Eliminating single-family zoning is a good idea, and Christopher Kirk’s Seattle Times editorial is a steaming pile of garbage

An editorial by Christopher Kirk in the Seattle Times yesterday was so stupid I had no choice but to finally come back here and respond.

Here’s the link: Statewide rezoning of single-family neighborhoods is a terrible idea

Now, before we start it’s worth noting that this piece is described as a “Special to The Times” and the author is not a journalist. He’s not an economist, either. He’s also not an urban planner, and as you’ll see he’s obviously not a historian. He’s an architect whose primary accomplishments listed on his bio attached to the piece are having “served on public historic preservation and design review boards.”

So with that context, let’s get into it…

Amazon HQ2 may already be turning Seattle into a buyers market

I did some speculative analysis for Redfin on the impact that Amazon HQ2 will have on the Seattle real estate market: Amazon HQ2 Could Quickly Turn Seattle Into a Buyer’s Market

For the article I spoke with a Redfin Seattle agent who has had some interesting conversations already with buyers…

Reader Comment: “Now all I seem to be able to afford are the meth houses!”

A reader going by the handle “JustSomeDude” left a comment this morning that is worth highlighting:

Came upon this website a couple months ago and find everyone’s perspectives interesting. I see a lot of wondering on what potential regular, non-speculating, non-investor sellers and buyers are thinking and doing. People who just want to live in a nice house.

I can’t speak for others, but I can share my thoughts / experiences recently as well as some anecdotal stories…

Zillow stock performance during the day of the McMansion Hell threat fallout

Zillow’s asinine threat to McMansion Hell is costing them

You’ve probably heard about the asinine legal threat that Zillow lawyers sent to the architecture criticism blog McMansion Hell (currently offline), a popular blog that provides entertaining and educational commentary and criticism of the scourge of the McMansion. If you’re in the dark, allow me to summarize the events of earlier this week, with some of my own speculation and opinion thrown in (indicated in italics below)…

Eric Fischer: San Francisco Housing Model

No, Seattle Affordability Is Not “Pretty Much Game Over”

A few weeks ago Stranger writer Charles Mudede published a post in which he argued that “Seattle Is Pretty Much Game Over” in terms of housing affordability. There was a time when something could have been done to avoid its entry into the locked cycle of asset value inflation, but that was a few years […]

Point-Counterpoint: Is Zillow a Valuable Tool?

Anyone who has read this site for any length of time knows that I am not exactly Zillow’s biggest fan (to put it lightly). However, I like to keep an open mind, and I don’t want Seattle Bubble to become an echo chamber.

Therefore, I’m happy to present a point-counterpoint on the topic of Zillow’s value in the real estate marketplace. Rather than participating myself, I’ve invited two long-time Seattle Bubble regulars and local real estate professionals to debate the subject for us all.