South Seattle: Paint It Blue
A striking new coat of indigo paint was not enough to persuade me that this Mt Baker home has all the right improvements to justify its $595,000 price tag. Count the kitchen and bathrooms in that list of upgrades and wonder at the choice to put new carpet throughout. Said carpet made the second floor quite hot, even on the mildly warm day I visited, and I imagine it can get pretty steamy up there in the summer. Of the three rooms upstairs, only one has a proper closet (in want of a door) and the largest room just has access to two unfinished crawl spaces. The upstairs bath is only a .5 and since there appeared to be room enough I wish a bath or shower had been added in the remodel.
All the spaces on the main floor are quite generous and there’s lots of light. It looks like every one of the original interior doors is in place throughout and even painted they are gorgeous. Less gorgeous is the wrought iron gate protecting the front door. The all white cabinetry and appliances in the new kitchen didn’t appeal to me at all, both for cleaning purposes and because it all looks like some kind of “kitchen in a box” deal from Lowe’s or Home Depot. The quick fix appearance is not enhanced by florescent lights in the kitchen or the acoustic tile in the breakfast nook ceiling.
The basement is dry and one part of it is finished although it seemed unnecessary to me as it doesn’t really provide a useful room so much as a finished half of the basement. Down there I spotted old Romex wiring (fiber encased), galvanized steel plumbing and an old oil furnace and I was disappointed that these fundamentals were overlooked in the get-it-ready-for-sale overhaul. There is access to the small backyard from this level, though it requires one to hoist oneself up a couple feet to crawl through a door that is better sized for an English sheepdog than a person. Once you’ve wriggled into the backyard you’ll find no privacy from the alley, just off street parking on a concrete foundation that once had a proper garage atop it.
Beds: 4
Baths: 1.5
Sq. Ft.: 2,400
Lot Sq. Ft.: 4,080
$/Sq. Ft.: $248
