Seattle has buses - and trains. Use them In which case you might as well find a place to live along a line. One line at a time. Here's the next one, selected at random for the fun of it.
Trains meet buses and take you from downtown to downtown; from downtown Kent to downtown Seattle, that is. Along the way, pass through Southcenter, Tukwila, and Sodo. A very pragmatic and useful route, Route 150 is.
↑ Welcome to the flat part of downtown Kent. The commuter station is nearby. And, there are bike trails that lead to Seattle. That commute will be slower, but your doctor may approve. Here's a house that's only 860 square feet, which means there's less to take care, that's only going for $199,900. It has 2 bedrooms and 1 bath, which is about right for that size. It also has lots of the upgrades that ease homeownership: new roof, windows, paint, and bathroom. The lot is narrow and short, but still has enough room for a garden. Keep it small and it won't take up too much of your time. That goes for the house and the yard.
↑ And now for something much bigger. For less than twice as much money you can get more than three times as much square footage. The bedrooms don't triple; 4 instead of 2, But the baths do. Three bathrooms, that should be plenty, right? The house is 3,100 square feet on 0.4 acres. It room in many ways. So, $324,900 gets you some nice numbers, but you'll probably more interested what you can do with so much usable space. Even the decks are large and wrap-around. Whether for getting something done, or doing nothing, you have lots of options.
↑ My, what a big garage door you have. But then, there are more rooms for a bigger family and bigger projects too. For $359,950, you get 5 bedrooms and 3 baths, that manage to fit into 2,870 square feet. A big family with small kids sounds about right. There's also a room for the parents called an office, though it could act as a sanctuary considering that it is off the garage and out of the way. As for playing, kids and dogs could do a lot on 0.59 acres. That may be a bit much to fence though.
↑ Do you realize how long Kent's been around? Go back over a hundred years for this house that was built in 1909. Houses that old have some interesting features, like fireplaces that had to work, and electrical systems that may or may not represent layers of technology. They also have style, in this case, Victorian. At 1,590 square feet it may have been large at the time. With 3 bedrooms and 2 baths, there's room for a family; especially, if they share. Out back there's an extra 930 square foot second building that could be an office or extra living space. An interesting combination for $249,000.
↑ Even smaller and older is a 1907 rambler for $200,000 (a nice round number) with 2 bedrooms and 1 bath on 890 square feet. Go back into the laundry to see the original construction, and to appreciate the upkeep and upgrades that happened over the decades. There are two outbuildings as well. They're handy if you need more room. Separating the spaces means they don't all have to be heated to the same extent. Stuff can be stored out of sight, or you can just go hide there yourself. If you want the simple life, buy it, move in, and see what it takes to live the lifestyle of the original owners. They'd probably be amazed at how easy it is to heat it now.
· Route 150 [Metro]
· All Bus Tours coverage [CS]
Written by Tom Trimbath