Stacia Whatley StaciaSellsHomes Your Gig Harbor Realtor

Stacia Whatley - Your Gig Harbor Real Estate Expert!

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My name is Stacia Whatley and I am a REALTOR in gorgeous Gig Harbor, Washington! I currently specialize in Pierce and Kitsap Counties. Including Gig Harbor, Tacoma, Bremerton, Port Orchard and Silverdale.

Working with Hawkins-Poe Inc. and having the latest tools available to make sure your home buying or selling experience is seamless. We are a virtual office and we work anywhere we can. We do have satellite offices where we can meet if we need to. I am still able to provide you with the best customer care, but with better tools at our disposal to ensure your transaction will be done with great precision and in a timely manor.

If you are thinking about buying or selling a home in the Gig Harbor or surrounding area please let me know how I can help. I want to be your REALTOR for life!

253-426-8785

EXPERIENCE I BRING TO THE TABLE:

I have been in customer service for over 15 yrs. I enjoy every minute of knowing that I have helped someone on any given day. I am a self starter and always get the job done no matter what. I have been continuing my education by getting designations and taking classes and attending webinars. I am a firm believer that education is the key to success. If I don't have the answer to any of your questions, I will find it. I am a natural born marketing guru. I give creativity and imagination to marketing your home. I can't wait to help you sell or buy your next home.

253-426-8785

DESIGNATIONS:

A CDPE is a Certified Distressed Property Expert. I have completed this course and earned my designation. With the comprehensive training I am now capable of providing foreclosure avoidance options for homeowners. I am knowledgeable in short sales and I am able to help homeowners facing hardships in today's market.

RECENT SALES

1) 909 Hanford Ave Bremerton, WA 98310

2) 2913 Maplecrest Lane SE Port Orchard, WA 98366

3) 19609 Whiteman Cove Drive Longbranch, WA 98351

4) 5876 NW Rim View Ct, Bremerton 98312

5) 3036 Harold Dr SE, Port Orchard 98366

6) 6106 51st Street NW Gig Harbor, WA 98335

Local Information

Gig Harbor, Washington:

My local real estate market is Gig Harbor, WA and it's surrounding area's. I was born and raised in Washington State and I know almost every part of Western Washington. I love the Gig Harbor area for it's beauty, people, schools, and the water. I want to share with everyone my love for this place and in the process make everyone else fall in love with it too.

Gig Harbor is the name of both a bay on Puget Sound and a city on its shore in Pierce County, Washington, United States. The population was 7,126 at the 2010 census.

Gig Harbor is one of several cities and towns that claim to be "the gateway to the Olympic Peninsula". Due to its close access to several state and city parks, and historic waterfront that includes boutiques and fine dining, it has become a popular tourist destination. Gig Harbor is located along State Route 16, about six miles (10 km) from its origin at Interstate 5, over the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. A 1.2 billion dollar project to add a second span to the bridge was recently completed.^[3] During off-peak traffic times, Tacoma can be reached in five minutes and Seattle in just under an hour.

History

During a heavy storm in 1840, Captain Charles Wilkes brought the Captain's gig (small boat) into the harbor for protection. Later, with the publication of Wilkes 1841 Map of the Oregon Territory, he named the sheltered bay Gig Harbor.

1867 brought fisherman Samuel Jerisich to the Gig Harbor area, along with many other immigrants from Sweden, Norway, and Croatia. The town was platted in 1888 by Alfred M. Burnham.^[4]

Gig Harbor was officially incorporated on July 12, 1946. Commercial fishing, boat building, and logging dominated the economy until the construction of the first Tacoma Narrows Bridge in 1940. Until then, the primary method of transportation between Gig Harbor and the economic center of nearby Tacoma was by steamship. Starting in 1836 steamships started plying the waters of Puget Sound and quickly developed into what was eventually dubbed "The Mosquito Fleet." Gig Harbor, isolated from Tacoma and Seattle by Puget Sound and the Tacoma Narrows, could not be reached by automobile or horseback except via a very long and arduous trip south around Puget Sound and Hammersly Inlet. Unfortunately, the boom was to be short lived as the first bridge collapsed just months after it was completed. The resource demands of World War II prevented another bridge from being built until 1950. Between the time when the first bridge collapsed and when the second bridge was completed, a state run ferry service delivered drivers directly into downtown Gig Harbor. Remains of the ferry dock can still be seen just outside the mouth of the harbor at the Southeast end of Harborview Drive. The area has been turned into a small park where the public can see a panoramic view of the Cascade Mountains, Pt. Defiance, and Mt. Rainier.

After the completion of the replacement bridge in 1950, Gig Harbor and the surrounding area quickly began to develop as a suburb of neighboring Tacoma. First the area saw substantial residential development as families retreated from Tacoma in favor of the tree-lined neighborhoods and waterfront lots available on the Gig Harbor Peninsula. What had once been summer cabins became primary residences for people who commuted daily over the bridge to Tacoma. Medium sized housing development sprang up across the peninsula. The 1980s and 1990s saw substantial retail development near State Route 16 to service the growing residential population, shifting the economic center of Gig Harbor out of downtown. For some time, city leaders were unsure how to handle the growth while maintaining the character of the city. Ultimately, the city decided to aggressively annex the surrounding rural areas and convert them into high-density commercial and housing districts, forever changing the rural character of the area but assuring that little new development happens in the historic downtown area, preserving its history and charm. By the 1970s, local merchants had begun actively promoting the downtown area for its historic value, and tourism became prominent on the list of economic engines in Gig Harbor. Today, downtown Gig Harbor is a very active place for tourists with shopping, dining, and recreation on every block. The last large swath of undeveloped waterfront property at the South end of downtown, was recently developed into the headquarters of the Russell Foundation, named for George Russell, founder of Russell Financial.

Today, despite a long history of boat building, very little manufacturing exists in Gig Harbor. The only remaining boatbuilder in Gig Harbor is Gig Harbor Boatworks, which builds rowing and sailing dinghies in classic style using modern materials. Until recently, Tiderunner Boats maintained a manufacturing facility at the North end of the bay. The historic Skansie boatyard is now primarily a maintenance facility for yachts and pleasure craft. The Glein/Eddon/Gig Harbor boatyard was recently purchased by the city after spending many years sitting idle. The city intends to use it as a working waterfront museum.

Commercial fishing is still of great cultural, if somewhat lesser economic, importance to Gig Harbor, and many commercial fishing boats make Gig Harbor their home port. Most, however, do not rely on Puget Sound to gather their catch, rather, finding it more profitable to venture north to Alaska to fish in the Summer. Gig Harbor's fishing fleet still gathers the first weekend in June (during the Maritime Gig Festival) in the center of the bay for the annual Blessing of the Fleet ceremony. In recent years, due to the dwindling number of remaining fishing boats, pleasure craft have been allowed to participate in the ceremony, somewhat lessening its authenticity, but increasing its visibility and participation.

A new Tacoma Narrows Bridge has been built alongside the existing bridge and opened July 2007, doubling past capacity. With it will come new economic challenges and benefits for the city of Gig Harbor and the surrounding community.

Demographics

Historical populations CensusPop. %± 1950 803 — 1960 1,094 36.2% 1970 1,657 51.5% 1980 2,429 46.6% 1990 3,236 33.2% 2000 6,465 99.8% 2010 7,126 10.2%

As of the census of 2000,^[1] there were 6,465 people, 2,880 households, and 1,765 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,485.2 people per square mile (573.8/km²). There were 3,085 housing units at an average density of 708.7 per square mile (273.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 94.17% White, 1.11% African American, 0.63% Native American, 1.53% Asian, 0.22% Pacific Islander, 0.54% from other races, and 1.79% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.03% of the population.

There were 2,880 households out of which 25.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.0% were married couples living together, 9.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.7% were non-families. 33.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 2.75.

In the city the population was spread out with 20.3% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 23.5% from 25 to 44, 25.7% from 45 to 64, and 23.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 83.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $43,456, and the median income for a family was $57,587. Males had a median income of $46,250 versus $28,487 for females. The per capita income for the city was $28,318. About 3.5% of families and 5.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.8% of those under the age of 18 and 4.1% of those ages 65 or older.

Schools: Peninsula School District-

Welcome to the Peninsula School District located in Gig Harbor, Washington. The Peninsula School District is comprised of fifteen schools and a total of 9,222 students. Geographically, it is located across Puget Sound from the Seattle/ Tacoma area and covers a 120 square-mile area on two peninsulas. The Peninsula School District is considered one of the strongest and most innovative districts in the State of Washington.

Terry Bouck , Superintendent

Fast Facts

• There are 64 National Board Certified teachers in the district (with 17 currently going through the process).
• Our students have performed consistently above the state averages on the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) in reading, writing and mathematics at all grade levels.
• Our SAT scores in reading and mathematics are consistently higher than national averages.
• 73% of our teachers have a master's degree or higher. We currently have eight teachers/PEA members who hold doctorate degrees.
• 70 buses are on the road daily.
• 6,000 students ride the bus.
• We maintain over 1 million sq. ft. of buildings and 350 acres of school district property.
• Total payroll average end of month $5,413,627.
• Child Nutrition serves an average of 4,200 meals a day.
• 50 different community groups use our facilities, annually.
• Our 2nd grade ITBS results show that our schools are in the 78th percentile nationally in reading and the 73rd percentile nationally in math.
• We serve 50 ELL students who speak 11 different languages.
• We serve over 1,000 students with disabilities K-12 and 145 preschoolers with disabilities (3-5 years old).
• Our school nurses support 470 individual health care plans for students in our schools.

Client Testimonials

June 2, 2010

"Stacia worked diligently in making our home buying process as smooth and easy for us as possible. She was flexible, patient, and completely understanding throughout the entire time we worked with her. She made certain we found the home that was a perfect fit for us. We enjoyed working with her tremendously and would recommend her services to anyone looking to buy their future home."

Shannon Fitzgerald & Frank Richmond

“I have been fortunate to work with Stacia and provide services for her title and escrow needs. Stacia is way ahead of the game when it comes to online marketing and her knowledge and resources are a true benefit to her clients! Stacia is always professional and a pleasure to work with!” March 7, 2011

Amy Kalafatich, Senior Account Manager, The Talon Group
was a consultant or contractor to Stacia at Hawkins-Poe Inc. “I am pleased to share with others my considerable confidence in your character, abilities and perhaps most importantly your can do attitude. You are a true Real Estate Professional. You enjoy all those great personal characteristics and enhance them by constantly striving to improve yourself through advanced education. Stacia, I am proud and confident of your contribution to our team.
Hawkins Poe Inc.,
Frank Hawkins,
President
real estate services since 1946” March 14, 2011

Frank Hawkins, President, Hawkins Poe Inc
worked directly with Stacia at Hawkins-Poe Inc. “Stacia is one of the brightest and most forward thinking real estate agents I've worked with in some time. She's extremely savvy at new media and social media marketing. Stacia is very forthright, creative, professional, and takes real customer service in this new age to a higher level. She has my sincere recommendation!” April 5, 2011

René Fabre, Special Projects / New Media Marketing, The Talon Group
was with another company when working with Stacia at Hawkins-Poe Inc. “I have known Stacia for over 20 years on a personal and professional bases. I would certainly recommend her for any task where enthusiasm, hard work and trustworthiness are valued. She consistently achieves good results and delivers on all expectations., Based on my experience when working or dealing with her on a personal bases, I can unreservedly recommend Stacia Whatley.

Teri Thompson
Total Systems Construction, Inc.” March 1, 2010

Teri Thompson,
hired Stacia as a other in 2008 “Stacia shows a hight level of knowledge in matters dealing with real estate. She prides herself on providing a high level of customer service. Stacia is a strong part of the team of agents in my office. I are proud to have her working with us.” March 22, 2010

Douglas Wray, Managing Broker, REMAX Town and Country
managed Stacia at RE/MAX Town & Country Gig Harbor