DES MOINES, WASH.
WHAT: A waterfront house with four bedrooms and three and a half bathrooms
HOW MUCH: $1,725,000
SIZE: 2,730 square feet
PRICE PER SQUARE FOOT: $632
SETTING: Des Moines is a city on the eastern shore of Puget Sound, midway between Seattle and Tacoma and within a half-hour drive of both. This 1918 house is on the water in a gated community on and around Woodmont Beach. According to the listing agent, it is thought to have originally been a structure associated with a now-vanished pier. Most of the other houses in the community are summer cabins built in the 1950s and ’60s. In addition to waterfront parks, the city maintains several fishing piers, a boardwalk and a marina near the small downtown.
INDOORS: The two-story house was updated within the past year. Common areas are on a long, open floor plan. The living area has a white brick fireplace and a wall of picture windows facing west, with views of the sound, islands and the Olympic Mountains. The ceilings are coffered. Floors are light-colored hardwood. French doors at one end of the room open to a waterfront deck.
A limestone breakfast bar separates the dining area from the kitchen, which has stainless-steel appliances and minimalist white cabinetry. Three bedrooms are on the first floor, two with en-suite bathrooms. Behind stairs leading to the master suite, there’s an office, also with westerly views. The master suite measures about 800 square feet, with a pitched ceiling and waterside balcony. Its bathroom has a jetted tub, as well as a shower partially enclosed by glass brick. All bathrooms are finished in either limestone or granite.
OUTDOOR SPACE: The lot is just over a third of an acre, with a yard sloping down to 120 feet of beachfront and a boat ramp.
TAXES: $20,559 a year
CONTACT: Véronique Hval and Jan Fairchild, Windermere Real Estate South, (206) 214-8499 / (206) 226-7610; belleresidence.com