Why Mortgage Rates are Spiking. Again.

Posted inReal Estate
Well, that was a fun time in January when interest rates dropped for about a minute. The holidays were behind us, it was a bright new year, and the leading economic brains were bullish on the Fed's war on inflation, so mortgage rates took a nice dip. Until they didn't. February's data changed the outlook somewhat. Mortgage rates, in the most general sense, are influenced by speculation in the bond market. Those speculators (think of guys yelling "buy buy buy! No,…

Have Home Prices Bottomed Out?

Posted inReal Estate
Let's consider for a moment the possibility that the home price correction, which started in earnest last summer, is over. Prices in our part of the world have taken quite a dip since then. The seasonal drop in price and activity is normal, but still- the median sale price in January was about 18% lower than it was in July, and 5.5% lower than it was last January. So it's been a more sustained drop than in previous years, driven by…
How to Be a First-Time Home Buyer in 2023

How to Be a First-Time Home Buyer in 2023

Posted inReal Estate
So you've decided that this is the year but there's one problem: you have no clue where to start. How much money do I need? How much will the bank lend to me? How do I find a Realtor who knows what the hell they're doing? I've got answers. Let's talk about the elephant in the room first. Housing affordability is bad right now. Since the start of 2020, right about the time a certain global health crisis was beginning, home…
2023. What to Expect?

2023. What to Expect?

Posted inReal Estate
The more things change, the more they stay the same. That's one lesson that can be learned from this past year's real estate market, which saw frenzy in the spring (remember when every house seemed to have fifteen offers and sell for $100,000 over list?) and pretty much the exact opposite of that in the fall. We saw interest rates double in the space of a few months, and now we've seen the median home price in our area drop 10-15%…
Charts and Graphs! November Market Report

Charts and Graphs! November Market Report

Posted inReal Estate
All real estate is local, and this monthly report is a resource for those buying or selling on the Portland metro’s west side. The data below is for the areas including but not limited to NW Portland, SW Portland, Beaverton, Bethany, Hillsboro, Tigard, and Lake Oswego, and includes all residential resale transactions (new construction not included). November and December are as good a time as any for those in the real estate profession to take a few days off. Here's why:…
Seller Buydowns, Explained

Seller Buydowns, Explained

Posted inReal Estate
If all you want for Christmas is a 5% interest rate on a new mortgage, well I've got something to tell sell you. Today we're going to talk about seller buydowns, which are all the rage in these days of that-costs-HOW-much-now interest rates. I'll start with what these are before getting to question of whether you should partake. Buydowns have been around forever, in which a home buyer puts in a lump sum of money up front in order to reduce…
Charts and Graphs! October Market Report

Charts and Graphs! October Market Report

Posted inReal Estate
All real estate is local, and this monthly report is a resource for those buying or selling on the Portland metro’s west side. The data below is for the areas including but not limited to NW Portland, SW Portland, Beaverton, Bethany, Hillsboro, Tigard, and Lake Oswego, and includes all residential resale transactions (new construction not included). The funny (not funny haha) thing about all this talk of the severe turn that the real estate market has taken in the past several…

“Marry the House, Date the Rate!” and Other Sayings That Make Me Cringe

Posted inReal Estate
The job of a Realtor is part advisor and part matchmaker, and ideally is never part salesperson. In a perfect world this means always giving useful counsel to our buyers and sellers without resorting to sales pitches. With the rapid rise in interest rates and daily changes to affordability, it has been a challenge to provide valuable, realistic, forward-looking advice to buyers, who are well aware of the headwinds they're facing. The desire to simplify complex situations leads to pithy sayings…
Charts and Graphs! September Market Report

Charts and Graphs! September Market Report

Posted inReal Estate
All real estate is local, and this monthly report is a resource for those buying or selling on the Portland metro’s west side. The data below is for the areas including but not limited to NW Portland, SW Portland, Beaverton, Bethany, Hillsboro, Tigard, and Lake Oswego, and includes all residential resale transactions (new construction not included). The point behind raising interest rates was to lower the demand for houses, thus lowering prices, thus lowering inflation. The demand side has indeed been…
House Hunting In Portland Is Getting Easier! (Sort Of. Not Really.)

House Hunting In Portland Is Getting Easier! (Sort Of. Not Really.)

Posted inReal Estate
Here we are, several months into what can be described as a market shift, or a correction, or a reset, or any other euphemistic term you choose to indicate that it is no longer a drunken orgy for home sellers. After several years of watching home prices explode and sellers having all the cards, we are now getting to see what happens when buyers have a chance. Of course it hasn't actually gotten any cheaper to buy a house, what with…