The Biscuit House is on my very short list of favorite restaurants in the area. Why? Just the name itself implies delicious, comfort food at its best!   The location of the Biscuit House in Tumwater is a little unconventional. It's located in the Toyota dealership at their service department.  Although the atmosphere is a little unusual, who cares because the food is THAT GOOD! The biscuits are everything you could hope for: fluffy and buttery. The gravy is mellow, the eggs are equally fluffy and buttery, and then don't get me started on the bacon. I'm not sure where they get this thick-sliced bacon but it is off-the-charts good. They have a full menu of other options but I usually go with a breakfast that includes the basic four items of biscuits, gravy, eggs and bacon. You can't go wr... 12/30/2019

3948 Black Lake Blvd SW, Tumwater 98512  Home across the street from Black Lake w/250 feet+/- of Percival Creek running right through the middle of it's 5+ acres. Kayak/Paddle-board or raft over to the lake from the creek. The 4 bedroom home w/vaulted ceilings & skylights for plenty of light includes a large loft & master upstairs & private bedroom suite/bonus room down. Main floor has new flooring. Hot water heater is new as is the Ravelli pellet stove. Hot tub & new gazebo stay. RV Parking w/electrical hook-up. Huge 25x48 foot shop.  Gail SMith (360) 561-0852 The Ben Kinney team Keller Williams Tacoma 03/15/2019

627 Bates St SW, Tumwater 98512  Tumwater Hill beauty right next to the park. This home has been meticulously maintained & cared for. 3 bedroom, 2-1/2 bath with office & kitchen on the main floor. Kitchen is light & bright with plenty of cabinets for storage & a sit-up peninsula makes for extra counter space. Large family room on the lower level with gas free standing stove leading out to a patio & professionally landscaped back yard that is fully fenced. Conveniently close to freeway access, schools, restaurants and shopping.  Gail Smith (360) 561-0852 The Ben Kinney team Keller Williams Tacoma 12/27/2018

Many residents in Thurston County are outbound commuters and are typically going north to Tacoma, Joint-Base Lewis McChord or even Seattle. Many homebuyers want to be as far north as they can in Thurston County for their commutes but in doing so are missing out on a great neighborhood that may only add 5-10 minutes to their commute: Tumwater Hill.  Tumwater Hill is, of course, located in the city of Tumwater, WA. The hill has many different housing options from new construction to mid-century ramblers. But one of the biggest draws is the location to I-5. From Tumwater Hill, you can be on I-5 in about two minutes.  My relocating clients sometimes balk at my suggestion of Tumwater Hill because they look at the map and say it is too far, but as your local resource, I know what a gem this l... 10/03/2018

This autumn at the Tumwater Falls Park located in Tumwater, WA, I was surprised to see the salmon working their way up the river.  The river seems pretty mighty.  As I was standing on the bridge at the lower part of the falls, I was amazed to see these flyin' fish battling the strong currents.  I really like to visit the Tumwater Falls Park as it's right next to my office and is a great place to take a walk and be out in nature even though you are right in town.  The park surrounds the old Olympia Beer Brewery. I start at the parking lot near the fish hatchery and walk past the Falls Terrace Restaurant, a nice restaurant where you can see the falls and enjoy a great lunch.  This is the top part of the falls, and is probably the most photographed part of the park.  Crossing the bridge, I... 10/30/2017

6819 Old Forest Lane SE, Tumwater 98501 Beautiful custom built home on Munn Lake w/125' of waterfront. 3 Bedroom, 3-1/2 bath w/separate dwelling unit above garage with it's own entrance. Large kitchen w/custom cabinets, under cabinet lighting, farm sink, corian counter-tops, large walk-in pantry. Main floor master and bath w/Jacuzzi tub, bidet, walk-in shower & closets. Large wrap-around deck for outdoor entertaining. In-ground sprinkler system with new lawn/plants and barked planting area. Tons of storage & oversized 3 car garage.  Gail Smith(360) 561-0852 The Ben Kinney TeamKeller Williams Western Realty 08/08/2017

6840 Zenda Dr SE Tumwater, WA 98501 6840 Zenda Dr SE Amazing home with over 1,900 sf. of living space. You'll love the open concept & low-maintenance lifestyle and the easy to manage, fenced yard. Interior Features: Family Room, Appliances, Walk-In Closet, Forced Air, Fireplace, Pantry, Dining Room, Pets Allowed. Exterior Features: Fenced Yard, Deck/Patio, Landscaping. Custom Features: Community : Deschutes River Highlands Sewer/Water : Public water Nearby Amenities : Munn Lake, Pioneer Park, YMCA Roof : Composition roof Price: $255,000 Type: Single Family Residential for Sale Floors: Multiple Parking/Garage: 2 Bedrooms: 4 Baths:2 Half Baths:1 Square Feet: 1960 Year Built: 2010 MLS #: 1135398   www.sandynelsonrealestate.com/listings/6EFB8BC5-B9E8-1E34-7089F616F7C7E26D.shtml   For more ... 06/05/2017

I had the pleasure of working with this gentleman for quite some time as we looked and waited for the perfect home to come up on Tumwater Hill, WA.  After a long search, we found the right home at the right time!He recently closed on his new home, and he wrote this kind review for me on Google:"Francine is everything you could ask for in a realtor, start to finish!" Short and sweet.  But this is how our working relationship was because I had to work with him through an interpreter.  For me, I had to choose my words carefully and be as exact and precise as possible, not just for my client but also for the interpreter.  Yes, we did have some miscommunications but fortunately, we both asked each other enough questions to hammer out those misunderstandings quickly.  I'd like to thank...  If... 06/02/2017

Congratulations to our Happy East Coast Buyers, Pending in Tumwater!For our Buyers & Sellers in the 98512 Market, a Few Resources for You:Market Trends: http://www.quallsrealestate.com/mimarket/zip/98512/Homes For Sale: http://www.quallsrealestate.com/listings/areas/29260/propertytype/SINGLE,CONDO/listingtype/Resale%20New/sort/price+asc/What's my Tumwater Home Worth:http://www.quallsrealestate.com/sell/#realestate #homesforsale #congrats #happycustomers #realestateagents #tumwater #olympia #lacey #centralia #sellmyhome #whatsmyhomeworth #quallsteam #quallsrealestate #sold #pending #hotmarket 05/22/2017

Multi-Generational Housing has become increasingly popular over the past few years...& difficult to come across home inventory to accommodate these needs!Check out this Tumwater Home, essentially offering separate living quarters on each floor...& incredibly generous outdoor digs as well!https://www.redfin.com/WA/Tumwater/1019-Surrey-Trce-SE-98501/home/21928002 02/10/2017

 One reason why Tumwater real estate commentators like to offer quizzes is to make readers feel good about how much they know. Being that Tumwater homeowners probably do more than an average amount of reading about Tumwater real estate matters, you would expect that any real estate-themed quiz would succeed in creating that kind of warm, positive experience.This is not that kind of quiz.I put it together because it’s a quick way to present some of the more unlikely survey results. They are culled from recent National Association of Realtors® informational articles. The quiz may not foster warm feelings of knowledgeability, but to compensate, it’s shorter than most of those web quizzes (who has time to answer 25 questions?).Ready? Set! GO!   1)      Which of the following features is lik... 01/30/2017

 For more than a year, it’s been the happy trend across the nation for the average DOM (days on market) for residential properties to have been declining. It’s a “speed of sale” measure—one that most Tumwater home sellers hope will reflect that it won’t be long before they are handing the keys to happy new owners.There are some ruling considerations that go into establishing a winning Tumwater asking price. One is psychological: thinking of a buyer’s frame of mind, most people don’t want to be the only ones who are interested in a house. When a slightly lower-than-comparable asking price is part of the marketing message, it draws a crowd. Another consideration is the search bracket. Knowing how buyers tend to bracket price range parameters for similar Tumwater homes is something I can h... 01/21/2017

   If you are like most Tumwater homeowners, this is not the time of year you relish thinking about next year’s April 15 tap on the shoulder from Uncle Sam. Nonetheless, the calendar doesn’t lie. In a matter of days, New Year’s Eve will be here—and once the champagne corks have popped, it’s entirely possible if some t’s weren’t crossed and i’s dotted, Tumwater homeowners might accidentally miss a year-end tax break deadline.Tax advice is best left to your own Tumwater financial advisor, which is why I don’t offer any myself. But some useful articles have recently surfaced (in Forbes, Trulia, TheFiscalTimes, among others) highlighting three of the tax provisions that are set to expire at the end of 2016. A few of them could affect some Tumwater homeowners’ bank balances come tax time.If ... 12/21/2016

     You don’t have to be beyond your 40s to begin plotting a direction for your retirement years. Most younger Tumwater residents know this full well but (truth be told) do precious little about it. For most of us, we’re all so busy tending to career and daily living concerns that most of the time it seems like self-indulgent wool-gathering to go daydreaming about retirement plans. Besides—who has extra cash to be doing more than the bare minimum about financing retirement? It’s so far off in the future…That may be the 21st-century reality for most Tumwater adults who aren’t close to retirement age, but in fact, some of the real estate decisions we make early on can set the stage for satisfaction in later years. That’s one of the takeaways from the brains at Age Wave, a think tank who ... 12/12/2016

  When it comes to real estate reporting, there seem to be more icebergs out there than in Antarctica in mid-summer (which is mid-winter here—but never mind). Tumwater real estate followers only know about the spate of icebergs because real estate reporters are always headlining that something-or-other is “just the tip of the iceberg.” Other things are “like an iceberg” because 90% is invisible, lying in wait just beneath the surface. Whenever real estate reporting begins to bring to mind Celine Dion, My Heart Will Go On, and the Titanic going down, you’re right to squint a little harder at whatever is being reported.   The standard real estate iceberg is usually a trend—a real estate trend that’s recently shown itself peeking out just above the surface. A real estate iceberg trend is o... 12/05/2016

 When you see any title here containing the words “Tumwater Real Estate Investment,” you won’t be terribly surprised if the gist turns out to be what a good idea! When you’ve had the experience of seeing clients succeed with many real estate investment projects, it’s an unavoidable conclusion. Unfortunately, also pretty yawn-worthy.That’s why I was pleased to come across Grant Cardone’s piece in Entrepreneur magazine. We all like to see our opinions agreed with—but doubly so when you’re offered specifics that bolster your own conclusions. The article listed reasons why real estate investments are “your smartest investment.” Here are some of them:            A real estate investment is a hedge on inflation. Inflation hasn’t been hugely important for a while, but serious investors have an... 11/27/2016

  If you were one of the brave Tumwater real estate investors who decided a few years back that the real estate meltdown was an awfully good buying opportunity, congratulations on being able to resist any naysayers. The fact that real estate has always lived up to its name (“real”) is easy to forget when prices have hit the basement—especially when the surrounding economic news is dire.Those were days when Tumwater fixer-upper opportunities were available for shockingly low asking prices—and before long, the shockingly low asking prices began to look normal and reasonable. “Bank owned homes” became a hugely popular search term as foreclosure numbers skyrocketed. It’s hard to recall the way it really felt, but any buying into that real estate market seemed like a swashbuckling act of raw... 11/18/2016

  If you look up the term “normalcy bias,” you find yourself swimming in psychological theoretician talk, most of which deals with people’s response to disastrous situations. The theory behind it is that when faced with the unknown, there is a tendency among even rational human beings to misconstrue new (and even dangerous) circumstances as being more normal—hence, safe—than is really the case. What this has to do with Tumwater real estate is not as farfetched as you might think. Ask anyone who wanted to buy a house in the early 1980s, and you will probably get an earful. Because of inflation since then, the asking prices for local homes back then seems pretty inviting today…until we check into the then-current mortgage interest rates. A home that today is valued at $250,000 would have ... 11/14/2016

  A number of “Smart House” products made headway in 2016, so before the crystal ball gets hauled up over Times Square, this is an appropriate moment to review which ones promised relevant real estate applications. Anyone who will be house hunting or selling in Tumwater anytime soon might want to become familiar with some of what’s out there.It’s safe to say that the whole notion of household management gadgets that plug into the internet—an idea that was exotic a few years back—is now readily recognized by the majority of Tumwater consumers. More and more of us are beginning to consider which ones will make life easier (rather than just producing a ‘gee whiz!’ reaction from friends and family). The best smart features really do add value.The greatest enabler for most smart house device... 11/05/2016

 It just could be that the absolute best Halloween gift has been identified. It’s one that every Tumwater resident would certainly be surprised to receive.Now, in case you are asking yourself who gives gifts at Halloween (other than the candy we hand out to the pint-sized ghosts and goblins), I agree that October 31 gift-giving isn’t in vogue. But thinking about it can be useful. It’s our last chance to get some mental practice in before the season for major league gift-giving hits Tumwater.This week is our last chance to fully appreciate this time of year. I’m talking about the not-yet-Holiday Season season. These are the last few days when there’s no fussing over gift exchanges, Holiday partying, New Years plans—any of it!Like it or not, come November 1, as the first Halloween decorat... 10/26/2016