What You Need To Know Before You Move To The Wenatchee Area

There are many things that might attract people to move to Wenatchee, Wa. or North Central region of Washington State.  Since Wenatchee and it's neighbor East Wenatchee are twin-cities of sorts, I'll focus on them both.

What Did You Say?

First off, you will quickly learn how to pronounce "Wenatchee"  It's not WeNOTCHee or any of the crazy variations out there.  I'm always curious as to why some who mis-pronounce Wenatchee come up with this one.  What word in the english language with  spelling including "atch" is pronounced like the word "scotch"?  Match, latch, catch, batch, thatch have never rhymed with scotch, watch, crotch or Sasquatch for the matter.

Then there is the "WinuhTATCHee" pronunciation, don't get me started on that one.

Since the Wenatchi people who fist occupied this area would have a different pronunciation in their native Salish language, in the final analysis, we are all wrong!

It's Expensive Here

If you want to move here and buy a new home, it may or may not be sticker shock depending upon where you are living now.  Pacific Appraisal Associates compiles a monthly snapshot report on the Wenatchee/East Wenatchee real estate market and the latest figures for December 2022 show the median sale price increased 14% year over year to $500K  While the median sales price actually declined in Leavenworth 14%, it was over $706K  Median sales prices in Cashmere dropped 9% but dropped just below Wenatchee to $498K

Looking to rent?  According to Zumper, a rental information website , the average rent for a 1-bedroom apartment in Wenatchee is $1,300 as of  January '23  That amount has increased 13% compared to the previous year.  Rental vacancies are estimated at 5% or less in Wenatchee.

What's The Weather Like?

The Google search will tell you the summers are hot and dry and the cold season lasts three months with December the coldest month of winter.  What you need to be prepared for are frequent and consecutive days of low clouds and fog that obscure the sun for a week or more.  Wenatchee, East Wenatchee and surrounding communities like Cashmere, Entiat, Chelan and Leavenworth sit in a valley where the clouds sit down low.  Sometimes the sun is only visible by traveling up to Mission Ridge Ski & Board Resort, just a few miles above Wenatchee for great skiing and snowboarding Check out the webcam

The valley geography is also why Wenatchee summers can be very smoky.  Smoke is like water and will tend to sit low in the Wenatchee Valley whether it is from a local or regional forest fire.  Hazy conditions are quite common now during the summer in Wenatchee with smoke drifting in from fires in British Columbia, Oregon or California.

So if you can put up with the smoky skies, cloudy weather at times during winter and learn how to say Wenatchee, you will love living here.  Hopefully you can find a place to call home; local officials have made housing inventory and affordability a top priority and the situation should improve over the next several years.

Wenatchee is a great place to live and raise a family, retire to or get out of the issues so many large urban areas face.  After you've settled in, you'll be saying "Welcome to Wenatchee, what's not to like"