Home of the famous Annual Parade of Bands with marching bands, horses, and politicians hailing from throughout Clark County and Vancouver, Washington. This parade takes place every year in May, and is the biggest parade in Southern Washington.
Just north of Vancouver, Washington lies the area known as Hazel Dell
Home of the famous Annual Parade of Bands with marching bands, horses, and politicians hailing from throughout Clark County and Vancouver, Washington. This parade takes place every year in May, and is the biggest parade in Southern Washington.
Just north of Vancouver, Washington lies the area known as Hazel Dell. It can hardly be referred to as a city, since it mostly consists of a few neighborhoods and shopping centers on either side of Interstate 5. Most people live here because they want to be in a quiet part of low-key Vancouver.
Why Live in Hazel Dell?
One reason to live here might be to escape paying Oregon’s pesky income taxes. Another might be that you’ve had it with the coffee-shop culture of Portland and just want to get out of Dodge.
How Much to Rent a Place?
Rental apartments and homes are a lot more affordable here than neighborhoods to the south (South Vancouver, Portland), which is one of the major reasons people have been slowly filing into Hazel Dell over the last few decades. Believe it or not, a one-bedroom apartment in this neck of the woods can be had a fully reasonable price per month. Have a family? You’ll be able to find a three-bedroom house with a yard without breaking the bank.
The Best Times to Move In
Hazel Dell isn’t very popular with college students, so there really isn’t a seasonal turnover. Like anywhere else, the sooner you start looking, the better. Keep your eye out for good deals, and remember to check the area out before signing anything (daytime and nighttime).
What Do You Need?
Moving is simple and straightforward here. It's pretty much just regular landlords to deal with, rather than nitpicky property management companies. As long as you have enough money to pay for rent and a security deposit, that should be all you need. If you do end up dealing with a property management company, be ready to show proof of income and references.
What About Pets?
Finding a home that will accept pets can be a royal pain in some places. Fortunately, Hazel Dell isn’t one of them. Cats shouldn’t be much of a problem in any pet-friendly house or apartment. Dogs require a different strategy: since house rentals in Hazel Dell are so reasonable, do you and your dog a favor and find somewhere with a yard. In most cases, it will only set you back another $150 or so a month, which isn’t much more than the standard pet fee in an apartment.
Interstate 5 slices Hazel Dell right in half, and it also is something you most likely don’t want to live right next to. Fortunately, most of the housing is at least a block or two from the highway. Loving close to the 5 lowers your commuting time, but you may want to be far enough away that you can’t hear traffic.
West Hazel Dell: If you enjoy outside exercise, this is by far the best part of town to live in. The name of the game here is getting as close as you can to Burnt Bridge Creek. Along this creek runs an 8-mile trail, which in turn connects to Vancouver Lake to the Northeast. Anything along Overlook Drive will be more expensive because of the view, but living anywhere within a few blocks of the creek will give you easy access. Unfortunately, Hazel Dell doesn’t extend all the way West to the lake. Head on over to neighboring Lakeshore for that. $$
Hazel Dell South: This area pretty much consists of a handful of streets directly east of I-5 and north of Minnehaha Street. Hazel Dell South is a very quiet area, comprised of a large rental apartment complex right off the interstate and tree-lined streets offering a safe place to live. Most of the single-family homes in this part of town were built over the past 50 years or so and are in fairly decent shape. The biggest draw to this neighborhood is the larger-than-average lots with yards, which is perfect for families with kids or pets. $
Northeast Hazel Dell: East of I-5, north of NE 78th Street and behind the strip malls lies the neighborhood of Northeast Hazel Dell. Although it is pretty far from any major green areas, there are plenty of parks spread throughout this neighborhood. There's pretty much all single-family housing for rent here. $
Hazel Dell North: Just to the north of NE 88th Street and east of the hulking Wal-Mart, Hazel Dell North is an apartment lover’s paradise. Complexes such as Greenwood Acres and Lodge Pine Apartments are just two of the many large rental apartment places here. Although there are some streets without apartments, they definitely dominate the area. If price is the most important factor in your rental choice, this may well be your best bet. $
Northeast Hazel Dell:This is the part of town that is west of Hazel Dell Towne Center and Hazel Dell Ave. If convenient access to shopping, food and groceries at the mall is important to you, this part of town is a good choice. Quiet and with a good mix of family homes and apartment complexes, Northeast Hazel Dell is a great place to call home. $
Getting Around
Like most suburban areas in America, having a car is certainly the fastest way to get around and comes in handy when the weather turns sour (often). While the greater Vancouver area does have a public transportation system, called C-Tran, it can take quite awhile to get anywhere.
Recreation
One of the best things about living in Hazel Dell is that pretty much all neighborhoods are within easy reach of parks, playgrounds and river valleys. Most of the streets have little traffic and are safe for the kiddies to play on.
Chowing Down in Hazel Dell
The food here is mostly of the chain variety–Subway, McDonald's, Taco Bell, etc. Fortunately, for those who crave something different, there are a few decent Mexican restaurants and other locally owned food joints scattered about.
Hazel Dell sure isn’t for everyone. If you want to be anywhere near streets lined with trendy, locally owned cafés and shops, you’ll need to head south to at least Vancouver, if not Portland. On the other hand, if you don’t mind being a bit far from the action, but still within an easy drive, it’ll do just fine.
Compared to the trendier neighborhoods of Portland (pretty much all of them), Hazel Dell is downright cheap, especially if you live and work on this side of the border.
