Living in Cascade Valley, Washington: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 2.6% below the U.S. average in the parts of Washington outside metro areas.
More house for the moneyThe Census survey didn't reach enough homes in Cascade Valley to say.
A safer neighborhoodThe FBI doesn't publish crime figures for unincorporated communities. Call the county sheriff's office (or the town or township police, where there is one) and ask what calls they get most.
Schools in town2 public schools. No public high school in town: the nearest is Moses Lake High School, about 4 miles away.
A hospital close bySamaritan Hospital in Moses Lake, about 3 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
Within reach of a big citySeattle is about 145 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Cascade Valley meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Home prices since then: Up 10%Grant County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $1,311 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $60,715U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 80%U.S.: 65%
Homes built before 1940: 0%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 4%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 4%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 97.4U.S. average = 100 (the parts of Washington outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 10% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of Washington outside metro areas, not Cascade Valley alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2020-2024 Census survey: 4,609The Census Bureau makes yearly estimates only for incorporated towns
Median age: 43 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 16%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 19%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 12%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 1%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Schools, health care and social services (26%); manufacturing (21%)
Average commute: 22 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 9%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 13%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Samaritan Hospital, Moses Lake, WA, about 3 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

2 public schools in Cascade Valley, run by Moses Lake School District. The nearest public high school is Moses Lake High School, about 4 miles away.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Washington's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with any internet subscription: 90%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low: 24°F
July average high: 90°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 43 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 129 a year
Rain and melted snow: 7.8 inches a year
Elevation: 1,066 feet

Weather station: Moses Lake Grant Co Ap (5 miles away). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Samaritan HospitalEmergency room3

Richland, WACity of 65,00059

Seattle, WAMetro of 4.2 million145

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Samaritan Hospital, Richland, Seattle.

Grant County is outside any metro area, with 20,000 or more people in its towns, not next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 5, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

Manhattan Project National Historical Park38 miles
Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area57 miles

Read about Cascade Valley's history on Wikipedia.

Know Cascade Valley?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Moses Lake, WA27,000 people, 3 miles
Moses Lake North, WA4,500 people, 4 miles
Ephrata, WA8,800 people, 15 miles
Warden, WA2,800 people, 18 miles
Soap Lake, WA1,800 people, 19 miles
Royal City, WA1,900 people, 22 miles

Smaller places

Wheeler, WA (unincorporated)230 people, 7 miles
Marine View, WA (unincorporated)471 people, 12 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.