About half of homes sold in the Seattle area last year went for less than their original asking price — although not by much.

The big picture: Nationwide, people who can afford to buy homes are scoring some of the best deals in years, Axios' Sami Sparber writes. In Seattle, though, the savings have been more modest.

By the numbers: Among Seattle-area homeowners who snagged a home for under list price last year, the typical discount was 5.7% — the smallest savings among the top 50 metros, according to Redfin.

• 49.6% of Seattle-area homes sold below their original list price in 2025, compared to about 62% of homes nationally.
• The Seattle area's median starting list price — $848,000 — also ranked seventh-highest nationally, trailing only San Jose, San Francisco and four other California metros.

What they're saying: Today's market is giving buyers more room to negotiate, Redfin senior economist Asad Khan wrote this month.

• "Homebuyers in 2026 shouldn't write off homes that are slightly above their budget because there's a good chance they'll get some sort of concession from the seller, be it a price cut, money toward closing costs or funds for repairs," Khan said.
• "This marks a reversal from the pandemic homebuying frenzy, when house hunters were advised to search for homes below their budget because fierce bidding wars were causing properties to sell far above the asking price."

The bottom line: Buying in Seattle is still expensive — but at least the era of runaway bidding wars is starting to cool.

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Pike Place Market has added a new neon sign to greet visitors coming from Seattle's newly renovated waterfront promenade.

Why it matters: It's the first new large neon sign the market has added in nearly 100 years, according to the Pike Place Market Preservation and Development Authority.

• The sign is mounted on the side of a parking garage and elevator tower across from the Seattle Aquarium's Ocean Pavilion.

What they're saying: "Standing 16 feet tall and mounted almost six stories high, the sign is now visible to drivers, ferry riders, and visitors on the Waterfront," the development authority posted on X.

Yes, but: Don't fret — the old neon signs in the central market area aren't going anywhere, so no classic photo-ops will be harmed.

• "We didn't remove our historic sign," the market authority posted on X. "We only added a new sign to welcome visitors coming from the waterfront."

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🎤 Ani DiFranco, Maren Morris and Pavement are among the acts set to perform at Woodland Park Zoo's annual summer concert series. (KING 5)

📈 Amazon has surpassed Walmart as the world's largest company by sales, boosted by growth in its cloud computing division. (KUOW)

Family and friends are mourning Lilliana Moreno, a 27-year-old pedestrian struck and killed by a driver in Capitol Hill on Feb. 16.

• A memorial with notes and flowers sprang up last week at the East Pine Street intersection where she was hit. (Capitol Hill Seattle Blog)

⚽️ Fan celebrations tied to this summer's FIFA World Cup won't be limited to Seattle Center — fan zones are also planned at Waterfront Park, Pacific Place and Victory Hall in SoDo. (Seattle Times)

The tariffs overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court last week cost Washington importers an estimated $2.5 billion over 11 months, a new analysis finds.

• That's the 17th highest impact among states — although it's likely an undercount, according to the economic research firm Trade Partnership Worldwide.
• The firm's analysis doesn't include the financial impact of other tariffs that remain in place after the court's ruling, such as those on steel and aluminum.

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Our mystery photo from last week showcased a public artwork installed outside a fire station in Phinney Ridge.

The tall rock stack with glowing glass bands was designed by artist Perri Howard. It can be found on the corner of Greenwood Avenue North and North 73rd Street.

Congratulations to readers Dan D., Lance D., Judi C., Linda G., Nicole L., David R. and Sarah S.! You got this one right, despite my best efforts at trying to stump you.