Seattle's Urban Villages

Happy 100th Birthday Pike Place Market!

100 years ago tomorrow, Friday August 17th, the Pike Place Market

opened to begin a tradition of offering fresh produce and eventually all the glorious fruits, flowers, fish

and  other vendor products; crafts, cafes, confections, coffee, collectibles and so on that can be found strolling the market.  Of course, back in 1907 it was just a few farmers selling produce off the back of their wagons, and there were no fishmongers tossing fish over the heads tourists!   

                                       To Celebrate the Markets' Centennial , there are lots of events scheduled to celebrate the Markets' 100th birthday, and we are now just a day away from wishing the Pike Place Market Happy Birthday!  The festivities began in May when the Market put its' "Pigs on Parade" .

The pigs are now scattered all over Downtown Seattle, so when you are Downtown keep an eye out for the splendid pigs. 

                        Of course Rachel the Pike Place Market Pig is still in her spot ready to pose for a photo with anyone who wishes.

The Pike Place Market is the oldest continuously open farmers market in the US, that is quite an accomplishment for a City that is well more than a 100 years younger than cities on the east coast!  While the market has had challenges over the decades fighting off developers and neglect, it has become one of the unique places that defines Seattle and makes it such a wonderful place to live and visit.

So come out and wish Happy 100th Birthday our Pike Place Market!

Open Houses; a great way to "interview" agents when you are thinking about selling your home

A great way to find a good Seattle real estate agent when you are thinking about selling your Seattle home is by attending open houses in your neighborhood. 

You get to see an agent "in action" at an open house!  While you are there you can gauge their professionalism by the way they greet you, engage you in conversation and talk about the house they are hosting the open house at.  Ask questions about the neighborhood, the Seattle real estate market both in general and specifically homes in the neighborhood and comparable homes.  While talking to the agent, do you find them knowledgeable, and a good "fit" to work with you?

Check out the agents' marketing materials (flyer's etc.) are they informative and interesting to look at?   Ask the agent what they did to help their client get the house "market ready" and their philosophy for marketing and selling homes.  Later when you get home, look the house up online to see the quality of the online photos, and the marketing remarks for that house, do you find them to present the home well?

A good agent will be happy to answer all your questions, but be careful not to monopolize their time after-all, they are working to sell their clients home!  The agent is there to show their clients' house to potential buyers so they will need to greet and talk with other visitors at the open house too.

Sometimes the agent hosting the open house is not the listing agent, so that is something to find out while talking to the agent.  The hosting agent is still a good potential agent for you even if they are not the listing agent.  Sometimes a listing agent is not available to host that week's open house for one of several reasons, and another agent is hosting it.  Even if the agent you meet and talk to is not the listing agent, that hosting agent may be a good fit for you if they impress you with their professionalism, knowledge and marketing savvy.

Be sure to get the agents' business card and a flyer too so that you can follow up and call them later to talk about what they can do for you to market and sell your home.  A little time and effort spent doing this will help you to find the best Seattle agent for you when the time comes to sell your home.