Travelers at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and other U.S. airports can now keep their shoes on while going through security — no PreCheck required.

Why it matters: Passengers stopping to remove their shoes at Transportation Security Administration checkpoints can slow down lines — and most people would rather skip walking through airports in socks or bare feet, even briefly.

What's happening: The new procedures have been in effect at Sea-Tac since Monday morning, airport spokesperson Perry Cooper told Axios.

• Yesterday, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced the shoes-on policy will take effect at airports nationwide.

The big picture: This is the first time in about 20 years that general passengers can keep their shoes on, Axios' Josephine Walker reports.

What they're saying: "We expect this change will drastically decrease passenger wait times at our TSA checkpoints," Noem said in a news release yesterday.

Flashback: The TSA started the shoes-off rule at airport security checkpoints in 2006, according to CBS News. This was five years after the 9/11 attacks and a 2001 incident when a man tried to set off explosives hidden in his shoes on a flight, but was stopped by passengers and crew.

Zoom out: Passengers willing to pay $78 every five years for TSA PreCheck have been able to keep their shoes on for years, and nearly always wait less than 10 minutes, per the TSA.

The bottom line: The next time you fly, you don't have to worry about ease of shoe removal — or the state of your socks.

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Fewer houses in the Seattle area are getting snatched up by institutional investors compared with a year ago, according to real estate data firm ATTOM.

Why it matters: Investors' pulling back could mean less competition for first-time homebuyers as they try to enter the pricey local real estate market.

By the numbers: In the Seattle metropolitan area, the share of homes sold to institutional investors dropped from 6.4% in the first quarter of 2024 to 4.9% in the same period this year, per ATTOM data shared with Axios.

• Washington state as a whole saw as similar decline: from 5.9% of homes sold to investors last year to 4.8% this year.

The fine print: ATTOM defined an institutional investor as a non-lending entity that bought at least 10 properties in a calendar year.

Zoom out: Nationwide, the total number of homes sold to institutional investors in the first quarter of 2025 was the lowest since 2020.

What we're watching: Whether slowing investor purchases in Seattle and Washington will translate into a break for local homebuyers.

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⚖️ "Belltown Hellcat" driver Miles Hudson, who was recently convicted of reckless driving after posting a video of himself speeding through Seattle in his modified Dodge Charger, was sentenced this week to a year in jail.

• He'll only have to serve 30 days if he follows multiple conditions set by the court, such as limiting what he posts on social media. (Seattle Times)

💰 The federal government is proposing to charge foreign tourists additional fees to access some national parks. (Washington State Standard)

🍽️ The Whale Wins, the James Beard-award winning spot from local restaurateur Renee Erickson, will close its doors permanently in October. (Eater Seattle)

Charles Mitchell, who served 16 years as president of Seattle Central College and was a star football player at the University of Washington, has died at 85. (Seattle Times)

Scores of tiny earthquakes rattled Mount Rainier this week, marking the largest swarm of earthquakes at the mountain since 2009, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Why it matters: Even though scientists say there's no immediate cause for alarm, the uptick in seismic activity below what USGS calls the Cascade Range's "most dangerous volcano" has researchers and locals taking note.

Driving the news: More than 100 small earthquakes — sometimes several within a single minute — were recorded at depths of one to four miles below Rainier's peak starting around 1:30am yesterday, according to the Pacific Northwest Seismic Center.

The bottom line: Despite the flurry, officials say the volcano alert level remains at normal.

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Time to put your sleuthing skills to the test with our latest riddle in rhyme.

A ceiling with old-world appeal,

Its patterns and plaster conceal

A time when this place,

Had elegance, grace,

And journeys began with great zeal.

Hit reply if you know where we are.