South Seattle: Tough Sell
When I saw this new listing go up, I scratched my head. The house looked affordable and promising, but the address placed it on Rainier Avenue, the South End’s version of Aurora or Lake City Way. Rainier isn’t all just urban commercial wasteland, but it sure can seem like it. Still, I’ve seen a bunch of residential houses on Rainier, widely distributed between the nail salons, chiropractors, auto body shops and vacant lots filled with corrugated metal.
Undeniably, there’s a serious uphill battle in store for the sellers of this house. It is smack on the side of a four lane stretch of a busy arterial, just south of a major intersection. I’m a fairly experienced Rainier driver and I had wanted to park in the driveway to look around, but the two slow approaches I made were nerve wracking. Getting honked at every time you pull into your driveway would probably make some kind of psychological impact over time, regardless of how cheerful your garage mosaic is.
The house is right next to a public library and bus line, which is handy. Across the street is the Rainier Beach Safeway shopping center, as well as a Jack In The Box and the Sub Shop #7. I wish them the best in the selling process, as the interior appears to have been spruced up for sale and it features an awesome full arch doorway that is pretty special. At five bedrooms, you’d get a lot of house for your money, but you’d get a lot of Rainier Avenue as well.
Price: $365,000. Previously sold in 2005 for $255,000. 1,980 square feet. 5 bedrooms, 1.75 baths.
