Sell 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 2,000 local sales under his belt and writes extensively about the Portland real estate market.

The Right Way to Sell

Our team charges 4% commission max. and we pay more online to market our Portland and SW Washington homes so they sell faster and for more. (In Salem and Bend areas we charge 4-4.25% max.) 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 Landscaping Tips to Increase Short-Term or Long-Term Home Value

May 23, 2022

Are you gearing up to put your home on the market this summer? If so, there’s a lot to think about: finding a qualified real estate agent, prioritizing repairs and updates, and so much more! The ultimate goal, of course, is to make your home as appealing as possible to every potential buyer who crosses the threshold for an in-person viewing. One excellent way to improve the aesthetic appeal and increase the value of your home is to refresh or revamp landscaping. Below, we offer tips and suggestions for improving the value of your home for both short- and long-term approaches. Short-Term Curb Appeal Boost to Sell your Home Here are a few quick, simple steps you can take to...

Homeowners Overestimate Home Value as much as 150%

May 17, 2022

If you’re thinking of selling your home, you’re probably wondering how much it has appreciated since you bought it. According to a survey conducted by Rocket Homes, which polled 2,058 homeowners, if you were to guess, the accuracy of that guess probably depends on how long you’ve owned your home. (Learn more about the survey’s methodology.) When someone buys a home—probably the biggest investment of their lives—they naturally expect that the home will build equity and grow in value. It’s a reasonable expectation to have, after all, but the rate at which that value builds depends on a number of factors: location, neighborhood comps, the home’s age and condition, updates and upgrades, and the state of the current market, to...

Is the Zillow Zestimate Accurate? 2022 Update

May 9, 2022

If your look up your home’s value on Zillow’s valuation tool, Zestimate®, you may feel strongly impacted by the price that comes up. It may not be accurate, though. Zillow even says so on their site. So, why is that? And what good is it if you can’t count on it to give you an accurate estimate on your home’s worth? They post this disclaimer: “A Zestimate incorporates public, MLS and user-submitted data into Zillow’s proprietary formula, also taking into account home facts, location and market trends. It is not an appraisal and can’t be used in place of an appraisal.” (They even provide a table of error rates for cities across the U.S. within 5%, 10%, and even 20%...

5 Secrets to Selling Luxury Homes

May 2, 2022

Every home deserves professional photography and 3D home tours (a new standard). Most every home would also benefit from a floor plan PDF. Some homes may also need drone photos if they have a wonderful view or if the home is on a large lot. Some homes may need physical staging or virtual staging. Others will simply require interior design consultation (work with the décor already in the home) by myself or one of our professional partners. Closing on over 2,000 local home sales has taught me as much. Secret #1 to Selling Luxury Homes: Nail the Basics Here’s the basic list of what you should expect selling any home: Professional Photography 3D Home Tour Floor plan (some homes) Staging...

Virtual Home Staging – A New Way to Sell Homes

April 25, 2022

Last year, we wrote about the importance of home staging when trying to sell your home, what kind of ROI to expect when you hire a professional stager, and more. We’re turning our attention to virtual staging now, a newer way to sell a home that’s quickly growing in popularity. Along the way, we’ll show some real life examples of virtual staging we’ve ordered for our clients (and we always provide this service – if desired and it makes sense for the home – at no extra charge). While there is a bit of controversy in the staging industry about the authenticity of virtual staging, it looks like the trend may be here to stay. Many believe this new way...

Portland Home Inspection vs. Home Appraisal

April 22, 2022

For many people, buying a home is one of the most complicated transactions they’ll ever experience in life, especially if they’re also selling a home at the same time. Wherever you are in your real estate phase of life, it helps to know or be reminded of the various parts of the process. Involving yourself in a real estate transaction can be a stressful and emotional time. Having insight about what’s happening and why can help alleviate a lot of the anxiety and questions. In this article, we’re focusing on the difference between the home inspection and home appraisal, what they accomplish, and when they come in the process. What and When is a Home Inspection? The home inspection happens...

What Day of the Week do Most Buyers Look at Homes?

March 30, 2022

The real estate market is, truly, a market. Prices go up and down by the week. Playing the market right as a home seller can earn a tens of thousands more in a home sale (even hundreds of thousands). Playing the market right as a home buyer can in the reverse, save tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars. Here is our greater Portland real estate market there is a best time of the year to sell a home and a best time of the year to buy a home that has stayed pretty consistent over the last few decades, whether or not the overall market is rising or falling. (For example, the seasonal peaks and valleys held true in...

5 Things to Know BEFORE Selling your House Fast, As-is for Cash

March 25, 2022

I get it. Sometimes you simply want to have things done and done now. You don’t want the hassle of a long escrow period. You don’t want to interview or deal with real estate agents. You don’t want people walking through your home. Perhaps your place is a mess and you haven’t the time or resources to fix it up for market. To solve your needs perhaps you’ll search online for people / companies that will make fast cash as-is offers on your home so you can move out and be done with it. Beware. 1. The Initial High $ Price Usually Drops Hard Before Closing To get you hooked many of these companies will offer an initial cash dollar...

Portland, Oregon Home Renovation Loan Options

February 28, 2022

Whether you’re buying your first home or you’ve been in your current home for several years, you know that it’s both a soft place to land at the end of your day, and it’s also likely your biggest financial investment. What if you love your current home but you’ve outgrown it and want to do an addition? Or renovate to take care of some major updates and give it that new-home feel? Or maybe you found your dream home in the perfect location, but it needs some work and you can’t begin to fathom where you’ll get the money to make it happen. Before you think about selling your current home or crossing that home you just found off your...

Sell Your House Online – Top 5 Options

February 4, 2022

The 2020 National Association of Realtors report shows that 43% of potential home buyers used the internet as the first step in their search to find a home. And 97% used the internet at some point in their home search. These stats illuminate the importance of having an exceptional online presence when selling your home. iBuyers are companies that buy homes online for cash, they claim to do so quickly and without much hassle. They’ve grown in the past few years and show no signs of disappearing, though they still remain a small part of the overall real estate market. It can be tempting to jump on the iBuyer bandwagon, but before you do, it’s important to know the ins...