Seattle, WA
‘We’re locked in’: Spike agrees with housing freeze claims
Interest rates have fallen to 6.17%, the lowest since October 2024, but the rates remain considerably higher than post-pandemic levels, when they reached below 3%.
Jake Skorheim and Spike O’Neil, hosts of “The Jake and Spike Show” on KIRO Newsradio, detailed the potential “housing freeze” on the market that is caused by raised interest rates and homeowners being less likely to move due to immediate monthly payment increases if they were to secure a current interest rate.
“Sometimes in life you just get lucky when you’re buying a house, and my wife and I were one of those people who bought at a time when interest rates were historically low,” Jake said. “Now you’re seeing basically a freeze in the housing market. Even though the rates are dropping slightly, people are not willing to sell their homes, get out of a favorable 3-or 4% interest rate, and basically double their monthly payment.”
Spike explained how he is inadvertently participating in the housing freeze, even though his family wishes to downsize to a new home, but higher interest rates have contributed to the decision to stay at home.
“To your point about being frozen, you know, we’d love to downsize because the maintenance is a lot on our 3,800-square-foot home, it’s a lot of space,” Spike said. “We’d love to downsize, but we’re locked in on a pretty great interest rate for our home. We’ve been there a little over 20 years now.”
Watch the full discussion in the video above.
Listen to “The Jake and Spike Show” weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio 97.3 FM. Subscribe to the podcast here.
Seattle, WA
Seattle Mariners announce 3 new hires to 2026 coaching staff
The Seattle Mariners announced their 2026 major league coaching staff on Friday morning, which includes a trio of new hires.
The Mariners hired Carlos Cardoza as their third base coach, former M’s catcher Austin Nola as their bullpen coach and Jake McKinley as their major league field coordinator.
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Cardoza replaces Kristopher Negron, who was hired as the Pittsburgh Pirates’ bench coach. Nola replaces Tony Arnerich, who was hired as the Cleveland Guardians’ bench coach. McKinley replaces Louis Boyd, who is transitioning to Seattle’s assistant director of player development.
The rest of manager Dan Wilson’s staff remains the same following the club’s deepest playoff run in franchise history.
Senior director of hitting strategy Edgar Martinez, hitting coach Kevin Seitzer and assistant hitting coach Bobby Magallanes are back in the same roles for their second season together.
Seattle’s highly successful pitching brain trust also remains intact, with director of pitching strategy Trent Blank, pitching coach Pete Woodworth and assistant pitching coach Danny Farquhar all returning to their same roles.
Bench coach Manny Acta, first base coach Eric Young Jr. and longtime infield coach Perry Hill are back as well.
Cardoza spent the previous nine seasons as a manager in the Texas Rangers’ farm system, including the past three seasons as Double-A Frisco’s skipper. He managed Frisco to an 84-54 record in 2024, which was the best regular-season win percentage in club history. Following that season, he was named the organization’s 2024 Bobby Jones Player Development Man of the Year.
Nola is joining the coaching ranks after a six-year career as an MLB catcher with the Mariners (2019-20), the San Diego Padres (2020-23) and the Colorado Rockies (2025).
Nola made his MLB debut with Seattle in 2019 and then batted .306 over the first 29 games of the COVID-shortened 2020 season. He was then dealt to the Padres as part of a seven-player trade that sent two-time All-Star closer Andrés Muñoz, first baseman Ty France, catcher Luis Torrens and outfielder Taylor Trammel to the Mariners.
McKinley spent the past three seasons as the University of Nevada’s head coach. This past season, he guided the Wolf Pack to the Mountain West Conference regular-season title and was named the league’s coach of the year.
Prior to that, McKinley spent three years working in player development for the Milwaukee Brewers, including 2021 as their vice president of player development. In addition, he was the head coach at Menlo College (2014-17) and William Jessup (2018).
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Seattle, WA
Capitol Hill businesses on edge with 11 break-ins reported in just one week
SEATTLE — A rash of destructive burglaries in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood has several businesses fed up.
The Seattle Police Department’s Crime Dashboard, as of Dec. 4, shows 11 reports of break-ins and burglaries on Capitol Hill over a seven-day period, and 30 reports for the entire East Precinct that also includes Central Area, First Hill, Judkins Park, Madison Park, Montlake, and the upper Pike/Pine neighborhood.
Some of the crimes happened earlier, but they are only now being reported. Many workers in the neighborhood did not want to talk on camera but told KOMO News they feel frustrated and, at times, helpless.
Security footage captures a burglar making a beeline for the Ox Burger restaurant’s cash drawer, getting in and out of the busted front door in seconds. The popular restaurant off Madison and 16th Avenue is using insurance to pay for a new entrance. A worker told KOMO News they do plan to use a city grant to upgrade security, and what happened is not surprising to some neighbors.
“It’s obviously frustrating to them. They have to clean it up, and it creates a situation on their hands,” Noah Boggess said.
It’s one example in a string of reported incidents. Taped to the front door of Cone and Steiner General Store off 19th and Mercer is a plea to ward off potential burglars. The sign reads “ATM has been emptied, cameras have been updated, pretty please don’t rob us.”
“When I first went in there, it made me chuckle, but even more, obviously, it just made me feel bad that something happened,” Boggess added.
Customer Eric Miyake said the same message led him to support the business.
“Are you concerned about property crime in the area?” KOMO’s Jackie Kent asked.
“I am,” Miyake responded. “This is a great area, and I don’t want to see it vandalized like that.”
A half mile away in the 500 block of Broadway East, La Cocina has boarded up a window and set up chicken wire for added security. The general manager, off camera, said two people broke in on Nov. 23 using rocks and restaurant tables, and got away with arms full of liquor bottles. He’s getting $800 from the city through the Storefront Repair Fund, he said, with hopes to avoid becoming a repeat target.
For Seattle businesses to qualify for the grants, the damage had to have happened after July 2024, and the grants do not cover graffiti or lost or stolen property. The Storefront Repair Fund covers costs for up to three incidents per business for things like doors, locks, and broken or etched windows.
KOMO News asked the Office of Economic Development how many businesses have taken advantage of those grants in 2025 and which neighborhoods needed them the most. The office said it expects to have those answers in the coming days. SPD’s general investigation unit is looking into these reported burglaries and break-ins.
The Greater Seattle Business Association in an email to KOMO News wrote these crimes the past few weeks are concerning, but the group reports the overall number of break-ins and burglaries on Capitol Hill have decreased when compared to the last two years. They’re working with the city to get business repair grants and assess crime prevention through environmental design to help mitigate burglaries.
“We are continuing to build and maintain our partnerships with various city departments and the new East Precinct leadership to serve our community.,” GSBA Spokesperson Jen Carl wrote. “We look forward to working with the new mayor Katie Wilson and her staff, along with the new Position 9 councilmember Dionne Foster, to continue our public safety efforts.”
Seattle, WA
Social In Seattle: A December to remember
SEATTLE — There’s a little something for everyone this holiday season.
From the timeless traditions, like the Nutcracker and a Christmas Carole, to family-friendly fun with “Elf” to a Pacific Northwest staple, like the Christmas Ship festival.
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KOMO News Anchor Holly Menino interviews Seattle Arts Commissioner Linda Lowry about some of the events happening this December.
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