Weaving its way through a maze of broccoli-coloured islands in waters where Orca whales can be spotted during the summer months, the journey crosses the invisible frontier between the urban frenzy of Seattle and the soporific rhythms of the Puget Sound, the inland sea in which the San Juan Islands are located .
The big growth in diversity around the Puget Sound is taking place not in the city of Seattle, but in suburban hubs like Bellevue (population: 122, 000).
Seattle-based Sound Community Bank just opened a loan office in the affluent Madison Park suburb to increase its capacity to offer jumbo mortgages, but decided to stick with five- and seven-year ARMs and a 15-year fixed-rate product.