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Today-Clients home purchase in Eastmoreland, closed and recorded! Next week- the sale of their current house, on track to do the same.

The Holiday Ale Festival is going on now through December 6th. With over 50 craft beers, many brewed specifically for the festival, this is event should be at the top of every beer lover’s To-Do list this holiday season.

Learn more by clicking here.

The in-state rivalry that I anticipate will be more grueling than any Black Friday crowd, and quite possibly, more entertaining than watching two people fighting over the last stereo on sale at 4AM. The Civil War. The Beavers roll into Eugene to face the Oregon Ducks. The Beavs have not won this matchup for eons, and maybe it’s their time….or maybe it’s not. Both teams have been tried and tested this season, and this could be the game that sends the winner to the Rose Bowl to compete for the PAC 12 Title. The Ducks are the more dominate team, but if I were a Beaver fan, I wouldn’t skimp out on the drive to Eugene. The opportunity cost of could be the experience of a lifetime. It’s college football. Anything can happen…

During Wine Country Thanksgiving, more than 160 wineries and tasting rooms in the Willamette Valley open their doors for special tastings and holiday festivities over Thanksgiving weekend (Friday-Sunday), offering an opportunity to visit some of the region’s small, family-owned wineries that aren’t usually open to the public. Meet winemakers, enjoy specialty food pairings and live music, all while savoring the region’s acclaimed wines.

CLICK HERE for more information.

Don’t forget to watch Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade

Shine a light to show support for our Veterans
November 11th is Veteran’s Day. Change one light to green in a visible location on your porch, in your home, or at your office and keep it glowing every day as a symbol of appreciation and support for our veterans.

For more information and a great video about Greenlight a Vet project, click HERE.

Oregon’s Economy is at “Full-Throttle Growth”

As we head into the height of autumn, and the beginning of the holiday season, the overall pool of home buyers shrink due to these seasonal factors. But economic reports for Q3, combined with copious amounts of data from both the US housing and equities market over a long period of time, indicate that you should invest your savings in the real estate market NOW, the end-of-the-year, to get the greatest return on your money.

Why? Three Reasons:

#1 Saving your sanity. You don’t have to fight Black Friday crowds to save a few bucks on Xmas shopping.

2. Price appreciation in the last two months has started to moderate. According to September’s Market Action Report by RMLS, home prices continued to rise in 2015 compared to 2014. Comparing each year through September, the average sale price rose 5.9% from $333,000 to $352,500. In the same comparison, the median sale price rose 7.0% from $285,000 to $305,000. Sales slowed after the summer buying spurt with a median home price of $304,700. Inventory stayed stable at 1.9 months in, and total market time increased to 46 days. Freddie Mae increased interest rates to 3.82%; remaining within the industry standard of mortgage rate movement. But, the Federal Reserve made it clear it might increase rates by end of year. This leaves a window of opportunity for you to take advantage of low interest rates with lower home prices. You could get a bigger bang for your buck if you buy an investment property in November or December.

3. You get more return on your investment in real estate than if you invest in the stock market. Based on an analysis from Zillow, from 1975 to 2014, the S&P 500 averaged an annual return of 10.4%, while residential real estate returned 11.6% each year on average. Even though this is a small, 1.2% average return on investment (given all factors), it can result in a very big payoff as returns are compounded each and every year. Not to mention, when you own a home, you build equity and lessen your tax burden by writing off your interest on the mortgage. Overall, home prices also rose on average of 4% per year during the same time span mentioned above.

If you are thinking about investing in real estate, give me a call. I’m happy to help you find a property or answer any questions you may have.

The Northwest Filmmakers’ Festival presents features, documentaries and short films by independent Northwest film and video makers. The offerings are chosen from more than 400 entries by a prominent member of the independent film community. Past judges have included local luminaries Gus Van Sant, Matt Groening and Todd Haynes. Founded in 1973, the festival attracts more than 6,000 attendees annually.

CLICK HERE for more information.

The cost of living in Portland is going up, which means, so does your monthly income from investment properties.

According to The Portland Business Journal, Portland ranked No. 78 out of the 106 markets studied for purchasing power, determined by using a market’s average salary, adjusted for cost of living. Portland’s housing market is more affordable and has a long cost advantage over other West Coast cities like Seattle and San Francisco.

This affordability is likely contributed to strong economic performance. The Portland Metro ranks No. 23 for average pay, No. 24 in job growth with an average five-year-growth rate (1.2%) and pay (1.9%) exceeded the averages for all 106 cities compared in this study.

The affordability of Portland’s commercial sector has attracted many new companies in the tech and healthcare sector from cities like San Francsico and New York to take advantage of the low rents. Many people are moving to Portland looking for homes in areas where the cost of living will produce long-term gains on their home.

According to the article, here are the top five fastest-selling neighborhoods if you are looking for a good investment property:

1. Forest Heights
2. Ladds Addition/Hawthorne
3. Piedmont/Concordia
4. Foster/Powell
5. North Tabor/Hollywood District