posted by PersianKitty

As with any large urban area, the further out of town you are the cheaper it can be. I live south of Seattle, south of the airport almost to Tacoma. Housing costs are considerably less than north of town and the public transportation isn't typically as crazy as when coming in from the north or eastside.

I'd suggest coming to visit for bit, explore the areas by car. Determine how far out from where you work you can tolerate being etc.