May 23, 2019

Portland Home Energy Score 101

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On January 1, 2018 the City of Portland Home Energy Score ordinance took effect.  It requires sellers of single-family homes to conduct and disclose a Home Energy Report and provide a Home Energy Score when listing their home.  

If you're thinking about listing and the property is in Portland, this directly affects you.

As an Earth Advantage® Broker, I have access to information and materials that will help you navigate this process and I'm just a phone call away - so if you have questions, don't hesitate to text or call.

In the meantime, here's a great video our friends at Earth Advantage® put together to explain the process in a little more detail.

 

 

 

Posted in Seller Tips
Oct. 15, 2018

PDX RE MNTHLY - October 2018

 

  1. The market is shifting. As the PDX housing market cools off for the winter, I believe that a more balanced market is likely just around the corner. Following are a few indicators that show this.

  2. Inventory is going up: September’s 3.1 months of inventory was the highest since Q1 of 2012. Refresher: “inventory” is how long it would take to sell all homes currently on market if no new homes hit the market.

  3. Values aren’t. The average sales price (-$14,600 or -3.1%) and median sales price (-$15,000 or -3.6%) were both down from August and both saw very modest gains from September ’17 (+3.3% and +4.9% respectively). We usually see a slight slow down this time of year - but this is slightly more than in recent years.

  4. Homes are taking longer to sell. Homes took 21.6% longer to sell in 9/18 than in 9/17. (45 days on market vs 37 last year).

  5. Use me as your free resource. I’m here to help! In markets of any temperature there are effective strategies we can use to help you accomplish your real estate goals. Call me and let’s game plan: 503-473-3923.

Julie Lais
LIC OR RE Broker & REALTOR®
Call: 503.701.7023
Email: julie@housesofportland.com
Visit: www.housesofportland.com

Premiere Property Group, LLC

1201 NE Lloyd Blvd Suite 115,
Portland, OR 97232
Thinking about buying a home in Portland, Oregon?  Check out this powerful property search tool.
Posted in Monthly Newsletter
Aug. 21, 2018

PDX RE MNTHLY - August 2018

  1. Top 10 Hottest PDX East Side Hoods In Q2 of 2018 (According to Portland Business Journal’s “Portland Heat Index”)
    1. Gresham - 18 Days on Market
    2. Milwaukie - 20
    3. Montavilla / Hazelwood - 20
    4. Troutdale - 22
    5. North Tabor / Hollywood - 25
    6. Cully - 25
    7. St Johns - 25
    8. Hawthorne / North Tabor - 26
    9. Ladd’s Addition / Hawthorne - 28
    10. Foster / Powell - 28
  2. Inventory is up (2.4) as more homes hit the market this July (4,312) than July of last year (4,202).
  3. Now’s the time to hop back in to your home search as peak listing season is upon us. Options are plenty as folks are eager to get their real estate goals accomplished before the Holiday season. If you’d like some help dialing in your home search, call me at 503-701-7023 - we’ll find you your dream home!
  4. The Price Is Right: List high and drop it? List low for multiple offers..? Or list at Market Value? The correct answer may surprise you
  5. We bought a fixer in NE PDX! Mav is settling in, Lolli & Enca are loving their new backyard, and Levi & I are hard at work cleaning & restoring this character-rich Portland charmer back to life. If you’re interested, text/email me and I’ll send you some pics!


Julie Lais
LIC OR RE Broker & REALTOR®
Call: 503.701.7023
Email: julie@housesofportland.com
Visit: www.housesofportland.com

Premiere Property Group, LLC

1201 NE Lloyd Blvd Suite 115,
Portland, OR 97232
Thinking about buying a home in Portland, Oregon?  Check out this powerful property search tool.
Posted in Monthly Newsletter
July 2, 2018

PDX RE MNTHLY - July 2018

  1. Selling season is in full swing and you’re likely applying those last finishing touches before hitting the market, I put together a few ideas to consider that are sure to have a great impact on that first impression.
  2. STAT 1: Inventory - the length of time it would take to sell through the houses currently on the market if no new homes were to hit the market - went up from 1.5 months last May to 1.9 this May. This reflects the 277 more homes that hit the market this year than last - which is great for buyers!
  3. STAT 2: Average sales price was $460.7K this May - a 4.7% increase over last May's $440.2K.
  4. STAT 3: Lake Oswego was highest at an average of $659.5K per sale.  The lowest? Gresham came in at $349.3K and, a little further out, Mt Hood came in at $326.5K.
  5. Happy 4th of July!  Mav's first 4th of July will be filled with bbq's, family parties, and the Molalla Buckaroo Rodeo! Hopefully you are enjoying your freedom in equally wonder-filled ways. I'd love to hear what you have planned!
Posted in Monthly Newsletter
June 28, 2018

5 Ways To Keep That Curbside Appealing

Now that selling season is in full swing and you’re likely applying those last finishing touches before hitting the market, here are a few ideas  to consider that are sure to have a great impact on that first impression…

 

Mature Tree(s)

Choose a location that adds but doesn't detract - too close to the home and you may have sewer and foundation woes down the road, amongst other things, but when placed in just in the right spot, one or more mature trees can provide not only a charming look and feel but also help to cut down on cooling costs in the summer.  (If you are in Portland and planting in the "parking strip" look to the city for approved trees for your space)

 

Simplify

The future owner may love gardening or despise it!  Keep the plantings to a manageable minimum. This will allow the green thumb gardeners to imagine all that they could do with a workable canvas while offering the folks that don't care for gardening an approachable landscape.  Go for a few perennial shrubs, plants and trees that are easy to maintain.

 

Go Local!

This mantra doesn't just apply to foods and goods - I encourage you to keep native plants for your yard top of mind, too!  Native plants grow here naturally!  What does that mean to you?  1) Less watering! (lower water bill!?!) 2) Happy birds, bees, and bugs!  & 3) An all-around easier-to-maintain landscape that will appeal to both buyers and neighbors! 

 

Grass

If you must have a lawn, then keep it green for home sales and photos.  Take care of dead patches and keep it classy.  Do your neighbors all have lawns?  Then when you prep for a home sale this might be a trend to stick with.

 

A Happy Entry

Stand at the edge of the street facing your property and approach as you would if you were a visitor.  Would a seasonal pot of flowers be a nice touch to greet you on your way to the door?  Are you walking through overgrown plants and bushes?  Tripping over uneven stones and broken concrete?  If you notice it, so will a buyer.  These will all be a very important part of your visitors or future buyer's first impression of your home.  Clean it up and make the entry simple, easy, and delightful. 

 

 

Posted in Seller Tips
June 11, 2018

PDX RE MNTHLY - JUNE 2018

 

  1. Record High Median Home Values! If you lined up all Portland homes from the lowest to highest by their sold price, the home in the middle is now $405,000! - a Portland record… and the Summer season is just beginning!
  2. …But Increases Are Slowing: Values were up just 5.2% from April 2017 to April 2018 - half the Year-Over-Year increase of April 2016 to April 2017. Looks like Dr Eisenberg’s projections are coming to fruition.
  3. Free Staging Consultation! In real estate, presentation is everything. To help you net the most $$$, we’ve expanded our listing package to include a staging consultation with a professional stager (*with every signed listing contract) at no cost to you!
  4. Seller Quick Tip: …and shameless plug. No matter the market conditions, it’s always a good time to simultaneously sell & buy if you know how to optimize both ends of the transaction and time the closing. If you’re thinking about making a move but are on the fence in this seller’s market, call me (503-701-7023) so we can chat about your options. 
  5. Happy Father's Day Levi! Join mommy (me) and Mav in wishing everyone’s favorite Unlicensed Assistant Extraordinaire a happy first Father's Day!

Thinking about buying a home in Portland, Oregon?  Check out this powerful property search tool.
Posted in Monthly Newsletter
May 1, 2018

PDX RE MNTHLY - May 2018

 

  1. Top 10 Hottest PDX East Side Hoods In Q1 of 2018 (According to Portland Business Journal’s “Portland Heat Index”)
    1. North Tabor / Hollywood
    2. Foster / Powell 
    3. Oak Grove / Oatfield
    4. Oregon City / Happy Valley
    5. Sellwood / East Moreland
    6. Hawthorne / North Tabor
    7. Gresham
    8. Piedmont / Concordia
    9. Arbor Lodge / Kenton
    10. Milwaukie
  2. It’s time! Whether you’re a first time home buyer or selling and then buying, the first step is securing a pre-approval. Even people with good credit can sometimes have surprises pop up when seeking a pre-approval - so start early with atrusted lender.
  3. The arrival of Mothers Day means the return of farmer’s markets! See the accompanying image for a short list of some of the more popular markets.
  4. Seller Quick Tip: The market is heating up and it’s time to start prepping for your sale! When prepping your home for the market, don’t forget the 3 P’s and 2 F’s: Plants, Paint, Pictures, Furniture, and Fixtures. Read more here.
  5. Home Energy Score: Beginning on 1/1/18, sellers of single-family homes in PDX are required to obtain and disclose a Home Energy Report. Thinking about selling? Let’s chat about what that looks like. Email julie@housesofportland.com or call 503-701-7023.

Thinking about buying a home in Portland, Oregon?  Check out this powerful property search tool.

2018 Portland Farmers Markets

Posted in Monthly Newsletter
April 6, 2018

PDX RE MNTHLY - April 2018

 

  1. Meet our new newsletter format! The goal is 5 Portland metro area real estate “must-knows” in under 200 words. Wish me luck!
  2. Projection: the economy looks to keep growing for the next 12-18 months.  Dr. Elliot F. Eisenberg (former Senior Economist with the NAHB) just gave a talk here in PDX.  It was almost 2 hours long and packed with info - reach out if you want more details.  In a nutshell - still a great time to buy and sell.
  3. Going Green! I'm in class this week to become an "Earth Advantage Broker" so I'll be empowered to recommend savvy home upgrades to provide a healthier living environment and greater energy/water/resource efficiency.
  4. Partner Spotlight: “Their lender sealed the deal!” is music to my ears.  HUGE kudos to lender Jose Ayhllon with Finance of America Mortgage who was instrumental in helping my client get his offer accepted last night.  Looking for an excellent lender? Reach out to Jose for a quote. 503-750-5096.
  5. Personal note: this week baby Maverick cut his 3rd tooth, ate sweet potatoes (a 1st!), and is scooching backwards!  He’s growing up so quick!

 

Thinking about buying a home in Portland, Oregon?  Check out this powerful property search tool.

Posted in Monthly Newsletter
Sept. 15, 2017

The 3 P's A Buyer Considers When Selecting A Home

Today we’re going to take a moment to look at the 3 P’s a buyer will consider when choosing which property to come visit and subsequently make an offer on: 

  1. Property
  2. Placement
  3. Price

The first is “Property”

Whether purchasing a primary residence, a rental property to buy and hold or a fixer to flip - a buyer always has a specific property type in mind.  A list that looks something like this: a single-level, 3 bed, 2 bath, over 1,500 SF, and it must have an attached garage.  Often times, there are many additional amenities on the list - but this is just an example of what I mean by “property”.

This website, housesofportland.com, has a search tool where a prospective buyer can input all of their criteria into a search, save those parameters, and then as soon as a property hits the market with that criteria, they receive an email notifying them of a new listing. 

Sellers, unfortunately, outside of a major renovation or addition, your “property” pretty much is what it is.  My job as your real estate marketing specialist is to make sure that we are effectively marketing all of your property’s best features so that your property doesn’t get filtered out of those extremely important buyer-saved searches.

The second is “Placement” - or "location"

Sellers, this is going to be the most challenging of the 3 to have an impact on.  Typically, if a buyer wants into the area, you’ll make their search - and if not - you won’t.  That said, making sure that we’re pointing out and marketing the nearby amenities and neighborhood features is going to be impactful when your property listing hits their inbox.

They say that the 3 things that matter in a real estate investment is location, location, location - so buyers, let’s make sure we have your search set up so that we’re sending you only the best properties that will meet your real estate goals.  There’s no reason to settle for something less when we have such powerful tools.

The third and final “P” is “Price”

In the end, a home is only worth what a buyer will pay for it.  The property has a say, the location has a say, the comparable market value of your home has a say, the level of competition and bidding over your home has a say, but in the end - it’s the buyer who is going to make the offer.  Our goal is to make sure that whatever we price your home at accomplishes 2 goals:

  1. We market your home in order to make it look as desirable as possible
  2. We get your home in front of as many people as possible

Quality marketing in the right places drives interest.  The more interested buyers we can generate, the more visitors to your home we’re going to have, and the more visitors your home has, the better the offer quality and quantity will be.

The price of your home has a direct impact on the number of people that see your property.  For example, if the comparable market value of your home is $390,000 and there are 100 buyers with a saved property search capped out at $410,000 and there are 500 prospective buyers with searches capped out at $400,000, would you have more competition and potentially better offers if you were to price your home at $389,900 or $409,900.  You’re talking about 600 buyers seeing your property vs 100.  6x the visibility.  Even if you simply have 2 offers - one from a buyer who can go up to $410,000 and 1 from a buyer who can only offer $400,000 - that extra competition that was generated is what will likely encourage that buyer who can offer $410,000 to make that higher offer.

Pricing your home is as much art as it is science and I’d love to talk with you about what we can do to make sure that you’re property gets in front of the highest possible number of prospective buyers.  That's how we’re going to ensure that you get the highest possible amount when selling your home.

More Information 

Posted in Seller Tips
Sept. 2, 2017

Is The Summer Market Cooling Down?

Is The Summer PDX Market Cooling?

Today we're going to talk about the temperature of our local real estate market.  I've heard a lot of opinions and bold claims recently and think it's important to stop and look at the facts to decide if any of these claims contain truth.  

The strength or “temperature”, if you will, of the real estate market is measured by something we call “inventory”.   Inventory is the number of months that it would take to sell all out of all of the homes on the market if we stopped putting homes on the market at the moment this inventory was measured.  A “cold” real estate market - or a “buyers market” - is when inventory is above 9 months, a balanced market is 6-9 months, and a “sellers market” is less than 6 months.  

The RMLS report for July (2017) came out recently and it contained some interesting information for this particular statistic.  Every July for the last few years, the market inventory has increased over the June market - but this July, it increased a bit more.

At 2.1 months, this July was our highest monthly inventory number since February of 2015.

Before we sound the alarm and start crying "the sky is falling" in true chicken little fashion, I want to give you a few reasons why this number is not necessarily a cause for concern, but rather it is likely just a sign that the market is as hot and healthy as ever...

  1. First, it’s not a lot higher than it’s been in recent similar times of the year - for example, last year we saw 1.9 months of inventory in July (only a 0.2 month difference).  In both September and October of last year we saw 2.0 months of inventory.  So, 2.1 isn’t an astronomical leap.

  2. In the first 7 months of this year, we have averaged 0.1 more months higher in inventory each month than the same month last year - April was 0.3 months higher than April in 2016 - and this 2.1 number is only 0.2 months higher than July of last year.  In other words, this isn’t a new trend - it was to be expected.

  3. 2.1 months of inventory is still an extremely hot market when considering that a balanced market is 6-9 months of inventory.

To summarize, while we have seen our highest inventory in 2.5 years, it’s not drastic enough of a change to start panicking or making fearful assumptions. 

That said, a market cooling would have to start somewhere - and perhaps this last April was the beginning of some slowing to come.  If you’re thinking about buying or selling real estate in the Portland Metro area and would like to discuss what your options might be as we head into a possibly cooler fall and winter market, please reach out to me so we can connect.

Posted in Market Updates