Stats for some housing in Portland, April 2009

My friendly marketing rep from Chicago Title compiled and emailed my some stats on the Portland real estate market this week, I thought I'd pass them along. Thanks Erin Noe!

Single Family Residential:

15% of homes were 3 bedroom or more- Average Price $264,976

37% closed in 30 days or less

26% closed in 121 days or more

50% of buyers used conventional financing

28% of buyers used FHA financing

10% rise in closing from March to April

Condos:

21% of condos sold between $200,000 and $249,999- Average Price $245,552

36% closed in 121 days or more

29% closed in 30 days or less

53% of buyers used conventional financing

21% of buyers used cash

Closing were up from March to April

Happy Valley "City of Dreams"

Whether or not you agree that Happy Valley, a SE suburb of Portland, is indeed a "City of Dreams," this Saturday there is a great opportunity to tour a bunch of homes, and really get to know this area. http://www.ci.happy-valley.or.us/index.html?page=newsReader.html&p=117

The tour of open houses starts at the Happy Valley City Hall, next to the Happy Valley Town Center, at 16000 SE Misty Drive, Happy Valley, OR 97086.
There is a free expo at 11 am, where you can learn about financing packages, meet the Mayor and other city officials, and learn about local businesses and organizations. After the Expo pick up a 2009 ’City of Dreams Guide Book’ and the map of the open houses, and set off! The tour is self-guided, so you can look at a wide variety of properties, and go at your own speed. You can pick up the maps at any time after 11, or just head out and look for signs. The tour goes until 5 pm.

I'm holding a condo open, ML#9027278, and the address is 12134 SE 104th Ct, Happy Valley, right off of Sunnyside.

I think that this mega open house would be a great opportunity to check out this area, which young urbanites have largely ignored. Home prices have dropped a lot in the area, so you can get a lot of house for your money. With the MAX line opening up, it will soon be just a short trip into downtown.

HOAs

Home owner's Associations can be confusing for first time buyers of condos and homes, and for people who have never dealt with an HOA. Basically, and HOA is a legal entity that the home owners or builder has set up to take care of common areas. Found in condominiums, gated and un-gated developments, HOAs charge a monthly, quarterly, or yearly fee to those that live there, and in return pay for the short term and long term care of common grounds, streets, and other things such as pools, parks, clubhouses, and trash removal. In addition to paying into the common fund, homeowners have to abide by the CC&Rs- Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions. These can be as simple as keeping your lawn mowed or only parking in your designated spot, or as complex and restrictive as your ability to have a home business, what colors you can paint your home, and if you can have pets. It is extremely important when buying any property, condo or detached home, to make sure you know if there is an HOA, what the fees are, what the long term plans are for the community and how much you will be contributing financially, and what you can and cannot do as outlined by the CC&Rs. HOAs can be extremely beneficial to a community, keeping property values rising by keeping the building or neighborhood desirable, but as with any contract, it is important to know exactly what you are getting into.

Homes the most affordable in 18 years

There was a report published today that said that 73% of homes bought in America so far this year have been affordable. That is the highest percentage since 1991. Home affordability is determined by the average American family income of $64,000, and no more than 28% of that annual income being used for home buying. Several factors have made homes so affordable this year, including the continuing decline of home prices, the low interest rates, and the $8000 tax credit for first time home buyers. To read more, and see all the cities that are considered to be the most affordable, unfortunately Portland is not on that list, click here:
http://money.cnn.com/2009/05/18/real_estate/most_affordable_cities/index.htm?section=money_realestate

The monthly report on the real estate market in the greater Portland area came out, and I finally figured out how to convert the file so I can post it! As you can see, the median prices across the area vary widely, from Lake Oswego and West Linn at $389,000 to $204,900 in Yamhill County. For a little perspective, the median prices for the previous month, March, where different by large amounts in every area of central Portland, except NE Portland, which was $260,000. Areas that are have a lower median price for April than March are West Portland and Milwaukie/Gladstone/Boring/Clackamas/Estacada. Every other area (North Portland, SE Portland, Lake Oswego/West Linn) have higher median prices in April when compared to March 2009. So, prices are starting to rise again, especially in areas that have a plethora of lower cost homes that are bought by first time home buyers and investors. If you are in that category, the market is starting to pick up, and prices will not be dropping, usually, on the homes you are interested in buying. The more expensive areas, especially Lake Oswego and West Linn, saw a huge increase from March 2009 to April 2009, the median price was up 9%!

Remodeling the Green Way

Go over your home: Get an energy audit from a home energy expert to show you any problems and to point out specific ways you can improve the efficiancy of your home.

Seal up your home: Have a heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) contractor's check up. Doing this as part of the inspection when buying a home is a must, and doing improvments before you sell or as a part of regular home upkeep is necessary.

Seal it even more: Add extra insulation to the attic, crawlspace, and basement. Choose from sprayed-in, closed-cell and Volatile Organic Compounds-free (VOC) foam insulations that can

Reuse original components, or ones from friends and families homes. Recycle items that can't be reused. Re-purpose materials, and buy from recycling improvement centers.

Choose VOC-free paints and varnishes, and use engineered wood products and Forestry Stewardship Council-certified (FSC) woods, along with carpet made from natural fibers and cork flooring. Not only will this keep chemicals from affecting you, they are also easier to break down if the next person to own your house sends them to the landfill.

Improve energy efficiency by installing the latest, most efficient HVAC equipment, and by using double or triple-paned windows with reflective coating if windows need to be replaced. Select EnergyStar rated appliances for the kitchen and install newer low-flow, dual flush toilets.

Don't stop, green your house all the way to the roof. By extending the roof overhangs you protect the exterior from weather and also provide shade for the summer. Go even further by installing solar panels on a roof with unobstructed, south-facing access to sunlight.

Any time you work on your home try to be as green as possible. Even if you are only doing one thing at a time it can make a difference, and over the years it can add up. Even without remodeling you can make improvements, just changing the filter in your furnace makes it run more efficiently and cleanly, and prolongs its life.

Real Estate Vocab Lesson

There are a bunch of terms that Realtors use that make perfect sense to us, but if you are getting ready to buy your first home, or haven't bought or sold in several years, then they may be very unfamiliar. Also, in this buyer's market and tough economy we are using terms that are new, or haven't been used frequently. Here are my favorite:

Escrow: A neutral third party holds the item of value until all terms have been met by both parties; the earnest money goes into escrow and it and the deed are delivered at closing.
Fair Market Value: The highest a buyer would pay, and the lowest the seller would accept, on a property. Not what the seller bought the property for, plus how much money they invested into the property.
PITI: Principal, Interest, Taxes, and Insurance; the monthly mortgage payment
PITI reserves: several months of PITI payments in cash that a borrower must have on hand after they make the down payment. This assures the lender that the borrower can at least make the first several PITI payments when they buy a new property.
Pre-Approval: the borrower has completed the application process for the mortgage on a new home purchase, much more important than simple pre-qualification because income and debt have been proved.
Short Sale: The seller is going to make less money off the sale of the home than what they owe on it.
Underwater: The homeowner owes more on the house that what it's worth in the current market.

Weattherization Assistance Program

This just in: You can get as much as $6500 for weatherizing your home, from state and local governments. If your family earns less than $44,100 for a family four or $29,140 for a family of two, you qualify for the program to keep your house warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer. For more info call the Weatherization Assistance Program at 800-363-3732. If you don't qualify for the income restrictions, don't worry, the government wants to help you too! There are still tax credits available for installing energy efficient appliances, and making improvements to your home. Some major improvements, including insulation, roofing, windows and doors, HVAC, and new green technology, can be eligible for tax credits. Be sure to research what's available in your state and city, many credits very from area to area, and also check with your tax preparer.

MAX

While this blog is primarily about real estate (hence the name), other info about Portland is also included, especially when it is about livability and quality of life in Portland. As the MAX lines have spread out over the years many people have complained about crime, vagrancy, and general uneasiness while riding the light-rail. While I ride occasionally, and usually just in the Fairless Square from Lloyd Center to downtown, I have never had personal experience with crime, nor have I heard about any problems from friends or colleagues. Well, enough people have had enough problems that now the Oregon State Legislature is getting involved with Tri-Met security. They want greeters and the stations. Like at Wal-Mart. And we all know how nimble and agile the Wal-Mart greeters are, so I'm sure a similar force will be able to stop muggings and scare away street kids. Sure, we all see that happening! And they want the greeters to be volunteers, because Tri-Met is cutting costs right and left, and they don't have the funds to pay any more real security, or to even be able to recruit volunteer security officers. Why don't they take the vagrants that are a constant issue on the MAX and at the stations, give them an orange vest, and let them yell at commuters all day long? People will feel more secure with all the "greeters" and the former nuisances will have a purpose and a reason to get out of the weather on Tri-Met! I kid. The real deal is that Portland is a great place to live, even for the homeless, criminal, and generally creepy. We live here, and love it, why wouldn't they? Be safe, and vote for increased taxes so that Tri-Met will have the money to pay real security to keep the MAX safe.

Short Sales. Really? Is that what they're callled?

I was looking for something new and exciting to write about, but all I could find today was a bunch of news about short sales, and how Bank of America is going to make them so much easier. The truth is that with a short sale (when the seller is going to get less money for the house than they owe on it) you never know how that kind of deal is going to go. It might be quick and easy, with the buyer getting a great deal, or it might be a long, long process where the buyers end up loosing money while waiting around. Most banks, who hold the mortgage and have to authorize short sales, are not very communicative during the process, so you don't know where you stand. Also, betters deals may pass you by while you are tied up in a house that might not work out. The key words here are might, maybe, could, if... you can see that there is nothing definite, and that is the big problem with short sales. The old phrase "Buyer Beware" goes so well with short sales, I think they should be renamed to "Long Sales that Buyers Should Be Wary Of!"