You might think that only a really die hard Seahawks fan would ever consider putting his or her Arlington, TX real estate up for sale and moving to Seattle, but in fact Seattle is a very popular destination for job seekers, city lovers, and people who want a greener, more laid-back lifestyle. If you're thinking about making Seattle your new home, this article should give you an idea of the type of property you'd be able to afford by selling your old home in your current city.

In 2008, there was a huge crash of housing prices all over the United States that was the result of a collapse in the sub prime mortgage market. People from other countries that weren't as affected were rushing to put up their downtown Toronto condo for sale and buy cheap real estate in many US cities. But it's been three years now. Surely the housing markets are all climbing into the stratosphere again? Not necessarily. In fact, in the last year, Seattle has seen decreases of 7% to almost 20% in both housing prices and number of homes being sold.

If you were to buy into Seattle right now, the proceeds from the sale of homes in the Hudson Valley would actually stand you in pretty good stead. Seattle's housing prices aren't as expensive on average as somewhere like L.A. or New York City, but they're not cheap either. The average house in Seattle was listing for almost $550,000 as of the middle of May 2011. By contrast, however, the middling value for an actual home sale was closer to $350,000. That's a big difference.

Though prices have decreased overall since last year, the recent gains in housing prices over the past few months leads many experts to believe that if you're going to buy into Seattle's market, sooner is better than later. While it's true that your Richmond Hill townhouses appreciate the more you hang on to them, so does Seattle's property, so there's no point in waiting. To figure out how much your current home would cost if it was in Seattle, multiply it's square footage by the average price per square foot in Seattle, which is $280.

Of course, not all neighborhoods in Seattle are able to command the same prices. The most popular neighborhoods among buyers, which include areas like Bainbridge Island and The Highlands, have average asking prices ranging from about $330,000 (about what you would pay for Markham, Ontario real estate) to in excess of $600,000. However, if you wanted to buy into an up and coming neighborhood like Shoreline or Foster, you could do so for less than $280,000. Sometimes as little as $140,000.