Selling a Home in Portland

Top 1% Seller’s Agent

Planning on selling your Portland home in the next year or so? You’ve come to the right place. Stephen FitzMaurice, Principal Broker is a top 1% sellers agent in Portland with over 1,000 local sales under his belt and writes extensively about the Portland real estate market.

The Right Way to Sell

We charge 4.5% commission max. and pay more online to market our Portland area homes so they sell faster and for more. We have a reasonable commission fee, while still providing more marketing and services than our competitors. We back it all up with a cancel anytime policy for no charge. Read all about our top home selling service here.

portland home appraisal value

Portland Home Appraisals – 2020 FAQ

April 3, 2020

What’s the difference between the home inspection and the appraisal? Home inspections and appraisals have a lot in common. Both are key to the home sale transaction. Both involve a third party coming into the home to form an assessment. And both can be stressful for home buyers and sellers!  That’s about where the similarities end. A home inspection differs from an appraisal in that the inspection is performed on the buyer’s behalf, and the results will help shape the sales contract. A home appraisal is performed for the sake of the mortgage lender, and the result will only affect how much money the lender is willing to pay for the home. While a home inspector looks at the “guts”...

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Swimming Pools: A Portland Liability in 2020

March 9, 2020

In warmer parts of the country, a pool is often a feature that buyers are willing to pay more for. Here in the Portland real estate market an outdoor pool will typically decrease your value or at best leave it the same (not increase it). Before installing an outdoor in-ground swimming pool, keep in mind that it’s going to make it a little more difficult to sell your home when the time comes, depending on the current real estate market conditions as well as the condition of the outdoor pool. Here are some of the reasons that Portland home buyers – not all, but definitely most – dislike swimming pools: They’re a liability. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety...

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Basement ADUs: 2020 Portland Guide

February 28, 2020

For many Portland homeowners, having an Accessory Dwelling Unit might be the ticket to affordability, renting out a second unit on your property. Or, an ADU might allow you to take care of an aging relative, or simply create housing out of what was unused space.  Most people think of a backyard cottage when they think of an ADU, but in fact, many Portland homeowners have legal ADU potential right under their feet: in the basement! Now that Portland has updated its zoning rules to allow for ADUs on most city lots, 2020 may be your year to build a basement ADU. But before you start picking out wall colors and furnishings, there are four essential questions you must ask...

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Best DIY Kitchen Cabinet Ideas – Improve Home Value in 2020

February 3, 2020

Update, Don’t Replace Cabinets Buyers are serious about wanting fresh kitchen cabinets in their home. According to Remodeling Magazine’s 2020 Cost vs. Value report, a minor kitchen remodel — new cabinets plus appliances, flooring and paint job — will offer a higher return on investment than major kitchen renovations, and buyers in Portland are especially likely to pay top dollar. Although one Houzz.com study found that 3 out of 4 kitchen remodelers opt for full cabinet replacement, this investment is unlikely to pay for itself when the home goes up for sale. In this article, we’ll focus on updates to existing kitchen cabinets that will give the whole room a fresh look.  How much to spend on kitchen cabinets for...

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Professional Real Estate Photography – No longer Optional in 2020

November 22, 2019

In the Portland real estate market, professional photos are the expectation and the standard. It is simply no longer acceptable for real estate agents to take terrible photos, nor is it acceptable (in my opinion) for real estate agents to take the photos themselves – use a professional! Also, considering the high-end cameras available on the average smart phone these days, is the term “professional photography” even applicable anymore? Among real estate professionals, the answer is an emphatic “YES”, even from those of us who consider ourselves to be cell phone camera virtuosos.  Study after study shows that using a professional photographer to shoot your home’s listing photos will attract more buyers, generate more buzz around your home, and ultimately,...

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Top 5 Home Floor Choices for 2020

November 16, 2019

Are you sick of your linoleum? Any homeowner in Portland who has explored new flooring options lately might be dazzled by the array of materials on the Portland real estate market in 2020. While engineered products and vinyls might provide the most bang for the buck, flooring made from natural materials has gotten a big boost from new technology as well. Here’s a quick guide to what kind of performance to expect out of today’s floors, and our top picks for 2020’s best flooring options. 3 Things New Floors Can Do For Your Home You might think of flooring as simply the stuff that you walk on. As real estate agents, we find that floors do a whole lot more. ...

portland real estate colors trends

Top Home Colors and Trends – Portland Real Estate 2019

November 1, 2019

Color, materials, placement: Whether you just purchased your Portland home or are staging to sell a home in the Portland real estate market, the fresh look you’re seeking is possible with some know-how and inspiration.  Read on for our top Portland real estate agent tips for designing and decorating your interior space this year.  In Portland, should you go Minimalist or Maximalist? For the past several years, the “look” has been all about clean lines and grey or neutral tones. Inspired by Scandinavian design, people went overboard with whitewash and grey, accented by copper furnishings and fixtures in pointy geometric shapes.  Now, the decor trend is moving away from such minimalism toward “maximalism” — think rich colors, mixed patterns and...

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Top 5 Front Door Colors to Sell Your Home in 2020

October 28, 2019

We’re not exaggerating when we say that home buyers really, really love a freshly painted front door. In fact, a recent study by Zillow found that this one upgrade can add thousands to the final sales price of a home.  But what color to choose? Popularity matters, but so does matching with the paint scheme and style of the home. Keep this in mind as you read through our top real estate agent picks for front door colors that make Portland buyers say “Wow!” #5 Top Door Color: Natural wood Portland has so many lovely craftsman style homes and bungalows that do well with an unpainted, stained-wood door. Wood has a neutral brown color that exudes comfort and warmth. It pairs...

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St. Joseph Prayer to Sell Your Home in Portland

October 21, 2019

If you’re a Portland home seller, we wouldn’t blame you for feeling daunted by this fall real estate market. As of September 2019, new listings were down nearly 8% from last year, according to the Portland-area RMLS, and Portland area home prices have also gone down by 2.1% in the past year. Meanwhile, the average number of days a home spends on the market before the right buyer comes along is up to 52 days. When it gets tough to sell a home, we often get asked, “Who is the Saint that is supposed to help your sell your home?” Clearly, home sellers who need to move their home this year are going to have to be patient. And while usual...

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Home Improvements that Lower your Home Value

September 9, 2019

Redecorating? Installing new kitchen countertops? Thinking of adding a pool? Not all home improvements in the Portland real estate market increase your home’s value. Consider the following: The average homeowner hangs on to their home about 10 years. When it comes time to sell, some improvements done in that time will retain value, but others will actually detract from it. Our team of top real estate agents came up with a list of eight ways that home improvements could send buyers running (or cause them to submit a lower offer).  Neglecting accessibility. Let’s face it: Portland home buyers are aging. Many baby boomers are now empty-nesters, and they want to downsize and/or retire in Portland. But giving up square footage...