Tacoma Real Estate Blog

my wife and I tried Marrow, a new restaurant on 6th Avenue. Marrow is different... and quite amazing. The decor is designer cool, with bare light bulbs hanging in clustered bouquets from the rafters, as an example. Our waitress, Brie, was personable, helpful and had outrageous tattoos, most of which propriety would not allow her to show us, in spite of our pleas. The whole experience was great, but the food was the real story. We shared several dishes, including the marrow served right out of a bone, with duck confit. Neither of us had tried marrow previously. It was delicious, and rich. We tried a couple of items from the vegetarian menu that were also fabulous. Everything we ordered sang out with interesting flavor. It's always fun when a good new restaurant opens in Tacoma, especially one that is unique and serves great food.

All of us with David Gala & The Hume Group have lived in the Tacoma area most of our lives. We know the individual quirks and amenities of each neighborhood like the backs of our hands. That said, it is against the Federal Fair Housing Law for and of us to steer your towards a neighborhood or talk you out of buying a house in another neighborhood. That makes it awkward when clients give us that look that says 'level with me' and ask "How is this neighborhood, really?"

Tacoma has a variety of neighborhoods and they have different things going for them. Some have amazing views, others are close to the freeway and sport super low prices. Every type of neighborhood has its pluses and minuses. In some neighborhoods the plus might be the price and location and the minus might be the crime rate. In others the plus might be low crime and beautiful homes, but the minus is an oppressive HOA or a struggling middle school.

While we aren’t allowed to tell you one neighborhood is better for you than another (that’s called steering and it’s been illegal since the 1960’s) we can help point you towards resources where you can do your own research and draw your own conclusions.

1. Your Friends and Family

Talking to friends and family is probably the most old fashioned yet still completely useful way for investigating a neighborhood. Talking to people who currently live in a neighborhood is one of the best ways to find out the pros and cons of living there. Talking to people who have moved out of a neighborhood can be illuminating as well, but steer clear of people who have opinions about neighborhoods they’ve never lived in. Sometimes an areas reputation doesn’t tell the whole story.

2. City of Tacoma Crime Data Website

Crime happens everywhere, and the City of Tacoma Police Department tracks it all. This official site has information for you to research crime in neighborhoods in the city of Tacoma.

3. The Trulia Heat Map

This site helps you figure out what kind of crime is happening on the street the house you are interested in is. It’s very visual and easy to use. While it might not always have the most up to date information that the City of Tacoma site has, it really helps you get a feel for overall crime. It also allows you to sort by type of crime, so you can sort out arrests and focus on burglary and vandalism.

4. Great Schools

If you are a believer in standardized test scores, then this site, whose funders include Bill and Melinda Gates, can help you compare schools. If you are a parent who does not believe test scores are the way to evaluate schools, we can think of no short cut to asking around, talking to parents, talking to Principals when possible, and visiting schools that you think might be a good fit for you and your student.

5. Your Own Eyes and Ears

It’s easy to fall in love with a house and forget to take the neighborhood into account. Some good tricks for getting a feel for the neighborhood are to visit in the evening on a Friday or Saturday night. Is it noisy or peaceful? Would you feel comfortable living here? If the house is on an alley, take a walk down the alley and see what you see. If you bump into any neighbors, ask them what they think about living there.

Again, as Realtors we are your advocates. We want to be your trusted advisors as we help you search for the perfect home for you and your family. That said, there are limits to what we can tell you. We hope this article was useful to you. Let us know what you think!

Last fall I wrote a post about how my own home value was low on Zillow--about 32% at the time. Furthermore, they showed 3 bedrooms instead of 4, no view of Puget Sound, baseboard heating instead of gas, and about half the correct square footage according to the Pierce County assessor. I learned that you can claim ownership of your home on Zillow and submit corrections for any erroneous information, which I did. Over the past five months my Zestimate has creeped up $20,000, at a time when average and median prices in Tacoma continued to decline. Those corrections I submitted had some effect, in other words. I believe it is still 15% low.

As Realtors David, Matt, and myself are always out looking at homes. We decided to sift through all the great inventory of homes in the North End and identify a few great homes. As I started sifting, I made a surprising discovery. I suppose I knew on some level but it took this exercise to bring it into focus:

The inventory in the traditionally popular areas of Proctor / UPS / North Slope is actually weak right now.

This is big news for North End sellers! The timing of this weak inventory is unfortunate because the buyers are really out! The phone is ringing again. If you have a great north end house that you know you want or need to sell soon, the competition isn't terribly fierce. Call us, please!

On to the homes. Here are five properties that I consider noteworthy for various reasons:

4818 North 14th - Why this house? Because it is a price point that didn't exist until now. The news here is that you really can get a cute north end pad that needs minimal work for $159k.

1226 North J St. This bank owned property needs work. It is probably NOT a great flip property unless the bank drops the price even lower. But for the right buyer, it will be great. It is the kind of home that offers a stellar location, a partial sound view, classic craftsman styling, great curb appeal, and lots of square footage for the money. I see the perfect buyer being handy, energetic and willing to put in sweat equity over time.

1112 North 5th St. This is a classic Four Square in an historic neighborhood. It is a very large, attractive home with lots of usable space and it is under the $300,000 mark. Basically, this one just seems like a solid value.

4819 North 33rd Street Okay, this one IS our listing, but I think I can be objective in saying it is a great north end home on an oversized corner lot with plenty of historic charm, a tastefully updated kitchen, detached garage and even storage and a third garage bay in the basement. I like the value at $325,000.

3807 N 39th St. This one is in that area that you've always liked, the northern tip of N. Proctor where it ends in a cul-de-sac along the cliff. The house doesn't have garage parking and it is dated inside, but the location is both charming and breathtaking. It's built right near the edge overlooking Commencement Bay. With a serious remodel, this could be a million dollar home. It is the kind of place that people hold onto for 50 years. This is the chance to buy the kind of home that doesn't hit the market often.

So these are the five I picked to talk about. If you think I missed one, leave it in the comments! And if you want to sell your north end home, contact us today. Now is the time.

The area around the University of Puget Sound is one of North Tacoma’s finest. In addition to a number of beautiful historic homes, the area is dotted with rentals for UPS students to live in while they are attending college.

From seasoned investors to parents looking to find a great place for their kids to live and make a great investment in the process, there is always a strong interest in the rentals around UPS. We regularly assist clients with purchasing and selling investment properties by UPS and around the rest of the county. We think that in the current climate of climbing rents, historic low prices, and rock bottom interest rates make this a great time to invest in a rental near UPS. Here are some answers to some commonly asked questions about buying rentals:

How much do I have to put down?

Most lenders require between 20-25% down for non-owner occupied purchases of investment properties. There are lots of factors involved (mainly your income and credit history) but that’s about average. If you are considering an owner occupied rental (for example, buy a duplex and living in one unit while renting out the other) you can purchase the property for as little as 3.5% down using FHA financing.

How do I figure out how much the units can rent for?

The price per square foot of a rental varies by location, condition, and amenities. In the UPS area you can probably assume about $1 per square foot as a minimum and explore the rents of similar units on Craigslist, but nothing beats the expertise of a good local property manager. We can recommend some.

What are the tax advantages of having a rental?

This is easily one of the main advantages of owning a rental property. While income you make from your rental must be reported as income, many repairs and improvements you make to the property are tax deductable. Things like your mortgage interest, depreciation, property management fees, and insurance are also deductable. There are so many potential deductions it’s worth it to have an accountant go over your books.

While finding the right rental property at the right price can take some time, the combination of excellent interest rates, historically low prices, and our extensive knowledge could make this a golden moment for buying a UPS rental property. Contact us today to get started!