When people hear "relocation concierge," they usually picture someone who hands you a list of apartments and wishes you luck. What I actually do looks nothing like that. It starts before you've looked at a single listing, and it doesn't end when you sign a lease or close on a home.

I've been helping people relocate to Seattle for over 15 years. In that time I've worked with thousands of renters, first-time buyers, corporate transferees, and families starting over in a city they've never lived in. The one thing they all have in common when they first reach out: they don't know what they don't know. That's exactly where I come in.

It Starts With One Question

The first thing I ask every new client isn't "what's your budget" or "which neighborhood are you interested in." It's: why are you moving?

The answer tells me almost everything. If it's for work, we talk about where that job is and what the commute looks like from different parts of the city. That gives me a radius. If you're coming for Amazon, Microsoft, a research institution, or any of the other major employers in the area, your commute profile shapes your neighborhood options immediately. If you're moving for personal reasons (a relationship, a lifestyle change, a fresh start), the conversation goes a different direction.

From there I ask about lifestyle and vibe. Do you want to walk everywhere or are you okay with a bike or bus commute? Do you want nightlife close by or quiet evenings? Do you have kids, pets, a preference for a certain kind of neighborhood energy? Are you drawn to urban density or something that feels more residential?

Once I have a picture of who you are and how you live, I start matching you to neighborhoods. I explain each area honestly: what it offers, what it doesn't, who tends to love it and who tends to regret choosing it. Then I ask what sounds right and we focus from there.

This is the part that surprises people most. They expect to come to me with a neighborhood already chosen. Instead, we figure it out together before a single property is identified.

For Buyers: Strategy, Process, and Someone in Your Corner

Buying in Seattle is a different kind of engagement, and one I take seriously. I'm a Certified Negotiation Expert (CNE) and Certified Buyer Agent Expert (CBAE), and I've helped clients buy and sell over 111 properties across Seattle and the greater area.

I work with a lot of first-time homebuyers, and my approach with them is intentional. Before we look at a single listing, I like to sit down in person. I have a buyer's guide I walk clients through, covering the purchasing process step by step, what to expect in Seattle's market, how offers work, what competitive looks like right now, and what questions to ask before falling in love with a property.

That meeting also gives us a chance to see if we're a good fit for each other. Buying a home is a high-stakes, often emotional process. I want my clients to feel confident in how I work before we're standing in someone's kitchen making decisions.

From there, I set clients up on RealScout so they're seeing live listings matched to their criteria, and we schedule time to start walking properties together. When the right one comes along, my negotiation background and knowledge of how Seattle's purchase contracts work means you have someone in your corner who knows how to position an offer and protect your interests.

I also work with sellers. My insight into what relocation buyers are looking for, what they prioritize, what they'll pay for, and what they'll walk away from, That gives my seller clients a genuine edge in how we price, prepare, and market their homes.

For Renters: A Guided Search, Not a List

Once we know where you want to be, my team gets to work. We research from our internal database of hundreds of rental properties, plus vacancy websites, property management companies, and the Northwest Multiple Listing Service. We contact properties to confirm availability and fit, build a personalized list of results, and send it to you 5 to 7 days before your tour date.

Then we pick you up.

In-person rental tours are a guided experience. We escort you to as many properties as possible during your allotted time, give you honest feedback on each one, and help you think through the tradeoffs in real time. Virtual tours are also available for clients who can't make it to Seattle before committing. We tour your top choices on your behalf and send you video walkthroughs and detailed feedback.

After the tour, we don't disappear. We follow up, answer questions, help you understand your lease agreement, and stay with you until you've secured your home.

For independent rental clients, the service fee is $395 for apartment tours and $495 for condo, house, and townhome tours. Clients who come through a corporate relocation partner typically have their fees covered through that relationship.

More details on rental services are at seattlerentalgroup.com/for-renters.

The Corporate Side

A significant part of my work comes through corporate relocation partnerships. Companies bring me in to help their employees find housing when they're transferring to Seattle, often on tight timelines and from cities they're leaving in a hurry. I've worked with employees relocating from organizations including Microsoft, Amazon, T-Mobile, Starbucks, Allen Institute, Boeing, Nintendo, and Kiewit, managing the search process so the employee can focus on the transition itself.

If your company is relocating employees to Seattle and doesn't yet have a relocation specialist in place, that's a conversation worth having.

What Makes This Different

I moved to Seattle in 1999 and have spent over 25 years getting to know this city from the inside. I know the neighborhoods not just from data but from thousands of conversations with clients who loved where they landed and a handful who wished they'd gone somewhere else. That depth of local knowledge is what I bring to every search.

I've been recognized as a Seattle Five Star Real Estate Agent multiple times and have earned over 80 five-star Google reviews. People describe me as calm under pressure and honest, sometimes more honest than they expected. I will tell you when a neighborhood isn't right for you, when a property isn't worth the price, and when you should wait rather than rush.

If you're relocating to Seattle and want someone who has done this thousands of times and will treat your move like it matters, reach out at KimReidy.com. The first conversation is always free.