Seattle has buses. 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.
One of the benefits of living in the Kent Valley is Green River College. There's even a bus, Route 164, that takes you from Kent Station to the campus; which also means the reverse takes you from college to anywhere the trains go, too. Something to keep in mind after graduation.
↑ Congratulate the stager, the agent, or the homeowners because this house looks like a display model. Has anyone ever lived in this 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath house with 3,477 square feet? They're asking $524,950 which is probably lower just because it is in Kent. The interior actually makes good use of the features that are too common in too many listings. Brazilian Cherry floors actually catch the sunshine, instead of just covering up the subfloor. The granite countertops look appropriate and functional, rather than just being an upgrade from formica. The wood window treatments and wainscoting are unintrusive improvements. Outside, you get 0.31 acres to play with, but you'll have to play on a slope. At least it has a chance to drain!
↑ Outside, there are 0.36 acres of well-tended landscaping that are the first things you'll see, and that make a nice impression. It would be easy to think that inside is just another 4 bedroom, 3 bath, 4,000 square foot suburban house that's offered at $409,000. But inside, the 1960 heritage is apparent, especially downstairs where there's a full bar, complete with mirror behind the counter and seven swivel bar stools bolted to a small foot-rest riser. Put a grill in and it would mimic a Boomer Age diner down to the red and white flooring that looks like it came from a bowling alley lounge. Call the Smithsonian and ask if they want to copy it for an exhibit.
↑ The land matters. Pick the right piece and get views of sunsets over the valley and across the city. Granted the views are of the Kent Valley and of Kent's skyline, but the sunsets will be pretty regardless. The house is a 3 bedroom, 1.75 bath, 1948 suburban home with 2,970 square feet that has an asking price of $399,500. An extensive remodel happened in 2005, so the media room and more were brought up to the modern era. But check the math. The listing calls out the lot as being just shy of one acre, and also lists it as 0.45 acres. With rounding like that it's a surprise they didn't set the bathrooms at 2 the area as 3,000 and the price at $400K; or maybe there's a typo worth exploring.
↑ In 1980, evidently wood and tile and fluorescent lighting were the things for the kitchen; and fortunately, they don't look out of date - possibly because they were well cared for. You'll have to check. This 5 bedroom, 3 bath, 2,870 square house somehow finds extra room for an office and a family room. If that wasn't enough, there's room on the 0.59 acres (over ½ acres!) to park an RV. More bedrooms, baths, and an extra kitchen! The asking price is $346,950, which is less than $70,000 per bedroom. Got roommates?
↑ Oh, some poor properties have such tortured sales histories. This 4 bedroom, 2 bath, 1,940 square foot house is back on the market yet again. They're asking $239,950, which is only ~$124/sq ft. The story isn't obvious in the photos, the listing; but the data suggests you dive in and find out. Is this a bargain, or a major project? Some will want the bargain. Some will enjoy a project. Someone should like this house.
· Green River College [GRC]
· Route 164 [Metro]
· All Bus Tours coverage [CS]
Written by Tom Trimbath