Apartments in the city center are desperate to sign leases. But houses are actually a little more expensive this year, and they sell within a few days of hitting the market.
And it make sense. New urbanism is dead at the moment: parks, cafes, and theaters are closed. There are no events. Nobody wants to take transit. But in single family neighborhoods, life is basically normal. Not to mention there is no traffic and gas is dirt cheap.
We stayed downtown for my wife who supposedly would be "back in the office" later this year (she doesn't drive), but I really wish I had gone with my gut and pushed for us to move further out. There is absolutely no benefit to being in Seattle proper right now, and it would not surprise me to see more people leave (I've considered just becoming rent-responsible on the lease and eating the cost, it's annoying me to death).
(If you're talking about anywhere near Cap Hill, nobody wants to sign a lease there after they tear gassed the entire neighborhood a few weeks ago)
There are many reasons to not want to be in Seattle right now, but casting it as a warzone without "protection" (from the very aggressors themselves) is a bit much.
I can assure you that while it's bad, they generally don't bother people and simply need a system that actually helps them. More police won't solve anything here - I'm confident in this statement as they sit outside my window daily and do absolutely nothing as it is.
Call me callous, but I'd like to build drugs-allowed shelters so that they leave the streets.
I walk two dogs here a few times daily and while the litter has been worse post-COVID, it wasn't always this bad due to the city cleaners.
In general I agree with your shelters idea, Seattle does not do nearly enough to help these people.
Without knowing what part of Seattle you're specifically referring to I can't really explain more. If you're referring to Pioneer Square... well, I won't fight you on that one - that area needs help.