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Hillsboro and Northwest Portland Condominium Comparisons
Last week, I spent a couple of afternoons and evenings showing condominiums to a client that is considering relocating to Oregon. We looked at condos in Northwest Portland and Hillsboro. We made some observations that I would like to share with other buyers that may help direct their search for a new home.
In Nob Hill, there are plenty of properties that may be new to the market, but they are in renovated buildings. “Renovated” can be a very general term. We looked at two properties from a century old building where each room was completely gutted and redesigned with modern materials, fixtures, and appliances. At another building, renovated only included new floors and a coat of paint; the hundred year old layout was the same, awkward bathroom and all. Neither had any parking provided. Square footage was under 800. These properties had one important item in common, the nearby amenities from being in Nob Hill. The area consists old, well-kept neighborhoods in walking distance of local restaurants and shops and very close proximity to downtown Portland.
In Hillsboro, both properties we looked at, in Tanasbourne and Orenco Station, were less than 10 years old. Each came with more than 700 square feet, an over-sized single car garage, with one attached on the lower level of the unit. Each had additional parking spaces available. Prices were approximately $20,000 less than Northwest Portland and listed property taxes were slightly lower despite the larger properties. Each were near modern suburban communities filled with popular chain stores and restaurants, but downtown Portland and locally-owned shops were miles away.
When shopping for a home, a good friend and realtor told me one thing you need to always keep in mind, “You can always change anything except the neighborhood.” Make sure your dream home is in an area that suits your lifestyle and fulfills most of your wants and needs. It sounds obvious, but often home buyers get so caught up in the home that they forget about what is beyond the walls, yard, and fence.
If you have any questions regarding real estate, or need help selling or buying a home, please contact me at dannyshepard@oregonfirst.com or 503-267-8370.
Information about the extended and expanded home buyers tax credit
Posted by Danny in Real estate on March 11th, 2010
I have been including the link to the Internal Revenue Service for information about the home buyer tax credit in my monthly newsletters since the program was extended and expanded in November 2009. I wanted to make this information more clearly available as the deadline of the credit is coming up soon. Homebuyers need to be in a purchase contract by April 30th, 2010 with it closing no later than June 30, 2010 to take advantage of the credit.
This program goes far beyond Beaverton, Oregon and the Portland-Metro area, where I work as a real estate agent. It is a federal program and therefore available throughout the United States.
If you have any questions about the tax credit, real estate markets, or buying or selling your home, please contact me at dannyshepard@oregonfirst.com or 503-267-8370.
Best regards,
Danny Shepard
Realtor, SFR
Why would you advertise, “Please rob me!”
Posted by Danny in Health and Safety on February 23rd, 2010
If you are going out of town, would you hang a sign on your door stating that your home is empty? Most people have been doing just that! The meteoric rise in the use of social networking sites is having some unintended consequences. One that is gaining a lot of attention is that by publicly posting online that you are on vacation or just away from home, you are declaring to the world that your home is currently empty!
This post was inspired by this article: Your Facebook profile: An open invite to Crime?
But most credit for raising awareness to this risk in the security of your home goes to Please Rob Me, which is a site that is now drawing a great deal of online media attention.
Portland-Metro real estate market conditions for February 2010
Posted by Danny in Monthly newsletter on February 17th, 2010
We just adopted a cat from the Oregon Humane Society. His name is Cougar. After a month in a shelter, he really seems to appreciate our home office as his starting room and to explore the rest of our house. He is also looking forward to trying out the deck. We appreciate having two floors with a baby gate on the top and bottom of the stairs, making it easier to introduce him to our other cat Gracie Joy. Did we have these features in mind when buying our home or baby-proofing it? I would have to say no.
In other news, my mother-in-law has just begun a three week visit. She has so far enjoyed sharing the room with Cougar. I am glad to continue sleeping in my own room during her visit. During the Valentines/Presidents Day weekend, we celebrated our love and patriotism by finishing the conversion of the home office to a guest room with office functionality. Meanwhile, the second office desk has been moved into our master bedroom. The idea is that neither desk is personalized and therefore usable for either my wife or I as needed. Mackenzie continues to enjoy a bedroom without a desk or work, though she is showing a lot of interest in both. You do not always have to change where you live to change how you live, but I am here to help if you want to buy or sell a home.
The Portland-Metro real estate market activity improved last month over the same period a year ago. Closed sales were up 34.7% versus January 2009 and pending sales increased by 24.3%, but new listings dropped by 6.2%.
Comparing last month to December 2009, pending sales were up 34.5% but closed sells fell by the same percentage. New listings increased by 87.1%! The drop in closed sales combined with the rise in new listings increased active inventory, which is calculated by dividing the total number of active listings for a month and dividing it by the number of closed sales. It would take about 12.6 months to sell the 12,449 active residential listings.
Sale prices for last month were down compared to January 2009 by 5%, and the median sale price also decreased by 4%. January 2010 sale prices were also down when viewed against December 2009 with average prices dropping by 3.7% while the median price slightly decreased by 0.9%.
If you are in the market to purchase a home, now is the perfect time to buy. There are plenty of properties available, sale prices have continued to drop, and interest rates are low. Additionally, if eligible, the extended and expanded home buyer’s tax credit is available if in a purchase contract by April 30, 2010 and close by June 30, 2010.
Would you like to receive more detailed information about?
- Realtor services?
- The extended and expanded home buyer’s tax credit?
- Interest rates?
- Your neighborhood or neighborhoods of interest?
Please contact me at:
dannyshepard@oregonfirst.com
503-267-8370
All statistics listed are quoted from the January 2010 issue of RMLS Market Action. The Regional Multiple Listing Service releases the previous month’s statistics near the 15th of the current month.
Tax credit information provided by the IRS at http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=215791,00.html?portlet=7
Additional tax credit information provided by the National Association of Realtors FAQ on Homebuyer Tax Credit Changes, available on request.
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