A tale of two CEOs: Boeing boss to live in Seattle, Starbucks chief to commute by jet

(The Center Square) – Two of Washington’s largest companies have new CEOs, but only one has actually moved to the Evergreen State.

Boeing named Robert K. Ortberg as its new president and CEO in August. He moved from his home in Florida to Seattle, rather than Boeing’s headquarters in Virginia.

According to King County records , Ortberg bought a $4.1 million home in Seattle’s Broadmoor community on Sept. 10. This was first reported by The Seattle Times.

Ortberg had to pay $112,580 in total taxes in purchasing the multi-million dollar property.

Ortberg’s home is subject to a total levy rate of $9.05 per $1,000 of assessed value, meaning the new Boeing CEO would pay an estimated $37,105 in property taxes per year.

The move to Seattle signals the company’s intention to improve relationships amid an ongoing strike by machinists. However, Boeing CFO Brian West announced the company would institute a hiring freeze on Monday, four days after the strike was initiated.

Starbucks hired Brian Niccol as its CEO in August around the same time as Ortberg took up the CEO role at Boeing. Unlike Ortberg, Niccol is not moving to Seattle, where Starbucks headquarters is located.

Instead, Niccol agreed to commute from his residence in Newport Beach, Calif., to Seattle via a company aircraft. Starbucks is providing Niccol with a small remote office in Newport Beach at company expense.

Niccol is subject to California’s high income tax burden rate of 13.3%, but he will avoid Washington’s 7% capital gains tax on the sale or exchange of long-term capital assets, such as stocks, bonds, and business interests above $250,000.

Ortberg is subjecting himself to the capital gains tax by moving to Seattle. As part of his contract, Ortberg will receive an award of restricted stock units valued at approximately $8 million in three annual installments.

Ortberg’s move to Seattle comes less than a year after Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos moved out of Washington. The Center Square previously reported on Bezos selling $13.5 billion worth of Amazon shares so far in 2024 since leaving Washington, saving $938 million in capital gains taxes.