809 So. M St, Tacoma
Listed $325,000/Sold $340,000
3 Beds
1 Bath
1,232 Sq Ft (+616 unfinished)
Enter to an open staircase and beautiful original millwork in this turn-of-the-century Hilltop home near cafes, groceries, parks, restaurants, schools, and hospital row. On the main floor with its comfortable circular floor plan, find a dining and living space defined by stained wood pillars, picture rail trim, mullioned windows, and cased openings. The updated kitchen is ready with a complete set of appliances and a friendly breakfast bar. There’s even a laundry room adjacent in the enclosed back porch. A clawfoot tub in the tiled bath and solid wood doors bring vintage style while fresh paint brightens each room. Added conveniences include a fully fenced front and back yard, and storage in the basement and shed.
Note - Roof & Paint: The front and back porch roofs are new! The roof work took place just after photos, so expect to see these in great shape when you visit in person. The entire roof has just been 5 year certified. The interior is freshly painted. Outside, you’ll notice the front of the home is newly painted. The sides and back of the home will be painted to match as weather permits. The completion of the exterior paint job is already arranged and ordered.
You’ll find groceries, Wright Park, local coffee roasters, a brand new bakery, schools, the Grand Cinema, and Tacoma’s major hospitals all within one mile of this home, but we share much more about the location and the neighborhood in our location section below. And don’t miss all the ways to be involved in the community here through volunteering with local non-profits, joining in community events, and understanding the history and diversity of the Hilltop.
Continue on for the video tour, photos, details, and travel time and distance to a list of Tacoma favorites. We can’t wait to tell you more about this house!
Main Floor
Entry with Open Staircase
Living Room
Dining Room
Kitchen
Enclosed Porch - Laundry
Second Floor
Full Bath
3 Bedrooms
Landing with Linen Closet
Basement
Unfinished
Sump Pump & Channel Drains
Exit to Back Yard
Outside
New Porch Roofs
5 Year Certified Roof
Fully Fenced Front Yard
Fully Fenced Back Yard
Storage Shed
Off-Street Parking in Back
Entry with Open Staircase
Shake off your coat on the covered front porch, then step inside to the cozy main floor. The first thing to notice is the original, unpainted millwork. Many homes have beautiful trim, but to find stained wood trim is more rare. While this house has certainly been updated and changed since it arrived on the scene in 1907 (and freshly painted in the past few weeks), you will notice a few reminders of days gone by.
An open staircase leads the way upstairs on your left, while the hall leads straight to the kitchen. Stop for a moment to appreciate the half wall with pillars leading to the living room on your right.
Living Room
This is a good room to visit first. Step beneath the decorative spindle-and-ball spandrel to the living room brightened by a front window and overhead light. This room, with its baseboard and picture rail trim is a comfortable gathering spot for family and friends and connects to the dining room through a cased opening. This open flow makes the living areas feel more spacious, while still giving rooms their own individual designation.
Dining Room
Find the dining room just past the living room on the way to the kitchen. A decorative, diamond-paned mullioned window set high in the side wall gives the room character. Lay out the linens and light some candles, or set out the coloring books and homework. The dining room’s position in the floor plan of the home is just right whether you’re entertaining, cooking dinner for family, or setting the table for one or two. Move easily from room to room, and remember, with the circular floor plan, there are no dead-ends.
Kitchen
Make your way to the kitchen from the dining room, or straight down the hall from the front door. The kitchen is clean and updated with laminate wood plank style flooring and a full set of appliances. You’ll find a side-by-side refrigerator/freezer, an oven with a flat-top range, a dishwasher, and microwave. A deep, undermount sink makes clean-up easy. It’s never pleasant to work in a dim kitchen. Enjoy additional lighting under the microwave and over the sink. Pull up a stool at the breakfast bar in a bright corner with a window overlooking the enclosed porch. It’s a nice spot to sit with a cup of coffee, bowl of granola, or afternoon snack.
Enclosed Porch - Laundry
A back door leads from the kitchen to the enclosed back porch where you’ll find the laundry area. It’s so convenient to have laundry on the main floor, just a few steps away from whatever’s cooking on the stove - no need to haul hampers down basement stairs. A set of shelves offers a place for additional kitchen or pantry items, or a spot for the detergent and cleaning supplies.
This enclosed porch is bright and full of windows! Three windows look out over the yard, with a fourth window in the back door and a fifth window in the interior wall looking in to the cozy kitchen.
Full Bath
It’s time to head up the open staircase with its newel post, balustrade, and rails all a stained wood.
At the top of the stairs turn left on the landing for the full bath. The floor is set with big square tiles in a nice, cloudy gray. White subway tiles surround the bath area with its clawfoot tub. A pedestal sink compliments and completes the vintage style. Privacy glass allows natural light; altogether the room is attractive, clean, and bright. The paint, tile, and fixtures are neutral, so any color scheme you like best can show up in the shower curtain and towels you choose.
A linen closet on the landing just outside offers a good space for additional bathroom storage.
3 Bedrooms
These carpeted bedrooms are each set with solid wood doors at entry and opening into each closet. Two bedrooms face west overlooking the front yard and M Street. The third bedroom overlooks the back yard, its window facing east. These are newly painted, simple rooms, with freshly cleaned carpet, and the same solid, attractive wood trim found throughout the home.
The bathroom is just a few steps away down the hall. The hall itself is covered with laminate flooring.
Basement
From the front door, head toward the kitchen, and take a door on the left to reach the basement. This is an unfinished basement with a concrete floor. You’ll find the electrical panel, water heater, and crawl space access down here. There’s also and exit to stairs leading up to the back yard. The basement is equipped with a sump pump and channel drains around the perimeter. Add shelving and you’ll have a good amount of storage space.
Outside
You’ll notice the front exterior of the home is newly painted. The rest of the exterior paint job will be completed as weather allows; it simply became too wet and cold to paint successfully. However, that job is already ordered and soon the whole exterior will match and look renewed.
The front porch and back porch roofs are new! These were replaced just after photos, so these images don’t do them justice. You’ll have to go visit in person to take a look. The entire roof is 5 year certified.
Both the front and back yards of this home are fully fenced, a very useful attribute for those with pets. In front, a paved path leads from the gate at the sidewalk through the lawn to the covered porch. In back, a paved path leads straight back to a small shed and a concrete pad with space for a vehicle, or to pull up the recycling bin. This is a low-maintenance yard with room for dogs to run and plenty of potential for raised beds or other landscaping and gardening.
Location - Hilltop Neighborhood
“Dream Coming True” mural by Bob Henry at 9th & MLK in the Hilltop
The Hilltop Street Fair Parade - just one of the community events hosted annually in the Hilltop.
Intro to the Hilltop
Image from People’s Community Center - This community center with its pool, family programs, and community events is just over 1/2 a mile from 809 S M.
The Hilltop Neighborhood, where you find this home, is a diverse community set above Tacoma's downtown. Churches dot the corners, MultiCare Tacoma General Hospital, St. Joseph's Hospital and Community Healthcare's Hilltop Family Medical Clinic are close by. There's even a Link light rail project in the works, to be completed in 2022. The Link will further connect Hilltop to Downtown Tacoma and the Stadium District, providing increased access for those who don’t own a car, or prefer (for all kinds of reasons!) to use public transit. Walk to Red Elm to meet a friend for breakfast, and if you work in health care, you could walk to work! These 2 hospitals and 1 health center are less than a mile from the door of 809 S M St. Take a swim and get to know your neighbors at the People's Community Center, and enjoy the annual Hilltop Street Fair every August.
Image from Tacoma Community House - Volunteer and get involved at Tacoma Community House down the street!
Community Advocacy & Engagement
Enroll your kids, or volunteer in the comprehensive tutoring and mentoring programs at Peace Community Center. Hilltop offers a myriad a ways to get involved, give back, engage, and belong. Did we mention Tacoma Community House? No? Well, it’s more than worthy of a mention. Their advocacy work began over a hundred years ago and they’re going strong in their work with refugees, immigrants, employment, and education.
Image from Hilltop Action Coalition - If you want to know your neighbors and engage in community advocacy, get involved with the Hilltop Action Coalition.
If you’d really like to engage in this neighborhood, understand its roots, its concerns, its causes, and get deeper into what it means to participate in this community, get involved in the Hilltop Action Coalition. The HAC meets the 3rd Monday of every month at 6 pm in the community room at the Hilltop Regional Health Center. Know your neighborhood!
Hilltop Business District
Image from The Eleven Eleven - Sandwiches and beer just 0.3 miles from your door.
Johnson Candy Co. is a truly sweet and friendly destination just a 5 minute walk fro 809 S M.
The heart of the Hilltop's business district stretches between S. 19th and S. 9th on MLK Way. Favorites on MLK include The Fish House Cafe, a tiny blue restaurant serving fried fish and shrimp baskets for decades, Mr. Mac Ltd clothing store (opened in 1957 - read more about this Hilltop icon in this News Tribune article!), Johnson's Candy Company (since 1949!), Pho Bac and Pho King offering inexpensive Vietnamese food. Newer additions to the neighborhood like Red Elm Cafe, 2nd Cycle Community Cycle Center, and bars like The Eleven Eleven Bar, Zodiac Supper Club, and 1022 S J (craft cocktails and food too) indicate the ever-changing character of this area. Tacoma Baking Company is the newest business on the Hilltop. The bakery opened January 2020 and we’re pretty excited to welcome it to town!
Take a look at our list of nearby favorite Tacoma destinations below. We’ve calculated the distance from the doorstep of this Hilltop home, as well as the time it takes to drive or walk to these practical and popular spots.
Image from Over Tacoma - Wright Park (think of it as Tacoma’s Central Park) is just 1/2 a mile from 809 S M.
From Home on Foot Within 1 Mile
Image from Red Elm Cafe - We’ll be surprised if local friendly Red Elm doesn’t become a regular destination.
Hilltop Destinations:
Le Donut: 0.2 miles/5 minutes
Safeway: 0.2 miles/5 minutes
Le-Le Restaurant: 0.3 miles/5 minutes
The Eleven Eleven Bar: 0.3 miles/6 minutes
Red Elm Cafe: 0.3 miles/7 minutes
Manifesto Coffee Roasters: 0.4 miles/7 minutes
Bryant Montessori School: 0.4 miles/7 minutes
Hilltop Regional Health Center : 0.4 miles/8 minutes
Tacoma Community House: 0.4 miles/9 minutes
MultiCare Tacoma General Hospital: 0.5 miles/9 minutes
People’s Community Center: 0.7 miles/14 minutes
St. Joseph Medical Center: 0.8 miles/17 minutes
Fish House Cafe: 0.8 miles/17 minutes
Boys & Girls Club: 0.9 miles/19 minutes
Stadium District Destinations:
Wright Park: 0.5 miles/10 minutes
The Hob Nob: 0.5 miles/10 minutes
The Grand Cinema: 0.7 miles/14 minutes
Stadium Thriftway: 0.8 miles/16 minutes
Tacoma’s cinema for independent, foreign, and art films, The Grand Cinema, is just over 1/2 a mile away from 809 S M.
6th Ave Destinations:
Jason Lee Middle School: 0.6 miles/12 minutes
Bluebeard Coffee Roasters: 0.6 miles/13 minutes
MSM Deli: 0.7 miles/14 minutes
Downtown Destinations:
Pantages Theater: 0.7 miles/14 minutes
Broadway Farmers Market: 0.7 miles/14 minutes
McMenamins Elks Temple: 0.9 miles/16 minutes
Tacoma Center YMCA: 0.9 miles/18 minutes
Alma Mater: 0.9 miles/18 minutes
Open House & More Information
Come see this 3 bedroom Hilltop home in person! The Open House is a perfect time to get a feel for the layout, style, size, and location of the home, or to ask questions you may have about the property. All are welcome:
Saturday, January 18th: 12 - 2 pm
Sunday, January 19th: 12 - 2 pm
In the meantime, call or text me, Michael Duggan, at 253-226-2787. I’ll be happy to answer your questions about this Central Tacoma home, or talk to you about Tacoma and the local real estate market in general.
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