Portland Real Estate Blog

This is a top 100 real estate blog in the world according to Feedspot.com. In particular, this is a local real estate blog written by a top 1% real estate agent in the U.S., Stephen FitzMaurice, Realtor. Stephen regularly reports on the greater Portland metro area’s real estate market including annual housing forecasts and best time to sell or buy a home reports. He gives home selling and home buying professional advice. He also writes informative articles on Portland neighborhoods and suburbs as they relate to the real estate market. Finally, he writes to inform the general public about real estate agents, such as annual average real estate agent commission reports and more.

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Portland Home Prices Rise, Zillow says 4.3% Higher 2013

August 1, 2012

For the first time since the housing market crash prices have risen nationally from one quarter to the next, in this case, from the first quarter of 2012 to the second. Nationally that rise barely occurred, .02%. In Portland we are looking at a 6% increase in the housing market this year. However, last fall and winter prices dropped in Portland over 10-12% and so from year to year homes are still cheaper in Portland than in 2011. Is this the beginning of a housing turn in Portland? Zillow thinks so and is forecasting a 4.3% increase in Portland housing prices in 2013. Other analysts are less optimistic pointing to an ongoing shadow inventory of foreclosed homes that have yet...

Top 4 Real Estate Websites: Zillow, Trulia, Yahoo, & Realtor

July 31, 2012

Continuing their dominance, Zillow, Trulia, Yahoo, and Realtor.com round out the top four used real estate websites, according to HitWize. For those who are unaware, Zillow powers Yahoo’s real estate sites making Zillow as a program both first and third. Realtor.com has slowly slipped from the top spot, but remains number one in a number of other important categories, like time on site. As a local Portland Realtor, my suggestion is to use Realtor.com, or my Portland home search program. While Zillow continues to be the most popular it also has the worst data. Homes shown as active on Zillow may have expired or sold months or even years prior. Trulia maintains a better data program, but still suffers from...

How a REALTOR® in Portland can stop a bad Appraisal.

July 25, 2012

These days appraisals are at the top of the deal killer list for residential home sales. Demand in the Portland home market is up and often the market itself doesn’t catch up fast enough. This means that appraisers will be looking at old information that is skewing the way the bank is looking at the current sale. Also, the days have long past where a Realtor can choose an appraiser they trust. Appraisers are virtually randomly selected by the lender with no input permitted. Given these facts, what can be done to stop an appraiser from killing your Portland home sale? 1. Have your Portland Realtor meet the appraiser at the property. Not all appraisers are willing to talk with...

Portland Home Sales, Prices on the Rise

July 23, 2012

Good news for Portland home sellers: Prices may not be what they were before the housing bubble burst, but they are getting better. Compared to last year, the number of homes sold in the Portland metro area has also risen, shrinking the inventory of unsold homes. The most recent Portland RMLS report, which describes the state of the housing market in June 2012 compared with previous months and years, showed an 8.6% rise in the median sales price over the past 12 months. Still, we’re not at peak 2007 prices, which averaged $355,000 for a Portland home. Now, the average price is $285,000, but that’s after three solid months of improvement. Realtor.com, which publishes national real estate news, also found...

Buying a Portland Home: Tips for Seniors

July 11, 2012

Portland is a great place to retire. Whether you’re a long-term resident or are looking to relocate to a milder climate, Portland offers the right combination of quiet neighborhoods, big-city culture, and outdoor getaways. There are many homes on the market that will be comfortable and manageable for seniors in the long term. There are also some homes that just won’t work – whether because of location, layout or unforeseen structural problems. Read on to learn our tips for seniors looking to buy a home that they can live in for many healthy, happy years. 1. Choose the right neighborhood. Being retired means you’ll have more time to enjoy indoor and outdoor activities of all kinds, and you don’t necessarily need...

New Short Sale Assistance for Portland Military Homeowners

June 30, 2012

New Frannie Mae and Freddie Mac policies will make it easier for military homeowners to short sale their homes when they must move because of a change in station. The Federal Housing Finance Agency announced June 21 that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will no longer be permitted to pursue a deficiency judgment, promissory note or any cash contribution from members of the military who have negotiated a short sale for their home. In Portland, short sales have taken off this year, and with recent federal regulations that have sped up the short sale process, more and more people are choosing this foreclosure alternative. In 2011, short sales made up 11% of all Portland home sales, up 2% from the...

DIY Portland Sunrooms Add Curb Appeal

June 11, 2012

In Portland, the one thing we can always use more of is sun. And if you’re selling your home, a sunroom is one feature that might help your home stand out from the crowd and get your Portland real estate agent’s phone a-ringing. A sunroom, solarium, enclosed or covered patio, attached greenhouse, or conservatory are all variations on the same theme: a room, preferably south-facing, that is designed to let in the sun and keep out other elements. They’re a space to keep tropical plants and start vegetables in the spring, or to hang out and watch a storm or the stars. In Portland’s climate, summer days are numbered, but on clear days in the spring and fall your sunroom...

How to pick a Portland Real Estate Agent.

May 29, 2012

Since I work with Portland Real Estate Agents everyday on a number of transactions and hear all sorts of things from various people, I thought I’d write a post on choosing a real estate agent (even if you don’t choose myself, though I hope you’d consider it). 1. Customer Service. No matter how experienced and agent is, no matter how much education they have, no matter how good their marketing package is, if they don’t have a customer service focus, don’t pick them. Customer service means picking up the phone or at least calling back within the same day. Customer service means updating the client regularly as the transaction progresses. No Portland real estate agent is worth your time unless...

How to Write a Winning Portland Short Sale Offer

May 24, 2012

Nothing is more difficult to purchase these days than a short sale! The numbers on successful Portland short sale offers are terrible, many reports suggest 1 out of 5 Portland short sale offers actually ends up in a sale. While no short sale offer is guaranteed to succeed, there are a number of things a Portland buyer can do to increase their chances of success. 1. Ask your Portland real estate agent to find out how many banks are involved in the short sale. Often a seller will have a first and second mortgage with two different banks and sometimes even a third in the mix with a home line of credit. Simply put, the less banks involved the better...

Real Estate Market Confirms Slow Economic Recovery

May 21, 2012

Tracking the economy as it theoretically recovers from the recession is a tricky process. Jobless rates, consumer spending, home prices, imports and exports – each number can give a different report of what the economy is like, from sunny to downright pessimistic. University of Oregon professor of economics Tim Duy puts together an index, the UO Index of Economic Indicators, that pieces together these numbers to give an overall picture of how the economy is doing. His most recent report, released this week, says that Oregon’s economy is continuing to grow, slowly but steadily, in 2012. The index rose 3.6% as of March this year, and consumer sentiment is one of the indicators largely responsible for this gain, according to...

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Stephen FitzMaurice

Team at eXp Realty