Welcome to
Eastside Pulse.

Welcome to Eastside Pulse. I am Cody Fagnant, a real estate broker with Every Door Real Estate, and this is my attempt to put our communities in one place every Thursday: a local business worth knowing, what the cities are planning and building, and what the housing data is telling us. We begin in Bellevue. Glad you are here.

01 · The local spotlight

A night out where you make the dinner.

At Taste Buds Kitchen, Marta and Connor are making room for the kind of connection they wanted more of themselves.

Photos courtesy of Taste Buds Kitchen. Class image supplied by the brand.

Before opening Taste Buds Kitchen, Marta Masferrer spent years telling brand stories in marketing and video production. She wanted more time connecting with people in person. She and her husband, Connor Kirsch, found their answer in a kitchen.

The Bellevue couple opened their cooking studio in September at Kelsey Creek Shopping Center, minutes from home. Finding the right space took a few years. Staying in their own community mattered. They wanted a place where a parent and child, a couple on a date, or a group of coworkers could put their phones down and make something together.

“Some of the best memories are made around the kitchen table.”

Marta Masferrer, co-owner

Your first class: expect to cook, not just watch. Instructors guide you through the recipe, and beginners are welcome. Ingredients, equipment, and cleanup are covered. Adult classes end with everyone sitting down to enjoy the meal they made.

Pick your company: a date, a friend, or your kids. Marta points to adult evenings with menus like handmade pasta and sushi, Saturday Caregiver & Me classes for ages 2–8, and Sunday family cooking. Gingerbread house decorating is also on the holiday lineup.

What caught my attention is how naturally this fits into everyday life here. It gives families and friends another reason to get together, with a meal and a new skill to take home. I love cooking, so this one is on my list to try.

Find it: 15015 Main Street, Suite 109, Bellevue.
Check the current calendar for menus, ages, prices, and availability.

Taste Buds Kitchen’s class calendar

02 · Your weekend

Halloween on Main Street.

Costumes for the kids. Coffee for you. An afternoon in Old Bellevue.

Little Monsters on Main Street brings free trick-or-treating to Old Bellevue on Saturday, October 31, from 1–3 p.m. Local merchants will welcome families with candy and treats.

Come early for lunch, then let the kids make their rounds. If there’s still energy afterward, head toward Meydenbauer Bay Park for a waterfront walk before the evening’s Halloween plans begin.

03 · A little perspective on real estate

More homes to choose from. A closer look at price.

Knowing a place also means understanding how it’s changing. Here’s what Bellevue’s September housing numbers tell us.

View all 10 city markets →

September 2026 · Bellevue residential homes, excluding condos

Bellevue had about 53% more residential homes for sale than a year earlier. At the same time, the median sale price rose about 8%. More inventory and a higher median can exist together. The mix of homes that sells affects the median, so it doesn’t tell us how much any one home’s value changed.

The median sale closed at 95.2% of its original asking price. That points to a gap between initial expectations and final results across the homes that sold. It doesn’t mean every seller will accept the same discount.

My take: choice is the story worth watching. Buyers have a larger pool of homes to compare. Sellers have more competition for attention. Understanding a particular home means looking at its price, condition, location, and the alternatives nearby.

Source: NWMLS® / InfoSparks © 2026 ShowingTime. September 2026 compared with September 2025. Figures rounded; residential and condominium data reported separately. Medians describe the homes sold, not an individual property’s appreciation.

04 · A question for homeowners

Could your lot offer more possibilities?

HB 1110: can I build more homes on my lot?

I get this question a lot. Washington’s middle housing law has opened up more options, but the answer still depends on the property.

Bellevue adopted its changes in June 2025. The city’s summary explains that the state requirements allow four homes per lot, or six within a quarter-mile walk of a major transit stop or when two homes meet affordability requirements. Housing types include townhouses, cottages, and stacked flats.

That doesn’t mean six homes will fit on every lot. Setbacks, building height, lot coverage, parking rules, and other site requirements still matter. ADUs are part of the picture too, with related changes under HB 1337; they can count toward the allowed total.

My advice: before buying a property for its development potential or assuming yours is worth more, confirm the current rules for that specific address with the city. Then look at what can fit and what it would cost.

You don’t have to change anything about your existing home. These rules create options for owners who want to explore them.

Have a property in mind? Let’s talk →

Rules differ by city; this is a Bellevue overview, not a determination for a particular lot.

One more thing Bellevue is working on.

The city is putting together a set of pre-approved designs for backyard cottages and small detached homes. Owners will be able to buy a plan at a set price instead of starting from scratch, which should make permits faster and cheaper. The city is asking residents what these homes should look like, and the survey is open now. If a cottage on your lot has ever crossed your mind, this is worth five minutes.

Take the city's survey

A note from Cody.

When my family moved here from Seattle in 2021, we didn't fully understand what community would mean to us. Now we have neighbors we count as lifelong friends and familiar faces we look forward to seeing around town.

I spent 12 years at Zillow, where the work was understanding what mattered to people about home. Today I am a real estate broker, and I see those decisions up close. People are choosing a home, but they are also choosing how they want to spend their days.

That is why I started this. Each Thursday, one community: a local business worth knowing, what the cities are planning and building, and what the housing data is telling us. We begin in Bellevue.

I'm glad you're here at the beginning.
— Cody Fagnant, Real Estate Broker & Publisher