You’re driving through Montlake, one of Seattle’s posh, tree-lined neighborhoods, and you see it. At first, you think it’s a shed. Or maybe a very long, very thin garage? Then you realize there’s a front door. And curtains. People actually live there. We are talking about the spite house Seattle Washington locals have obsessed over for decades, a home that is—quite literally—too narrow to believe until you’re standing right in front of it.
It’s tiny.
At its widest point, the house is about 15 feet across. At its narrowest? A mere 55 inches. That is less than five feet wide. You could probably stand in the hallway and touch both walls without even fully extending your arms. It sits on a tiny sliver of land at 2022 24th Ave E, looking like a architectural glitch in an otherwise uniform neighborhood of Craftsman homes and Tudor revivals. But this isn't some modern "tiny home" trend or a minimalist experiment. This house was built out of pure, unadulterated pettiness.
What really happened with the Montlake Spite House?
The lore surrounding this place is thick. If you ask ten different Seattleites why it exists, you’ll get ten different stories. Most of them involve a messy divorce. The most popular version of the legend says that back in 1925, a judge awarded a man the family home and gave his ex-wife the "front yard." Enraged by the perceived insult, she supposedly built this narrow slice of a house just to block his view and ruin his property value.
It’s a great story. It feels human. It feels like the kind of thing someone would do in the heat of a 1920s legal battle.
However, property records and historical deep dives suggest something a bit more pragmatic, though no less "spiteful." The most credible version involves a neighbor making a lowball offer. In 1925, the owner of the main adjacent property reportedly offered the owner of this tiny, triangular slice of land a pittance—some say as low as $10—thinking the lot was too small to ever be useful. The owner of the sliver, a builder named William Leister, basically said "watch me" and jammed a habitable structure onto the 3,000-square-foot footprint. He didn't build it to live in; he built it to prove he could, and perhaps to annoy the neighbor who tried to fleece him.
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The physics of living in 55 inches
How do you actually fit a life into the spite house Seattle Washington has made famous? It’s not just a hallway with a roof. It’s a two-bedroom, two-bathroom house (if you count the finished basement).
Walking inside is a trip. Because the lot is pie-shaped, the house isn't a rectangle. It’s a wedge.
The kitchen is surprisingly functional, but you aren't hosting a Thanksgiving dinner for twenty people in there. Everything is custom. You have to be. Standard appliances don't always play nice with walls that are closing in on you. The living room feels somewhat normal because it occupies the "wide" end of the wedge, but as you move toward the back of the house, the walls start to tighten. By the time you get to the primary bedroom, you’re basically sleeping in a luxury hallway.
One former owner mentioned that they had to buy a specific size of mattress and essentially "wedge" it into the room. If you’re claustrophobic, this is your nightmare. If you’re a fan of cozy, ship-like living, it’s a dream.
Why it’s more than just a novelty
Architecture in Seattle usually follows a pattern: expensive, modern, or historic. The Spite House is all three, but it’s also a middle finger preserved in amber. It represents a time before modern zoning laws would have laughed this project out of the permit office. Today, you couldn't build this. The setbacks alone would eat up the entire lot.
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It’s a survivor.
The house has sold multiple times over the last century. In 2014, it went for nearly $400,000. By 2016, it was listed for over $500,000. It turns out that people will pay a premium to live inside a piece of local history, even if they have to turn sideways to pass their spouse in the hall. It’s become a landmark for the Montlake neighborhood, a waypoint for tourists, and a constant reminder that Seattlites have been passive-aggressive (or just plain aggressive) since the city was founded.
Seeing the house for yourself
If you're planning to swing by, remember that this is a private residence. Don't be the person peeking through the windows.
- Location: It's right on the corner of 24th Ave E and E Boston St.
- Parking: Street parking in Montlake is a contact sport. Be prepared to walk a block or two.
- Photography: The best angle is from across the street on 24th, looking north. This really highlights how the house tapers down to almost nothing.
- Timing: Go during the day to see the details, but the house looks particularly "storybook-creepy" at dusk when the interior lights are on.
Many people confuse this with other "tiny" houses in the city, but the spite house Seattle Washington enthusiasts point to is always the Montlake Wedge. There’s another famous one in the Central District—a tiny yellow house—but it lacks the sheer architectural "how is this standing" energy of the Montlake one.
What we can learn from architectural pettiness
Honestly, the Spite House is a masterclass in spatial awareness. It’s a reminder that "unusable" land is only unusable if you lack imagination (or a grudge). While the "divorce house" story might be more myth than reality, the fact that the legend persists tells us something about Seattle. We love a good underdog story, especially when that underdog is a tiny house sticking it to a wealthy neighbor.
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It’s also a weirdly functional piece of real estate. In a city where housing prices are astronomical, the Spite House proves that you don't need 3,000 square feet to have a home with character. You just need a front door, a roof, and enough room to fit a skinny bed.
If you're a student of urban design, the Montlake Spite House is a case study in "non-conforming use." It challenges the idea that every lot must be a perfect square and every home must follow a template. It’s weird. It’s narrow. It’s tucked away in a corner of the city that usually prides itself on being "proper." And yet, it’s one of the most photographed buildings in the Pacific Northwest.
Moving forward with your Seattle exploration
If you're obsessed with the weird side of Seattle real estate, don't stop at Montlake.
- Check out the Pike Place Market's hidden levels—there are shops tucked into corners that make the Spite House look spacious.
- Visit the Dover Apartments in North Capitol Hill to see how 1920s luxury handled small footprints.
- Research the "Old Seattle" underground tours to see the city's literal foundations.
- Look into current "Small Lot" zoning in Seattle to see how modern builders are trying (and often failing) to replicate the efficiency of the Spite House.
The Montlake Spite House isn't going anywhere. It’s been through earthquakes, the Great Depression, and the tech boom. It stands as a monument to the fact that in Seattle, if you have a small piece of land and a big enough point to prove, you can build something that lasts a century.