Portland Real Estate Blog

In Oregon, contractors are govenernd by the Contractor’s Construction Board (CCB). From their website, you can check the license status of the contractor. Most importlantly, you want to know that the people you are hiring have an active license. This means that their dues, insurance and bond are current.

A contractor’s license has an employer status of either expempt or non-exepmt. Exempt contractors may not have employees since they do not carry worker’s compensation insurance. When an expempt contractor shows up on your job with others, what do you do? The contractor is violating the terms of his license but he is also putting you at risk. If someone was injured on your job, you could be found liable.

I have seen it before and it happenned on our job last week. The job we had hired to be done by an exepmt licensed contractor was simply bigger than he could handle on his own (though he never mentioned that when the job was bid). He was a couple of hours late so I had left the site by the time (and his unknown crew) arrived and started the job. Then end result is just what we paid for. The process was not. I’ve got some of my tools over there and we had water in the fridge. I would have had no problem with either being used but it was not until after they had all left that I discovered some of my tools lying around, all the water gone from the fridge and I never did find two pairs of new work gloves. There was an utter failure for the contractor to manage his employees. He brought six people into my house that he had met 15 minutes before. I let it go at the time since they were knee deep in a project that was going to be even a bigger mess if I called them off the job. Wise? Probably not. In retrospect, I could have put my foot down and there are legal implications for the contractor. And I should have.

Know before you hire a contractor that they are licensed and bonded so that you are protected. Contractors also have to give you a state disclosure form “at first contact.” Out of the 15 bids we have gotten, we have received 3. Not a very good ratio. If you don’t get one, ask for it. It has good information from the Construction Contractor’s Board.

Of the 50 most populous metropalitan cities in America, Portland is the cleanest (Chicago is the worst) according to Reader’s Digest.

The page highlighting Portland doesn’t glaze over the fact that six miles of the Willamette River is a Superfund clean up site and that our city’s sewer system is currently woefully inadequate. What impressed the authors is that Metro is working to solve the problem with the Big Pipe Project and other clean up initiatives.

In the Portland market, we tend to think of fixers as being in the $200,000 range and under 2000 square feet. The buyers are usually first time homeowners or investors looking to “flip” the property for a profit (note that you have to be a licensed contractor to do this (or at least check with the http://www.ccb.state.or.us/)).

This picture is the house circa 1900. The oldest picture we have found. The only other old picture we have is circa 1950 and the front porch has already been removed and only stairs remain.

Our new fixer project is none of the above. We’re experienced buyers looking to move in once the remodel is complete. The house is well over the $200,000 price range. The William L. Brewster house is on the Historic Registry as a contributing property to the Historic Alphabet District in downtown Portland. Brewster was one of the city’s first commissioners. The house was designed by the architecture firm of Whidden & Lewis circa 1900. It’s got seven bedrooms and three and a half baths and is just under 4000 square feet plus 1300 square feet of unfinished basement. The first time we did this, our project house was much smaller and we had intended to flip it but made it a rental instead that we still own.

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In case you have an extra $3 to $6 million lying around and are thinking about investing in Portland Real Estate, I thought that I would research what your money gets you: (RMLS Link died).
Amazing views, lots of square footage and kitchens designed for kings and queens. These homes range from Dunthorpe to the the West Hills to Tualatin to Troutdale. No matter what neighborhood you want, there is a mansion designed for you. They feature items that most of us can’t live without including pools, wine cellars, guest quarters and 10-car garages. These are certainly beautiful and amazing homes.

We have clients currently that are looking to buy a condo on the west side (Beaverton preferably) but really don’t want to spend more than $80,000. When they first told me this, I kind of laughed at them and said that they didn’t stand a chance. I was really surprised when I jumped in and started looking. There are condos out there in that price range. They are not mansions nor are they necessarily in the very best neighborhoods. But I was impressed. You can buy a condo and spend under $80,000. I showed a two bedroom 1 bath unit in a complex off Allen Road, not too far from Hwy 217. Facing the green space, the unit had new paint, new flooring and newer appliances. And the complex was perfectly acceptable. You probably have a little free way noise but there are amenities such as a pool and recreation center. And the HOA fees are still only $190/mo. It is nice to know that there are still some options for affordable housing out there. My clients made an offer and hopefully it will be accepted. It is the perfect stepping stone into home ownership for them.

The answer is different for everybody.
 

How do you decide where to move in Portland? We are just in the process of buying a new house and had to go through the decision making process of what part of town to live in and what kind of home we wanted. As Realtors, we get to look at houses all the time. So it is always in the back of your mind. It seems that there are trade offs to every neighborhood and area. I personally love new construction and the homes that are on cute cul-de-sacs with lots of neighbors. Unfortunately, that is Charles’s idea of hell so the new construction was out.

We both do like the larger lots with big trees and lots of grass. But then we also like the classic character you can find in homes built between 1900 and 1930. We love the built-ins, crown molding, and hardwood floors. Our current home fits within these criteria as it was built in 1909. Location-wise, Portland is unique in that the closer you are to downtown, the more expensive homes seem to be. There are exceptions of course, but usually this holds true.

We had to decide do we want Beaverton or Gresham or Hillsboro or Tualatin or Wilsonville or???? There are so many choices. With our office on the west side of Portland and most of our friends living in the SW Portland area, the far east-side was out. It is just too far to drive every day. Especially since as Realtors, we are in the car all the time anyway.

Then we also decided that we aren’t ready for the suburbia life. Since we currently live NW Portland, we are enjoying walking to restaurants, shops and taking our dog to Wallace Park. We would stay where we are except the life of living in a triplex can get old with neighbors below us. And our house is so close to the houses on each side that there is really no privacy there either. Plus, we both crave a garage and off street parking. And our dog has voted for a little yard. He says he doesn’t need much but definitely some grass is in order. And as we get closer to having kids, I would love to have a house where you don’t have to walk up a flight of stairs to get to the living area. I think this sounds difficult with stroller, baby and groceries in tow. We decided to concentrate our search closer in so that we can keep that “urban-living” feeling.

I like the fact that being centrally located; I can sell a lot in Kalama, a house in Tualatin, a duplex in Gresham and be relatively close to it all. So “close-in” it was. But this means that you can’t get as much house for your money. And your lot size gets smaller and your neighbors closer. You also have to then decide if you like the old class of Irvington, the hip, funkiness of the Alberta Arts District, or the quiet peacefulness of Burlingame.

For awhile I lived in a house on SE Belmont at 22nd. This was a great neighborhood to sit on the front porch and people watch. You would be amazed what you see walking by. And the house had the cute character of 1911 construction and a large fenced back yard. But of course it was on Belmont and that is such a busy street. We both really want a quiet, tree-lined street (yes, I like picket fences too!). We have a house in the Boise-Elliot district that we bought as an investment about 3 years ago. This area has been going through a transition and getting better and better every day.

The other challenge of course is that there are two of you buying the house. This is really the first house we have bought together. We bought our current house, but if you are looking for a triplex in NW there are not a lot of choices. We didn’t even look at the inside of the home before making an offer and getting it accepted. I asked the other Realtor, “is it nice?” He said it was and we made the offer. And we love it. But this next house will be more of “our house” versus an investment. Although as Realtors we are always looking for both. So we have been looking for that perfect home. We both keep an eye out while we are out with clients. We search neighborhoods at night as we have time. We were in no hurry. We figured the right house would come along. And ideally, we would find it next spring/summer. Maybe even into next winter. But sometimes these things happen on their timeline and not yours. The new house closes Friday. Wow. Did we get everything we wanted? No. Are we getting more than we bargained for? Definitely. I will post more about the new house later. When we show people pictures, the usual response is, “Damn, what are you thinking????!”

Post a sign in the yard and throw open the door. Everyone is welcome, come on in. Not something that any of us would do in the normal course of our lives but when we decide to sell something, caution often gets forgotten. When it comes to selling houses, it can be dangerous to both life and property. Before you decide to go the For Sale By Owner (FSBO) route, consider the risks.

When we list a property, we always discuss with the seller the risks of holding an Open in an occupied house (if it is tenant occupied, forget it). There is no way that a Realtor or a seller can be in all places at once. People have been known to target open houses for thefts. One person distracts the agent or owner while the other has a free-for-all. Prescription drugs and jewelry are prime targets and are easily carted off undetected. It is also a good time to scope a property for a future crime.

Even more important is the risk to one’s self. We are trained to follow someone into a room, always being aware of how to retreat from the property. It is easy to get distracted and to stop focusing on your surroundings while discussing the merits of the home. If someone dead bolted the door as they entered the house, would you have an escape route or a cell phone on your person to call for help? Plan ahead if you are opening your doors to strangers!

Consider your ad: Lovely three bedroom, blah, blah, blah. 1234 Smith Lane. Open 1-4. Call Mary at 555-1212. Mary has just invited the world to her open. She may be alone. Not only that. She’s probably willing to show it at anytime to anyone. Think about what you are doing!

While hiring a Realtor cannot eliminate risk we can minimize. The Realtor lockbox tracks every agent that opens the box. If something is wrong, it can often be traced back to the source. The agent has some sort of relationship with their client- it is not John Public walking in off the street.

Besides, Sundays are for playing and looking at homes, not showing people around yours. Let a Realtor do that.

The 2005 Street of Dreams is a showcase of the coolest things a modern home can have. The multi-million dollar houses have some pretty awesome features but the one that struck me the most was a demo in a few of the garages where vendors are set up.

The Home Comfort Zones system allows for individual room temperature control. The demo has a cut-away of a furnace duct at the heat register. Inside, a balloon-type bag inflates or deflates to block the passage of air. The wireless thermostat in each room reports back to a master thermostat and tells the system if the room is the desired temperature. Don’t use a room? Shut it off completely.

Not planning on building a new home? That doesn’t matter. The system can be installed in pre-existing duct work!

Good Day Oregon did a story a while back which does a really good job of explaining the system in an eight minute segment. It is a .wav file. Home Comfort Zones is Beaverton based. The product is new enough that it is only available locally but they have high hopes of spreading out.

This article is from Prudential Northwest Properties 3rd Quarter company newsletter. The ideas aren’t going to help us beat today’s heat but they are good food for thought when you are looking at making changes and repairs around the house.

The scorching days are here. Some of us are feeling the heat and switching our air conditioners into full gear. But installing air conditioners and paying for the energy to run them can be costly. With residential energy consumption expected to rise 22 percent by 2020, finding ways to keep energy use, not to mention your utility bills, down is vital.

The U.S. Department of Energy says the rise in consumer electronics, home office equipment, and security systems will contribute to the mounting consumption level. Newly built homes are, on average, 14 percent larger than the existing stock, so more heating, cooling, and lighting resources are required. However, under existing building codes and appliance standards, energy use per square foot is typically
lower for new construction than for existing homes.

The DOE’s Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Network has some suggestions to help keep your house cool – and save you money:

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