Irvington Craftsman: Classic Meets Modern

Julie Davis believes finding home is a story we write ourselves. To Julie, finding home describes the way the buying process itself reveals our style, preferences, and priorities—not to mention what “just feels right,” according to Julia and Evelyn, just two of Julie’s happy homeowners. Her clients call Julie an intuitive agent, an investment-savvy realtor, and a strategic negotiator. But Julie defines her success in simpler terms, “Helping clients find a house means nurturing the process of discovering what home means to them.” As a Portland REALTOR® with Living Room Realty, buyers and sellers not only receive a trusted guide but an agent with profound knowledge in maintaining a home’s integrity. According to Julie, her first-rate education in home construction began years before her real estate career started, when she worked alongside activists devoted to saving and restoring old Portland homes. Today, she’s on the cutting edge of real estate with training in Earth Advantage and a specialty in ADUs, expertise she uses daily to support her clients as they navigate the Portland area’s booming real estate market together. From growing up on a dairy farm in rural Oregon to living in Northeast Portland’s Roseway neighborhood today, Julie’s enthusiasm for the Portland area informs her work with buyers and sellers. First-time home buyers like Sarah, who purchased a home on a single-income and specific budget, credits Julie’s strong negotiation skills with the purchase of her half-acre farm in East Portland’s Gilbert Park neighborhood. After Sarah parted ways with her initial realtor, who relied on assistants to show prospective houses, assistants who often criticized her selections, she searched for a REALTOR® who could also be an advocate. “Julie worked so hard for me,” says Sarah, who knows Julie saved her thousands of dollars in home repairs. When buyers Evelyn and Julia faced the frustration of their seller’s unavailable REALTOR® after the conclusion of their sale, Julie’s ability to build a positive working relationship with the sellers themselves eased the frustration, while also lightening the stress of a big move and subsequent renovations for Evelyn and Julia. Her clients routinely highlight Julie’s unwavering calm when working through the exciting and stressful buying and selling process, but Julia notes that it’s not only a personality strength of Julie’s—it’s just good business, “Julie’s business acumen is very strong. She keeps in mind that real estate is a business, and that can be hard for people—but in the end, it’s an investment.” And Debbie, a client who both sold and bought with Julie’s guidance, hired Julie because of her impressive personal character, in addition to her emotional equilibrium. “I knew I needed someone who could handle themselves well and someone I felt I could trust. The quickest way to lose me in any financial transaction is to pressure me into something,” says Debbie. Julie understands her clients - buyers, sellers and investors  - will need expertise beyond her own, and has built a knowledgement network of experts including construction professionals, home inspectors and financial professionals.  Her clients refer to Julie’s “amazing team,” assembled to support them through the buying and selling process, a group including experienced and trusted women contractors and home inspectors. Julie’s not only building a strong team but providing opportunities for her clients to meet highly capable women entrepreneurs. With over 25 years working as a community activist, and the founding Executive Director of Basic Rights Oregon, her work as a Portland REALTOR® is a natural extension of her advocacy life, where she sought to create a diverse, inclusive, and accepting community of activists to defend everyone’s basic rights. Today, her clients and colleagues are the regular beneficiaries of these remarkable cross-over skills. When it comes to defining what home means to each person, Julie brings a dedicated worldview her clients experience over and over, best summarized by Julie’s own belief that, “Everyone deserves  a place to call home.”