F&L Consulting was founded by Alex Milkie, who was born into the Seattle real estate market.
Alex has real estate in his blood. The name Milkie means “landowner” in Arabic. Alex’s great-grandfather, George Milkie, owned land in his native Lebanon when he moved to Seattle in 1912. He held onto that land his entire life and owning land gave George options unavailable to other immigrants without such overseas resources. This lesson was not lost on George’s family.
As a boy, Fred, George’s son and Alex’s grandfather, worked selling newspapers on the corner of 5th and Broad. He was accepted to the University of Washington where he received a degree in finance and economics. To earn money for college, Fred spent his summers working at Mount Rainier, where he learned a passion for climbing and fell in love with the mountain. After serving as a naval officer in World War II. Fred began a career with Puget Sound Power and Light. Shortly thereafter his life took a dramatic turn when, because of his business degree and officer training, he was invited to come back to Mount Rainier to become the manager of the Inn at Paradise. It was while working at Mount Rainier that Fred developed his passion for photography. Fred felt a need to convey to others the majesty of Mount Rainier National Park. When the GI Bill was enacted, Fred went back to school and earned a degree in photography.
Fred dreamed of opening a commercial photography business and was sure the growing city of Seattle was the place to do it. With his life savings, a loan from his father, and the support of his wife, Louise, Fred saved enough money to open a photography business. As a talented photographer with a background in economics, Fred was able to build Milkie Studio, Inc. into an incredibly lucrative business and carve out a name for himself as one of the premier photographers on the West Coast.
As Fred’s success in photography grew, he began investing in commercial real estate. In 1962, after a series of lucrative purchases and sales of studio sites, Fred was able to buy nearly an entire block on Capitol Hill and build Milkie Studio, Inc., the largest commercial photography studio on the West Coast. He was even able to purchase the corner across the street from the Space Needle where he had sold newspapers in his youth.
Following George and Fred’s lead, the Milkie family continued to invest in real estate. Alex grew up cleaning up around their commercial properties on Capitol Hill and digging up ferns on their undeveloped properties in Issaquah. Alex knows Greater Seattle real estate because his life has been spent in it.
Since graduating from law school in 2007, Alex has been a leading voice in the Milkie family’s drive to exchange underperforming assets for newer, more stable investments. Alex now offers his advice and experience to other clients who benefit from his wealth of knowledge, broad experience, and deep insight into the Seattle real estate market.
