I've read about it but I haven't seen much of it yet. Until yesterday on Realtor tour when I spotted a fabulous example of the new brass that's back in style. Don't get excited. Your shiny brass doorknobs and faucets (and god forbid your shower door trim) has GOT to go.
But if you love the idea of something new, and are tired of the rubbed bronze and polished nickel that's been all the rage for the last ten years, here's your new obsession.
About two weeks after my blog post shown below, Brian Allen, owner of Windermere also addressed this issue in an interview with Portland Business Journal. Please click through to the article.
3/24/14
Portland is running out of usable land for homebuilders. You probably already knew that.
Our urban grown boundary is a wonderful thing! It keeps Portland's downtown and close-in neighborhoods vibrant. No sprawl here, or 60 minute commutes to get to your new home – we love infill, and are putting new construction on every available lot.
But lately, if you've tried to buy a house that comes with a double lot or sits on a nice sized piece of property, you'll find you're up against local builders with deep pockets, and cash. It's hard to be a small player who requires a mortgage against these aggressive cash buyers.
Just recently, this gorgeous brick home on a large lot in a premium neighborhood was purchased as a tear-down. Heartbreaking.
Portland Business Journal has written an interesting story on the lack of property for new construction, and the fact that we're unable to keep up with the demand for homebuyers moving into the Portland area. It's a tough call. Spread the urban growth boundary to keep prices on homes from rising too high and giving builders a place to add necessary inventory, or preserve our farmland and keep our city vibrant and full?
The housing market is still far from normal. On a positive note, the pipeline of foreclosure inventory has shrunk, new delinquencies have declined, and home prices have surged. However, we have not settled into a stable supply and demand equilibrium.
There is still a historically low share of first-time homebuyers, currently trending at 27% of sales based on the prior three months, as compared to the normal share of about a third of buyers.
First-time buyers (% of existing home sales)
If you're waiting to make your first move, please consider contacting a repuatable lender right away. (I'm happy to share the contact information for some of Portland's best lenders) It's a very detailed process, but I'm happy to help walk you through it. Once you've been approved for a mortgage, we can start looking.
With thanks for the report from the Merrill Lynch housing research department, and Bill Denton, Merrill Lynch Financial Advisor. If you would like to speak with a wealth manager, please call me for a recommendation and more information.
Portland Oregon Real Estate Information, House Ideas, Portland Oregon Highlights.
Caryperkins.com… Windermere Top Producer….Fun With Real Estate
MICRO HOUSING – A micro-apartment, also known as an apodment or microflat, is a one-room, self-contained living space, usually purpose built, designed to accommodate a sitting space, sleeping space, bathroom and kitchenette within around 150–350 square feet.
“Micro housing” is fast becoming a reality in markets all across the country. For those who haven’t heard much about it, micro housing is fully functional living space in a very small square footage blueprint (under 600 square feet).
Japan has been building micro housing units for years. It is now a very important part of urban markets everywhere. New York, Boston, Washington D.C., San Francisco, Chicago, Seattle and even Cleveland have micro housing product. Micro housing is also huge in Canadian markets such as Vancouver and Toronto where it is a much-needed segment of the market.
Micro housing is not only a solution for buyers who can’t afford larger space. In fact, in some markets micro housing is the preferred high-demand product type for a certain segment of the population. Micro housing is generational and lifestyle-driven by Baby Boomers wanting to have a small space in urban communities and young professionals wanting to be close to work and to the urban hub. Additionally, consider that a large part of our population is single. Back in the 1950s, the United States’ adult population was about 10% single. Today that number is closer to 40%. Single people require smaller living spaces than their coupled counterparts. With younger people choosing to get married later in life with higher rates of divorce coupled with Baby Boomers wanting spaces in urban areas along with young professionals – this all adds up to a much greater demand for micro housing.
Urban areas are beginning to recognize the need for micro housing in their urban centers. While in the past, a larger living area was required, in many cities across the country, planning and development departments are beginning to regulate micro housing as a separate entity. This is a clear indication that they are beginning to see the reality of its long-term place in the market and eyeing it as a solution for high-demand areas close to commerce as it also lessens the demand on mass transit the closer to work people live.
Mark my words – micro housing will become the buzz word in real estate in the next two years, just like “short sales” was when the market tumbled. Watch for many more micro housing developments to spring up in urban areas all around the country in years to come.
Portland Oregon Real Estate Information, House Ideas, Portland Oregon Highlights.
Caryperkins.com… A Windermere Top Producer….Fun With Real Estate!
This question comes up every year around this time. Things are slowing down a bit, you're thinking about family and celebrations, and yet you want to get your house sold.
Many sellers feel that the spring is the best time to place their home on the market as buyer demand increases at that time of year. However, the fall and winter have their own advantages. Here are five reasons to sell now.
Only Serious Buyers Are Out
At this time of year, only those purchasers who are serious about buying a home will be in the marketplace. You and your family will not be bothered and inconvenienced by mere 'lookers'. The lookers are at the mall or shopping on NW 23rd!
There Is Far Less Competition
Housing supply always shrinks dramatically at this time of year. The choices for buyers will be limited. Don't wait until the spring when all the other potential sellers in your market will put their homes up for sale.
The Process Will Be Quicker
One of the biggest challenges of the 2013 housing market has been the length of time it takes from contract to closing. Banks have been inundated with both purchase and refinancing loan requests. Both of these will slow in the winter cutting timelines and the frustration these delays cause both buyers and sellers.
There Will Never Be a Better Time to Move-Up
If you are moving up to a larger, more expensive home, consider doing it now. Prices are projected to appreciate by over 25% from now to 2018. If you are moving to a higher priced home, it will wind-up costing you more in raw dollars (both in down payment and mortgage payment) if you wait. You can also lock-in your 30 year housing expense with historically low interest rates right now. There is no guarantee rates will remain at these levels in years to come.
It's Time to Move On with Your Life
Look at the reason you decided to sell in the first place and decide whether it is worth waiting. Is money more important than having the freedom to go on with your life the way you planned? Will taking your house off the market now make this go any easier in the spring?
You already know the answers to the questions we just asked. You have the power to take back control of the situation by pricing your home to guarantee it sells before the end of the year .
Portland Oregon Real Estate Information, House Ideas, Portland Oregon Highlights.
Caryperkins.com… A Windermere Top Producer….Fun With Real Estate
In a paper-driven business that requires a LOT of forms, (if you've done a transaction lately, you'll know exactly what I mean) it takes a forward-thinking company to get rid of the paper. I'm so happy to say that Windermere in Portland has taken the leap.
Starting today, all transactions will be handled without the bulky paper files. Our notes, correspondence, and all transaction paperwork will be stored and instantly backed up and encryptedin secure servers in multiple locations worldwide! Having numerous back-ups besides our local server is especially reassuring when dealing with such important documents.
Not only is our system secure, it is totally customized to the Windermere way. (We follow strict guidelines about paperwork – our commission checks are dependent upon perfect files -well ahead of what is frequently the case in the industry.)
Our paperless transactions are also web-based, so that no matter where we are, we can instantly access a contract, a page of notes, or a home inspection report and deal with it from in the field, where, if you're a busy Realtor, you will most often find yourself.
What this means for my clients is a smoother experience and the knowledge that no matter what or when they need it, I have access to their transaction file – even if it's years later and they have an important question or wondered who was the contractor who fixed their plumbing, it's at my fingertips.
For me, it's like a silent assistant organizing my paperwork and file drawers. Not only that, it sends me a message to get a signature or submit a document to the escrow agent or lender.
No more paper waste, faxes and copies, This is revolutionary!
Once again, it makes me really proud to be working with Windermere – one of our country's top-notch Brokers.
Portland Oregon Real Estate Information, House Ideas, Portland Oregon Highlights.
Caryperkins.com… A Windermere Top Producer….Fun With Real Estate!
Four Portland condo buildings tied up in defect lawsuits
A flood of lawsuits over allegedly leaky water pipes has tied up at least four Portland condominium buildings in court, leaving hundreds of condo owners essentially unable to sell their units until the legal wrangling is over.
Owners associations at four Pearl District and downtown Portland condo buildings are suing the supplier of valves, gaskets and other piping products used in the buildings, claiming widespread failures have caused water damage in some units and will cost millions in repairs and temporary relocations.
But for owners and would-be residents, the biggest inconvenience may come from the lawsuits themselves.
Litigation tends to cut off financing for purchases in affected condo buildings, so owners are left to find all-cash buyers. Or, more likely for many, just wait things out.
Identical products were installed in many other area buildings during the condo boom of the mid-2000s, too, meaning the current battle may only be a precursor to an even bigger fight down the road. Property managers in other buildings have notified residents they're inspecting the plumbing and examining their options.
The litigation — and the threat of more litigation — has cast a pall over the Portland condo market, real estate brokers say, at a time when sales are improving and developers are once again considering new condo construction.
"It seems like this is a little blown out of proportion," Andrews said. "It puts a cloud over the condo market."
'Widespread property damage' alleged
In the current case, the owners associations of the Elizabeth Lofts, the Avenue Lofts, the Benson Tower and The Edge Lofts have all filed lawsuits against Victaulic Co., a Pennsylvania company that supplied the products the owners say are failing and causing "widespread property damage." Together, the buildings comprise 621 condo units.
The associations are each seeking at least $2 million in damages, including replacing the Victaulic components, repairing earlier water damage and moving residents out while repairs are completed.
Victaulic did not return calls last week seeking comment. In court documents, the company says its suppliers should be held responsible if the parts were defective, though it denies they were.
Attorney Michelle McClure, who represents the four buildings in the lawsuits, also declined to comment, citing an expected gag order from the court.
She didn't want to talk about the possibility of other affected buildings, either, saying she couldn't discuss "potential future clients."
The associations say in filings that repairs — which will involve accessing plumbing systems through units' walls — will be invasive and messy. They're asking for damages in part to temporarily relocate residents and their belongings.
Without replacing the piping components as a precautionary measure, they say, further damages is "inevitable."
A weekslong trial is set to begin in January in The Elizabeth's case. The others come later in 2014.
And until the trials end, either in a finding or a settlement, financing may be inaccessible.
"Boom, you've got 700 units that can't be sold on the open market," said Andrews.
Secondary mortgage investors Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac often decline to buy mortgages for condo buildings involved in litigation, so many lenders won't offer them. If any do, it will be at a higher rate and typically with lots of cash up front.
The first lawsuit at The Elizabeth was filed in Multnomah Circuit Court in 2010. The others joined with lawsuits in U.S. District Court this year, with The Benson filing most recently in June.
Most homeowners who had hoped to sell will have stay put until the cases are resolved — if they have a choice. Others who have to leave, making a job change, for example, may rent out the unit, though many condo associations institute caps on the number of units that can be rented in the building.
Anyone else will have to find an all-cash buyer.
"When you remove all the potential buyers who need a loan, you're left only with cash buyers, and a cash buyer tends to be able to drive a harder bargain," said John Becker principal broker at Realty Trust Group. "They know they're the only person around to buy it."
Another lawsuit involving a Portland condo building illustrates the impact.
When the owners association at The Meriwether on the South Waterfront sued the building's developer in December 2011 over leaks and other issues, sales plummeted.
All 2012 transactions — just two-thirds the number seen in just the first seven months of this year — were made in cash, Becker said. (That suit ended was settled out of court earlier this year.)
The more recent cases may be easier on homeowners because the cost and scope of repairs is much smaller.
"The boards and the management companies totally recognize the impact this has on the owners," Becker said. "They were respectful of the impact this has on people who have to sell property."
But the litigation has put buyers on alert, said Andrews.
Rather than risk the hassle of buying at one of the affected buildings — or any built around the same time period, for fear the parts might cause a problem in the future — they're more likely to look at older buildings where it's a nonissue.
"There are a ton of buyers that are pent up, waiting on the sidelines, to see what happens," Andrews said.
During Tuesday’s Planning and Transportation meeting, developer Hoyt Street Properties and Boora Architects, sought design advice for Pearl District Block 17. Hoyt Street Properties purposes a residential tower and mid-rise structure for the site. Based on last night’s design presentation, the tower skin is described as modern light-colored glass. The mid-rise skin was all white brick.
Unfortunately — Boora declined my request for renderings at this time.
With the project shaping up, so far we know the following:
16 floor tower, 175′ height
Separate 5 floor mid-rise structure
280 units total, including 60 in the mid-rise structure
219 below grade parking spaces
Ground floor walk-up units, and no retail
Service street is 12th avenue
Courtyard will separate two buildings
Top floor of tower will include common space and 1,000 sqft terrace
Lobby entrances are on South East corners of both buildings
Feedback from residents and guests of the meeting was mixed. Most agreed the northern end of the Pearl District is currently in a “white” facade trend. They urged the developer and architect to avoid using white. Also, others pushed for a substantial design difference between the mid-rise and tower. Currently the mid-rise is modern, but residents suggested making it more traditional. Folks even commented on the staggered windows, saying, “they’re a 2010 trend.”
The committee seemed intrigued by the courtyard between the tower and mid-rise, but discouraged by the lack of integration the park has with the site on 11th avenue. The courtyard runs North to South, and has three entrances. Two of those entrances are staircases; which were criticized as uninviting, but Hoyt did ensure the staircases are wide.
Boora and Hoyt will return in July or August with an updated design.
Rarely does a day go by that I don’t get asked if this is a good time to buy and/or sell a home. Some people might think that my response is always an emphatic “YES!” because I work in real estate. But in truth, there is no right or wrong answer. Every person’s circumstances are unique, so in some cases the answer might be yes, but for others it might make more sense to wait. Allow me to explain.
The good news is that we’re finally coming out of the housing slump of the past five-plus years. Housing is a major driving factor of the U.S. economy, so regardless of whether or not one owns a home, a stronger housing market is good for everyone. For some would-be home sellers, this positive momentum, combined with a rise in home prices and buyer activity, is enough to compel them to list their home. And right now the statistics appear to be on their side.
According to the most recent findings from the National Association of REALTORS®, total housing inventory has fallen for the past several months, settling at just under two million existing homes on the market that are available to buyers. This represents about a four-month-supply of homes throughout the U.S. This is the lowest housing supply the nation has seen since May of 2005 – during the peak of the housing boom.
“Months supply” basically means that if existing homes were to continue selling at the current rate, the inventory of homes would be sold by that many months. A “normal” market usually has around six months of supply; therefore lower numbers mean a shortage of inventory. If demand is greater than supply, this often leads to competition amongst buyers – and rising prices – as we’ve seen in many markets throughout the Western U.S.
Here are the current inventory levels in key markets along the West Coast, all of which fall below six months of supply and report strong competition among buyers.
· Seattle: 1.4 months
· Portland: 4.2 months
· San Francisco: 1.8 months
· Las Vegas: 3.8 months
· Palm Springs: 2.5 months
The following graph demonstrates the downward trend in the overall U.S. month’s supply of homes which is currently at about 4.4 months:
So what does this mean for buyers and sellers? It means as long as inventory levels remain low, competition amongst buyers will remain high, and home prices should continue to steadily rise – albeit at a healthy rate – not like what we saw during the housing boom. As evidence of this, in the recent Home Price Expectation Survey, 105 leading housing analysts called for a 3.1 percent increase in home values by the end of 2013. And in a recent report by the National Association of REALTORS®, median home prices last quarter showed the strongest year-over-year increase in seven years.
Another thing that buyers and sellers need to keep their eye on is interest rates and their impact on affordability. Interest rates have been at such historical lows for so long that it’s easy to take them for granted. But the truth is that several lending institutions, including Freddie Mac and the Mortgage Bankers Association, project that interest rates will rise from 3.4 to 4.4 percent by the end of 2013. A full point increase can have a significant impact on the amount of your mortgage over the long term.
I’ll explain:
Assuming a 30-year-mortgage at a 3.4 percent interest rate, a home valued at $360,000 in today’s market would have a monthly payment of $1,596.53. If prices rise by 3.1 percent and interest rates rise to 4.4 percent, as both have been predicted to do in the coming year, that same home would be worth $371,160 and have a monthly payment of $1,858.62 (see chart below). This is a difference of $262.09 per month – $3,145.08 annually – and $94,352.40 over the life of the loan. That’s not chump change.
With these types of projections, one might wonder why there isn’t a flood of homes coming on the market. The biggest concern I hear from many would-be sellers is that they’re going to lose money because their home is worth less today than when they bought it. A valid concern, to be sure, but not necessarily the case for many folks. Remember, you’re buying and selling in the same market conditions, so if your home has lost value in recent years, it is highly likely that the next home you buy has as well.
I recently spoke to a friend of mine who wanted to sell but was afraid of losing money. He bought his Seattle-area home back in 2002 for $275,000. Over the next five years the market boomed and by 2007 his home was worth about $430,000. During that time, homes in many areas around Seattle appreciated by over 55 percent. Then the housing market crashed – and with it so did home prices. In my friend’s mind he lost $155,000 and now he thinks he should wait to sell until he can gain all that loss back.
Today, my friend’s home is worth about $327,000 – a gain of $52,000 over what he paid in 2002. If experts are right about an annual gain of three percent in the coming years, he will have to wait 10 years before his home is worth what it was during the peak of the market in 2007. My advice to him? If it’s the right time to move and you can afford to do it, go for it, but don’t base your decision on numbers that were the result of an artificially inflated market.
It goes without saying that nobody wants to sell at the bottom of the market, yet at the same time, everybody wants to buy at the bottom. Obviously these two scenarios can’t exist at the same time, but I hope the information in this blog shows there are definitely opportunities to be had by both buyers and sellers that are worth considering.
The rebound in the residential real estate market continued in September, according to new data from the Regional Multiple Listing Service.
In the Portland area, 1,894 homes sold in September, a 19 percent increase from September last year. The average sale price climbed nearly 5 percent to $281,400. Median price increased 3 percent to $238,300.
The average home spent 102 days on the market, a 22 percent decrease.
The only negative data point: The number of new listings (2,451) declined 2 percent compared with last year and nearly 21 percent compared with August.
As expected the market took an expected seasonal dip from August, which is one of the strongest months for home sales due to mild weather and school vacations.
Closed sales declined 18 percent from last month, when 2,311 homes sold.
There is now a 4.6-month inventory of homes on the market, down from a 6.7-month inventory last year. That means if no additional homes were put up for sale it would take 4.6 months for every house to be sold. A six-month inventory is considered healthy or a balanced market.
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Copy Link
