Seattle Neighborhoods: Wallingford

The Wallingford neighborhood has a relaxed and laid back feel and relatively free from slave-to -fashion poseurs. At one stage, Wallingford was touted as being the next Fremont and although the area has undergone some changes, it has remained refreshingly modest. The proximity to the University of Washington reduces the average age of its residence with many students renting digs along the Stone Way corridor and throughout the neighborhood.

The area is named after John Noble Wallingford, a major real estate speculator who owned land from Lake Union all the way up to the Green Lake area. By the 1920’s were the boom years for Wallingford with most of the what is now the main commercial center taking shape with an accompanying construction of homes.

Wallingford is bordered by the waters of Lake Union to the south, by Green Lake to the north, Fremont to the west and I-5 freeway and University District to the east. The center of the neighborhood is generally considered to be where the QFC supermarket is located at the junction of N 45^th Street and Wallingford Avenue which is emphasized by the tall WALLINGFORD neon sign over the store. QFC replaced the old Food Giant store and used some of the same neon letters to spell out the new sign. Seattle does like to recycle and re-use!

Most of Wallingford’s business core is located along 45^th Street between Stone Way and Sunnyside Ave. It has restaurants, bars of varying sophistication, banks, the aforementioned supermarket, specialty stores and the excellent Guild 45^th movie theatre, which has been there for a long time. The site of the old Interlake Elementary School is now occupied by the Wallingford Center, which houses a collection of stores, restaurants and apartments. Close by is the old Lincoln High School, which closed in 1981and now acts as a temporary location for high schools while their own school buildings are being renovated. Ballard High took up residence here from 1997 to 1999. And last, but not least, we have local legends, Dicks Drive-In, who’s first store was founded in Wallingford in 1954 and they’ve being deep frying ever since!

The most likely place you are going to find tourists in the Wallingford neighborhood is down at Gasworks Park on a little peninsula jutting into lake union. This is one of my favorite Seattle parks especially on a summer’s evening, having a picnic and watching the boats and the city skyline while sipping on a beer (preferably Mirror Pond). The park is the site of an old Seattle Gas Company facility that converted coal and oil into gas. When the wind blew north, it spewed fumes over the good residents of Wallingford and beyond. Much of the original structures were left in place to rust and form a definitely different background. Gasworks has great views of downtown Seattle and sea planes taking off and coming in to land above your head. It is also a very popular spot with kite flyers and location of a big 4^th of July fireworks show.

Wallingford Real Estate

Wallingford homes are dominated by many beautiful examples of craftsman architecture built during the first three decades of the 20^th century. The neighborhood has some of the best craftsman homes Seattle has to offer. Wallingford also has bungalows, some Tudor, ramblers, bungalows as well as contemporary designs. Depending on location, many Wallingford properties have views of Lake Union and downtown Seattle which adds a good 20% to the value of any home.

Wallingford has a decent selection of townhomes, most of which were constructed over the past 10 years. There are a few townhome developments along the main hub on 45^th Street, with the majority closer to noisier Aurora Avenue.

Wallingford condominiums have seen a similar building boom over the past 10 years or so making Wallingford more affordable for first time buyers. Some high-end condos have gone in near Gasworks park and the Burke Gilman Trail with great views of downtown. Makes getting out of bed in the morning a lot easier. Get on your bike and cycle to work!

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

Median* home prices for Wallingford single family homes, Wallingford townhomes and Wallingford 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 Wallingford single family homes, Wallingford condos and Wallingford townhomes for the last six months of 2009 (will be updated quarterly).

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

Wallingford Real Estate Map

Best of Wallingford

Seattly Weekly guide to Wallingford dining

Citysearch guide to Wallingford businesses