Portland Real Estate Market

The Best Neighborhoods to Buy a House in Portland

November 14, 2017 by Mathew Mattila

Portland’s real estate market has cooled overall, just a bit – for now. It’ll be interesting to watch the numbers as 2017 closes out and we start the new year. To help give home buyers the inside scoop on which emerging neighborhoods in our area are the most promising I talked to some of my favorite local real estate colleagues to see what they had to say about the best neighborhoods to buy a house in Portland in 2018.

For those buyers who may be feeling shut out by Portland’s overall higher price point, Maria Fitzgerald, a seasoned broker with Inhabit Real Estate explains,

“I often hear the question: ‘Where should I buy a house that is up and coming and we won’t be priced out of the market?’ You can still get a great house, and oftentimes below the average price point in Portland of $428,800. That’s not to say you won’t be doing some sweat equity but it will be worth it! Portland is growing at a rapid pace, buy with walkability to parks, transit, and neighborhood offerings like coffee and restaurants in mind. Investing in areas where transit (bike, streetcar, Max or a bus line) is near and you can enjoy the energy of Portland is key to gaining equity more quickly in my opinion.”

The Best Neighborhoods to Buy a House in Portland in 2018

The Best Neighborhoods to Buy a House In Portland: East Side

The top up-and-coming Portland neighborhoods Maria Fitzgerald recommends are:

St. Johns

St. Johns $344k median sales price.

The St. Johns Neighborhood Association touts this far north neighborhood as a ‘small town in a big city’ – the neighborhood actually was its own incorporated city between 1902 and 1915. This area boasts one of the city’s most beautiful bridges, the St. John’s Bridge, and the corresponding park, Cathedral Park, this neighborhood is also home to a vast assortment of social, shopping, and dining destinations including it’s own McMenamins Theater and Pub and the Moonstruck Chocolate Factory.

While great burgers, beer, and gourmet chocolate aren’t really reasons to buy a home, factor in the affordability, the best-of-both-worlds urban/suburban lifestyle, and the close-knit community which consistently draws young professionals and families to buy and put down roots in this neighborhood and St. John’s is an excellent place to purchase a home in Portland.

Foster-Powell

FoPo $350k median sales price.

The Foster-Powell neighborhood (Or ‘FoPo’ as it’s affectionately referred to by those in the know) is known as ‘The heart of the city’ – and to prove it, the FOPO Neighborhood Association includes a heart in its logo. This outer southeast Portland neighborhood is considered to be one to watch as more families and small businesses move to the area. With no less than eight local parks, a Foster Area Business Association-organized art walk, a neighborhood garden tour, and more, this area is heart-centered and community driven. With the development and launch two years ago of the locally-owned, entrepreneur-friendly Portland Mercado FoPo has cemented itself as one of PDX’s most welcoming and culturally diverse areas.

Also: Cully | Brentwood-Darlington | Rocky Butte

Fitzgerald also advises Portland-area home buyers looking for more house for their money to consider the Cully ($335k median sales price), Brentwood-Darlington ($319 median sales price), and Rocky Butte ($350k median sales price) neighborhoods.

The Best Neighborhoods to Buy a House In Portland: West Side

Maplewood

Sean Becker of Sean Z. Becker Real Estate states that “The area of Vermont Hills and specifically Maplewood is a great place to buy right now. Its close-in, with great homes that are still affordable, making it a great option compared to further out northeast and southeast Portland.” Sean further emphasizes the larger lot sizes available to buyers in these neighborhoods.

Maplewood, an almost exclusively residential neighborhood located in suburban southwest Portland, has its fair share of beautiful parks and greenspace, including the Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden and Gabriel Park. A neighborhood populated with families as well as elder generations, this community is well-connected by the green spaces, hills, and creeks that exemplify an active Portland outdoor lifestyle.

Downtown Beaverton

Alpine Group’s Seann Bates sees strong purchase value near downtown Beaverton and explains, “The city of Beaverton is on a real push to reinvent itself by helping small business and trendy shop owners by revitalizing their downtown area. The homes in this part of town are smaller and more catered toward the first-time home buyer or people looking to renovate.”

Beaverton, with a median home price of $365,300, is a suburb of Portland, Oregon and the 5^th largest city in Oregon. The development of the MAX light rail transportation system into Beaverton in the 1990s made this once far-reaching area immediately more accessible and it’s been growing ever since. With the Beaverton Farmer’s Market, a wide range of authentic and diverse food choices, and countless locally-owned shops and small businesses, as well as a beautiful city park and fountain and a public library, downtown Beaverton and the surrounding area offers home buyers a vibrant community.

As Seann mentioned, the city of Beaverton has focused efforts on downtown growth. The Beaverton Main Street Program “works to foster vibrant commercial districts that draw people, businesses, and investment to key areas of the city” and has successfully revitalized the area, bringing more small businesses to the economy and more growing families to the housing market. Downtown Beaverton is located seven miles west of Portland, making it accessible to the city.

Ready to Buy a House in Portland?

If you’re ready to buy a house in one of these up-and-coming Portland, Oregon neighborhoods, or any other Portland or Vancouver-area home please get in touch with me to learn more about the mortgage lending process and how much house you can afford.

Should You Continue to Rent or Is It Time Buy a Home in Portland?

October 16, 2017 by Mathew Mattila

Renting a home or apartment can certainly have advantages over homeownership. If you have a good property with a great landlord and a rent you can afford it might seem pointless to purchase a new home in the Portland area, especially with home prices spiking in certain neighborhoods. Renting (usually) means someone else must plan for, execute, and pay for repairs, upgrades, and upkeep. When you rent, you’re off the hook for the big-ticket issues that can crop up with home ownership. On the flip side, you’re subject to regular rent increases, little control over your environment, and no real guarantee the apartment or house you’ve been calling home will continue to be the place you make your coffee each morning once your lease comes to an end.

According to Zillow at the time of this post, the median price of homes currently listed in Portland, Oregon is $429,900 while the median rent price in Portland is $1,935.

For renters who are considering buying their first home, a $430K mortgage might feel daunting and even impossible at first glance, especially when compared with the average $1900 a month for rent. But it’s not that simple, and the only way to sort out whether or not purchasing a new home makes financial sense for you is to do the math.

Rent or Buy?

Here are two calculators to help you crunch the numbers: Zillow’s Rent vs Buy Calculator; Discover has another calculator with a unique format that’s kind of fun to play with.

Play the Numbers Game

Of course, the amount of cash you bring to the transaction for a down payment will impact the overall cost of your loan, so use the most accurate numbers possible with these calculators, but do play around with them to see what would change in this equation if you managed to put down just $5k or $10k more.

Also important to remember, your credit score, and the credit score(s) of anyone on the loan with you, will impact what size loan you qualify for as well as how much interest you pay over the life of your mortgage – and that’s something these calculators can’t take into account in real time.

Check Your Credit Score

Check your credit score now so you have an idea of where you stand and what you’re working with. If you have an ‘excellent’ score, coming in at 800 or above, you’ll qualify for the best mortgage rates. A score of 700 or higher is considered ‘pretty good’ and will still qualify for decent rates. Scores below 700 can present more of a challenge to the transaction and you’ll pay for it in higher interest rates on your mortgage loan. This handy calculator at MyFico will help you understand exactly how your FICO® score can impact the interest you’ll pay on your loan.

While you’re doing the homework and preparation toward the purchase of your new home, why not start working toward a better credit score as well? Even a small jump in your credit score may help with saving a bit on the principal of your mortgage.

According to The Motley Fool: “On a $250,000 mortgage, the difference between a 620 credit score and an “excellent” 760 adds up to more than $86,000 in interest savings over the life of a 30-year loan.”

If you knew that a little bit of work on your credit score over the next few months could save you $86,000 over the life of your mortgage loan, would you do it? Well, now you know.

Ultimately, the only way to determine if purchasing a home is a better financial option for you than renting is to sit down and go over the numbers with a local mortgage professional.

Talk to a Mortgage Professional

If you feel you’re ready to move forward with the process of buying a new home, get in touch. Together, we’ll take a closer look at how each of the different factors like credit score, down payment, and current expenditures and debt will come into play when it comes to the size and cost of your new mortgage. I may even be able to give you the insight you need on raising your credit score before you take out the loan, in order to help you get a better overall value on your new mortgage.

Not the right time for you purchase a new home? If you played with the Rent or Buy calculators linked above and it’s just not coming out in your favor, if your credit score is low, or you feel you don’t have the overall budget to make the jump from renting to buying right now, I’d encourage you to get in touch with me anyway. I’ll give you the information and tools you need so that you can start working your way toward achieving your goal of home ownership.

How Much House Can I Afford in Portland, Oregon?

September 21, 2017 by Mathew Mattila

As a mortgage broker with over ten years experience in the Portland, Oregon real estate lending industry I’ve watched first-time home buyers face an increasingly tough market. These days, with fewer homes within affordable range coming up for sale buyers are finding themselves in competition with developers, house flippers, and investors. The average home value in Portland is $416,700 while the current median household income is $63,850. According to Zillow, this puts only about 60% of the current real estate inventory in the metro area within reach for the ‘average’ home buyer.

The question I get asked most frequently by people and families looking to purchase a home is ‘How much house can I afford?’ My number one goal (after getting you into the mortgage that fits your home-ownership goals, future plans, and current circumstances) is to educate my clients so that they come to the table armed with as much information as possible. Knowledge is power in any real estate transaction; this is especially true for those new to the experience of shopping for and purchasing a home.

How Much Mortgage Can You Afford?

One of the single-most important pieces of information you can have when approaching the purchase of a new home is knowing how much home you can comfortably afford.

Your Income and Debt

To avoid overextending your finances and take on a mortgage you can afford, start by looking at what you can comfortably afford to pay per month. A good rule of thumb is to look for a home that costs between two and four times what you earn in income (after taxes) in a single year.

When calculating your finances, it’s important to take into account everything from your salary to your current debt and other monthly expenses like student loans, credit cards, and utility bills.

Your Credit Score and History

Your current credit score, as well as your credit history, also go into calculating your mortgage package. Just like it pays to manage your debt prior to locking in an interest rate on your home loan, improving your overall credit score ahead of time is a way to mitigate the amount of interest you’re going to pay on your home purchase.

Credit card debt is one of the top issues that buyers find they must address before they’re able to make their first home purchase, especially because lenders always give better interest rates to buyers with low debt. Don’t wait to look into your credit score until you’re ready to shop for a new home – do your homework. Spending a few months cleaning up your debt-to-credit ratio and paying cards off whenever possible can save you thousands of dollars over the life of your home loan.

Your Down Payment

Remember, that your down payment (the amount of money you pay toward the purchase of a home) not only impacts the amount you can safely afford overall, but it also influences the interest rate attached to your home loan. Having more cash to put down will save you interest over the life of your home loan, keeps your monthly mortgage payments lower, and could even make your offer more competitive against potential buyers who bring less cash to the transaction.

A good mortgage broker can help you determine the right amount to put toward a home in the form of a down payment.

Most traditional real estate transactions operate on a 20% down payment model, although with so many different loan options available today, a good broker can help you maximize a smaller down payment in some cases. Still, 20% down offers a good balance because it mitigates your interest rate and makes monthly payments more affordable.

Get Mortgage Information From a Professional

Buying a new house should be exciting and fun, but it is also a major life decision and definitely offers a learning curve for first-time home buyers. For the purpose of helping you begin to calculate what size mortgage you can afford, this blog post aims to cover the very basics. If you have a home price in mind and just want to do some basic math to estimate how much the monthly mortgage payment could be, feel free to use. this quick and easy mortgage calculator. If you’re ready to start the mortgage application process, get pre-approved by filling out this online home loan application and I’ll get in touch directly.

I specialize in guiding new home buyers through the mortgage and home-buying process and would love the opportunity to sit down with you to discuss your home-ownership goals, answer your current questions, and help you determine exactly how much home you can afford. Feel free to drop by my office at 1238 NW Glisan Suite A in Portland’s Pearl District, shoot me an email, or give me a call at (971) 404-9844.