Seattle Neighborhoods: Queen Anne

Queen Anne is one of Seattle’s most desirable addresses. Located a short distance from downtown, this is where’s early Seattle’s captains of industry escaped to when downtown had become too crowded and they wished to avoid the great unwashed.. At the top of the hill, 450 feet up, they built their impressive mansions in a revivalist version of the Queen Anne style of architecture. The most impressive mansions are along W. Hyland Drive. By 1885, the hill had become known as Queen Anne in keeping with the style of homes. So much for the war of independence!

Queen Anne buds off downtown Seattle at the Seattle center, home of the Space Needle and the 1962 World’s Fair. Then you start a long climb up an 18% grade to the flat area at the top of the hill, appropriately named The Crown of Queen Anne. If you continue on, you will go down the other side the hill in equal fashion. Queen Anne real estate has beautiful panoramic vistas of downtown, the Puget Sound and both the Cascade and Olympic mountain ranges. For one of the best views of downtown Seattle visit Kerry Park, with the Space Needle in the foreground and Mt. Rainier in the background (it really is there, you just have to be patient)

Queen Anne is bordered by downtown and Elliott Bay to the south, the Lake Washington Ship Canal and Fremont to the north, Magnolia and Interbay lie to the west, with Lake Union and Eastlake to the east. In 1902, electric street cars replaced the cable cars and in order to get the heavy trolleys up the steep slope, an underground system of weights and pulleys were added. Today, this part of the neighborhood is known as the Counterbalance. The area at the bottom of the hill near the Seattle Center is known as Lower Queen Anne.

Today, the main hub of social activity is along Queen Avenue at the top of the hill area. Businesses are generally concentrated between Galer and McGraw streets, which boast a fine selection of bars, restaurants and stores. The landed gentry would be rolling in their graves if they knew what was going on.

Queen Anne Real Estate

 As you have probably guessed from the above description of this neighborhood, Queen Anne homes are amongst the most sought after and exclusive properties in the city of Seattle. The median price of Queen Anne houses is one of the highest in the city ($665,000 for single family homes, see table below). The median value is probably slightly skewed by the sales price of a smaller number of very expensive homes. First time buyers can get in the door but will have limited options compared to other Seattle neighborhoods.

Besides the stately Queen Anne revivalist mansions, other architectural styles include a great selection of classic craftsman homes, plus Tudor, bungalows and contemporary styles.

Queen Anne condominiums are concentrated south of Galer Street and along the eastern and western boundaries of the neighborhood, closer to the traffic-heavy areas. Queen Anne townhomes follow a similar pattern to that seen for condos.

Please see the tables below for data on Queen Anne home sales, which will give you an overview of how this neighborhood is priced.

Median* home prices for Queen Anne single family homes, Queen Anne townhomes and Queen Anne condos that sold over last six months of 2009 (data will be updated quarterly).

*Where median price is the price at which half the homes sold for below that price and half the homes sold for above that price

Price ranges for Queen Anne single family homes, Queen Anne condos and Queen Anne townhomes for the last six months of 2009 (will be updated quarterly)

If you would like more information or have any questions regarding Queen Anne homes, please contact a Queen Anne real estate agent.

Queen Anne Real Estate Map

Best of Queen Anne

City Search guide to Queen Anne

Seattle Weekly guide to Queen Anne dining