Buying a House in Portland
Buying a home is, for many people, the fulfillment of a dream. Whether it's your first house to call your own, or the dream home you want to stay in for thirty years, it's very exciting to speculate on what you might find, and the house you'll end up in. It's also important to be realistic about the process and what to expect. This is why we believe that open and honest communication is the key to a successful real estate transaction when buying a house in Portland. We'd love to help make this happen together, as a team. Below you'll find our commitments to you and the steps we take to make the process as streamlined and convenient as possible. We use a blend of innovation, technology and truly personalized service to custom-fit your needs.
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Our Commitments to You as a Buyer:
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We invest in technology that really makes a difference when you're buying a home in Portland. The real estate market moves so fast that the difference between getting a house or not might be hours. We use a program called Homequest, which is the fastest property locator we have found. Once your search parameters are set up, you'll receive an e-mail within 30 minutes of a new property hitting the market. Rather than being e-mailed once a day, you can stay truly abreast of each and every property that might fit your needs. Each e-mail will contain all the information a realtor would send you, including addresses. This particular program also maps out each property, so you can see where each house is located in the neighborhood. If you're serious about buying a home in Portland and finding the best property you can, then this system is an invaluable resource. We can be writing an offer before many people have even heard about a listing. If you're in a different phase of gathering information and beginning to compare, this is an invaluable way to begin to learn the market, understand your price range, and follow properties.
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We make it our mission to know and understand each of the distinct neighborhoods of Portland. It's a given that we'll will be able to answer questions about housing and real estate, but more than that we make it our mission to be able to explain to you the schools, proximity to parks, great grocery stores, shops and restaurants. All of the things that make a neighborhood what it is, which is at least as, but many times even more important than the actual house. We love Portland, and take pride in having our finger on the pulse of what is happening now, and what is developing for the future. In this way, we can help our clients make smart decisions as they decide where to buy a home in Portland, often guiding them to areas that are up and coming, and will make wise investments.
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We provide a wealth of information about Portland. Especially for our out-of-town clients who are moving here and buying a home in Portland, we've done our research and can provide you with the best links about the city, once again especially including schools and neighborhoods. We can also provide information about resources such as moving, home inspection and maintenance and anything else you have a specific interest in.
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We hang our license at a fantastic real estate firm called Keller Williams - PDX Central that is incredibly supportive and has an amazing internal structure based on agents helping each other to help our clients. Many times if we're not finding a property that works for you, we can put out a company wide e-mail, and find something that's not on the market yet.
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If you need help finding a great mortgage broker, we have many contacts with loan officers who can help you in buying a home in Portland. They specialize in many different programs, from the basics of an owner-occupied house to more interesting situations that might require some finessing (we love a little finessing). All of the people we have found to work with have an incredible focus on customer service, and have proven them-selves to be amazing resources. We also personally seek out creative loan programs that are not as well-known. Some of these have down payment assistance, or low closing costs, and we think there's a loan out there for everybody who wants to make owning a home a reality.
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After your offer has been accepted, and while it is in escrow, our office manager Sachi will monitor every detail of the transaction to make sure everything is on schedule and moving towards a smooth and easy closing.
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We will keep you updated with annual updates on the value of your home, as well as sending information throughout the year, and being available for questions that may arise concerning taxes, service questions, etc.
Before You Start Looking For Your New Portland Oregon Home:
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Check your credit rating. Straighten out any errors before its too late.
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Determine a comfortable monthly budget for your new purchase, including down payment and monthly payment. It's a good idea to try to get the most house you can afford, without spending so much that you can never leave said house again.
Find a loan program that meets your needs and get pre-approved. A mortgage specialist can help you analyze your credit and determine monthly payments and options. They can also help you understand the different costs and fees associated with a loan, as well as help you find creative ways to finance these. We like to recommend a few mortgage brokers who might be a fit for you and who have helped out our clients in the past. Our favs are:
Kriss Parnell at Keystone Mortgage, w:503.408.1432, c:503.997.9419 or kparnell@keystonepdx.com. Kriss is much-loved by her clients and always seems to be able to figure out a way for a buyer to purchase.
Lorie Clements at Rose City Mortgage, a wonderful, socially responsible local lending company. Contact her to begin your search for a loan that fits all of your needs. She can also give you lots of information on how much your closing costs could be, what you need to get started and more.
Dan Hamada at Pacific Residential Mortgage is constantly winning awards for customer service and our clients see why he deserves them! He can be reached at dan.hamada@pacresmortgage.com or w:503.670.0525, c:503.807.3595.Think about the neighborhood that will best match your needs. Look at our neighborhood and community area as well as community reports to get an idea of the breakdown of different important statistics.
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Or maybe you already know what you like... Identify features that are important to you in a new home. From square footage to lot size, bedrooms to bathrooms, gardens to gourmet kitchens.
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Think about any "deal-makers" or "-breakers" that you might have. You should know what you want but also have some flexiblity, as there can be lots of different qualities that make up the perfect house.
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Meet with us! We'll sit down for Real Estate 101 and go over all the infomation you've been compiling. We'll go over any parts of the process of buying a home in Portland that you're unsure about. Our goal is to have our clients feel knowledgeable and confident about the process. We'll discuss features you've thought about, and talk about the pros and cons of different neighborhoods. We'll set up some criteria so that we can start searching for listings for you. When we meet you should bring any questions you have, a pre-approval letter from your lender, and some thoughts about which charity you like. You're ready to start looking!