Portland Real Estate

Nob Hill Real Estate: Closings YTD

Jason Lucas — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 22:34:01 +0000

The NW Portland Real Estate market is off to a decent start in 2010 thanks mostly to steady condo sales. In Nob Hill there have been 20 closed sales through the first 2 months of 2010 with 16 of those being condo properties. This figure is pretty consistent with the overall ratio of condo to single-family homes on the market at any given time. One interesting fact about the properties sold this year is that more than half of them have sold for under $300K. This may surprise a lot of people given the desirability of the area combined with it’s historically high prices relative to the rest of the city’s close-in neighborhoods.

Overall, it’s a great sign that so many properties have sold so far this year. With all of the uncertainty surrounding the Portland real estate market in general, it’s reassuring to know that properties are still moving in the core neighborhoods. It’s especially nice to know that first-time buyers also have options in the area given the new lower prices.

Milwaukie Farmhouse – New Listing

admin — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 01:03:03 +0000

Open house Sunday, March 7 – 11am to 2pm

10032 SE 70TH AVE Milwaukie, OR 97222 – MLS 10015059

View Listing on Map

View Listing Detail

For more info or to view the property please call – Alicia Selliken 971-570-4403

Beds: 3

Baths: 1.0

SqFt: 1344

YrBlt: 1920

Remodeled farmhouse GEM on quiet street. Updated kitchen & bathroom, new hardwood floors & carpeting, new paint throughout. Kitchen boasts stainless appliances, gas stove, granite & subway tile. High ceilings, crown molding & cozy sun porch. Outbuilding in the backyard could be used for studio, workshop, or storage. Over-sized yard is a gardener’s dream. Near Trader Joe’s, I-205, Clack-A-MAX & Spring Water Corridor Trail.

Panoramic Gallery

Still Picture Gallery

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Portland City Center: Single Family Homes

Jason Lucas — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 18:20:53 +0000

The Portland City Center area is well known for the thousands of condo and loft properties. There are dozens of buildings, new and old, with something to offer just about every home owner. However, Portland City Center is also a unique area as far as metropolitan “downtowns” go in that there are lots of single family homes as well. Prices vary, and can quickly escalate into the millions. But there are generally between 50-80 single family homes in the City Center neighborhoods at any time priced below $1M. Take a look at the current map of Portland City Center homes under $1 million.

All Active Single Family MLS Listings in Portland City Center

Video of Amazing Deck & Views at 937 Condos

Jason Lucas — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 18:00:09 +0000

Search all Pearl District Condos for Sale

The 937 Condos in the Pearl District are really impressive in almost every way. Cutting edge design, over-the-top finishes, modern living redefined. However, when it comes to the decks on some of the units, they can be somewhere between exciting and down-right intimidating.

Check out this video of Garron and I out on one of them on the 14th floor. It doesn’t seem like that big of deal until you walk out on to them. Then you realize it’s like you’re standing on a diving board. Compound that with the fact that railing is minimal and the surround is glass so you literally feel like you’re just standing out over the street! They’re absolutely incredible and completely fit the building’s character.

Pearl District – 937 Condos

Jason Lucas — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 20:49:19 +0000

Search all Pearl District Condos for Sale

The 937 in the Pearl District is a dramatic 16 story building occupying half of a block on NW Glisan between NW 9th & NW 10th that was completed in 2008. The exterior of the 937 is a fractal design that is unique to the building and absolutely unlike any other in the city. The condo interiors are simple and modern with high quality finishes and appliances. The floor plans are open concept and unit sizes range from around 900 square feet for studios/1bedrooms, to more than 2500 square feet for penthouses.

Beyond being celebrated aesthetically, the building was also awarded the LEED Gold designation for it’s innovative approach to energy conservation. There are 114 residential units on floors 2-16 of the building. The first floor has several thousand square feet of retail space and sits directly on the Portland Streetcar line. The 937 also features a controlled access lobby, concierge, and secure underground parking for residents.

Title: Pearl District - 937 Interior
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Title: Pearl District - 937 Deck
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937 Condos For Sale

Pearl District Condo Previewing

Jason Lucas — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 01:31:16 +0000

Today, Garron and I went out and previewed a few condos in the Pearl District for a client of mine. It was a beautiful sunny day so we just walked over from our office and shot a handful of videos along the way. There are a couple where we’re discussing Portland real estate in general, others shot inside of various Pearl District condos, and a couple of random videos of whatever we happened to come across or felt like rambling about… Enjoy!

Search all Pearl District Condos for Sale

1 - 20 of 20 active listings.

9090635 $818,950

Active

Beds:2 Baths:2.0
Condo

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9087069 $549,000

Active

Beds:1 Baths:2.0
Condo

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9033327 $868,000

Active

Beds:2 Baths:2.0
Condo

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Title: Pearl District - Walking West side
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Title: Pearl District - Lockboxes
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Title: Pearl District - Grocery Stores
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Title: Pearl District - Edge Lofts
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Title: Pearl District - Condos & Rentals
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Title: Pearl District - Block 90 Exterior
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Portland, OR Top 10 Most Expensive Homes

Jason Lucas — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 04:59:28 +0000

So, there are literally 1000’s of homes for sale in the Portland Metro area. Among them you can find a lot of vintage, a handful of bizarre, plenty of McMansions, and a few that are in a league of their own. I looked all over the Portland Metro area to find the most incredibly priced homes and I was honestly a little surprised to find that the minimum buy-in to the Top 10 most expensive Portland addresses was currently just under $2Million! Ok, enough with the build-up. For the Winter 2010 list of the Top 10 Most Expensive homes in the Portland Metro area, I present to you the following!

Interactive Map of Portland’s 10 Most Expensive Homes Listings

1 - 9 of 9 active listings.

10018762 $7,850,000

Active

Beds:5 Baths:6.3
Residential - Detached

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9046098 $3,998,850

Active

Beds:3 Baths:3.2
Residential - Detached

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9071045 $3,885,850

Active

Beds:5 Baths:4.1
Residential - Detached

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10006568 $3,500,000

Active

Beds:5 Baths:4.3
Residential - Detached

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10009785 $3,400,000

Active

Beds:6 Baths:8.1
Residential - Detached

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10016226 $2,758,500

Active

Beds:6 Baths:5.0
Residential - Detached

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9075338 $2,750,000

Active

Beds:4 Baths:3.1
Residential - Detached

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9080563 $2,450,000

Active

Beds:5 Baths:4.2
Residential - Detached

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9075305 $2,225,000

Active

Beds:6 Baths:5.3
Residential - Detached

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Pearl District: Million $ Luxury Condos

Jason Lucas — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 20:59:00 +0000

Homes for sale in the Pearl District range from small and simple, to grand and excessive. It wasn’t so long ago that the $1 Million threshold was viewed almost as the ‘minimum’ to get into the luxury units and/or buildings. Well, gone are the days (at least temporarily) of pre-selling condos at $600+/square foot and somehow thinking it was justified. Today, in the Pearl’s luxury condo market, it’s a different story.

There are around 200 condos for sale at any time in the Pearl District across all price points. Currently, just 18 of them are listed for $1M or more. Over the last year, the monthly total usually varied between 30-40. With only 15 total sales of $1M+ units in the Pearl in the last 12 months, where did the rest go? More often than not, the owners of these high-end Pearl condos have chosen to withdraw their homes from the market and wait until there is a better equilibrium between supply and demand for condos in the Pearl. With prices falling up to 30% in some cases, it often makes sense to delay selling unless that just isn’t an option. For those of you considering the purchase of luxury Pearl District condo, follow this link to see all an interactive map of all Pearl District Condos over $1M.

Pearl District Condos For Sale over $1Million

New Good Faith Estimates for 2010

Jason Lucas — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 20:22:17 +0000

The new Good Faith Estimates (GFE – example here) went into effect for home loan borrowers on January 1, 2010. This is the form that spells out how much the fees, costs, etc… will be for a home buyer and what exactly they are for. These can often be cumbersome and confusing. Accordingly, the intention of creating the new universal form was to foster more transparency in the lending process. However, as could be expected with any substantial change, there has been much debate about the merit of the new form.

In the current real estate market the most common problems that occur in the home buying process concern the home loan in one way or another. It is a difficult lending environment in general and the average home buyer will likely face a number of obstacles before securing their home loan. One of the most frustrating events for a home buyer is discovering that fees, costs, pre-paids, and the like have changed by the closing date from the initial consultation with her/his mortgage lender. The new GFE is supposed to address this point by requiring greater accuracy in the initial estimate. This is absolutely wonderful and simple in theory. However, things can and will change throughout the loan process and responsible home buyers should not rely on the initial GFE exclusively.

In my professional opinion, the single most important thing a buyer can do to protect their interests (and pocket books) is to work with someone local, reputable, and knowledgeable. As the transaction evolves, and changes occur in the loan process/final numbers, the most important thing is understand WHY! Forms and processes with evolve and change periodically. Interest rates will rise and fall. But the one constant that is required for any home buyer to leave a transaction feeling confident about their home loan is that they need to work a quality lender.

Anyone interested in reading further about the new GFE should check out the article on The Lending Journal for an entertaining and easy to read take on the change. And please don’t hesitate to get in contact with me if you have any specific questions about this or any other real estate related questions!

Luxury Home Foreclosures

Jason Lucas — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 00:06:10 +0000

This past weekend I took some time to research and tour some of Portland’s luxury bank owned homes for sale. What I found was that are several homes from $500K on up to almost $4M in the greater Portland area that were repossessed through the foreclosure process and are now listed at substantial discounts below market value. I went out and previewed about a dozen of these homes from Portland City Center over to Lake Oswego.

It was just amazing to me that there are homes in $1M+ neighborhoods currently on the market for anywhere from 20-40% below comparable homes! Coincidentally, one of the bank owned properties on my tour was a house that a previous client of mine had been very interested in back at the beginning of the year (but wisely did not purchase). The house is telling of the luxury market in general. It started on the market about 18 months ago at just under $1.5M. After a series of price reductions and an attempted short sale, the home was repossessed and is now listed for less than $900K. In all likelihood it will probably end up selling for 40-50% of the original listing price. Amazing deals like these are all over the place, you just have to be on the lookout!