Farm Archives - Living Room Realty

St. Johns Urban Homestead

Posted on October 6, 2023October 6, 2023 by Kim Parmon

Classic Bungalow on .68 acres

9233 N Bristol Ave. | Portland, OR 97203

Offered at $799,900 | MLS #23502861

3 Bedrooms + Bonus | 2 Bath | 2,655 sq. ft. + Outbuildings

Located on a quiet street in St Johns is a solid craftsman farmhouse on a magical .68 acre lot. This is a rare opportunity to create a true urban homestead in the middle of the city while being blocks away from shops, restaurants, and incredible parks. The beautiful 1914 home retains its original charm, with a grand front porch leading to a spacious living and dining room with original millwork and wood floors, plus a newer permitted woodstove for cozy evenings by the fire. The kitchen features original handmade cabinetry with updated appliances and an open passthrough for flow to the dining space. There is a main floor bedroom and bath as well as a spacious sun porch that could be used as a guest space.

Upstairs, find a large common area with two additional bedrooms, a bathroom, and a bonus room that could be a fourth bedroom or home office with access to a rooftop deck. The unfinished basement offers plenty of storage and workspace.

The house is special, but the real showstopper here is the property itself: there are so many nooks and crannies to explore, including an oversized shop, a private Airstream area with an outdoor bathroom complete with ADA accessible shower, a Cob-style pizza oven, extensive gardens, an alpaca enclosure, and so much more. For the development minded, the property is zoned R5 and could potentially accommodate a small subdivision with the Residential Infill Project allowances (buyer to do due diligence), or work the land to create the urban farm of your dreams as there is plenty of space to spread out and play. HES=1

Walk Through Tour

Moving to the Country…

Posted on July 23, 2021 by Living Room Realty

Hi, Readers!

With increased frequency, I am hearing from buyers interested in moving to the country. My theory is COVID recalibrated home for a lot of us, reset our lifestyles and redefined what we truly need from the concept of home. No longer are we tethered to the commute — as long as there is fast Internet available life can go on basically uninterrupted. We yearn for more room to roam. We want the simpler life. OK. “We” means me. 👩‍🌾

Which leads me to the fact that recently, I’m doing a lot of business in beautiful Corbett. Corbett, if you don’t know, is an incredible town that is on the Historic Columbia Scenic Route on the way to the glorious Gorge, home to Oxbow Park and the Vista House. It’s also where you’ll find a terrific, nostalgic drive through, Sugar Pine, which has legendary ice cream cones. I’ve enjoyed my time there, being able to stop with my kid Tycho and take a dip in the Sandy on hot days.

And I’ve definitely enjoyed being able to help find the new owners of a gorgeous Craftsman on Mershon Road, which I lovingly called The Rose of Corbett. This house has so much heart, you guys. The seller is a master craftsman who hand-hewn the woodwork. The paint and fixtures were all carefully chosen to pay homage to the era of the home. The barn is the stuff of legends, with a darling chicken coop and stained glass windows. It is the type of place you just feel good in. Ahhhh.

I’m so grateful to be able to go back to my roots of wandering the countryside and help people find home outside the hustle of the city.

If you’re curious about what buying land or rural property involves, please reach out. I can talk septic systems all day. OK, maybe not all day, but I know a lot about ’em. I’ll even treat you to an ice cream.

Till then, high fives,

Peaceful Splendor in Oregon City

Posted on June 15, 2020June 15, 2020 by Living Room Realty

16808 S Bradley Rd

Oregon City, OR 97045

Spacious country home on nearly five lush acres in Oregon City. Flowers and mature fruit trees abound on this idyllic property with its own fenced pasture and creeks. The solid house offers spacious living with four bedrooms and 3 baths. Curl up around the cozy living room fireplace after a day out in nature. Bright and cheery remodeled kitchen with unique sunroom and wood stove insert. Gorgeous cherry floors throughout. Finished basement with separate entrance and pellet stove could make a perfect rental or provide multigenerational living. Fresh paint inside and out. Steel entry gates and doors for privacy and security. This is the perfect place to get away from it all and enjoy the respite of country living.

OFFERED AT $599,900

4 BEDROOM | 2 BATH | 2,534 SQFT

MLS# 20000764 | TAXES: $2,875

Selling the Family Farm

Posted on January 11, 2019January 12, 2023 by Living Room Realty

When one of my all time favorite clients called to ask if could help her dad sell his childhood home, there was no way I could say no. After learning more about the property and having a fall vacation scheduled, I decided to seek the co-advice of one of my amazing colleges, Kim Parmon. I can honestly say, this ended up being one of my wisest decisions ever.

Kim and I met with our client when we competed for the listing. Immediately, we both fell in love with the property. A charming 50’s ranch, located on 18+ acres with jaw dropping views out of the wall of windows throughout the main floor. We were in the country, with deer in the backyard, but minutes from the city. An old historic barn sat to the side of the house. The barn once housed cows and horses, hosted weddings, a basketball hoop and a loft with a rope swing. It full of charm and possibility.

The listing went live toward the end of September. It truly was a one of a kind property and buyers felt the same way. Despite the million dollar plus market being a little softer, we received multiple offers within days. Typically, multiple offers lead to a fairly straight forward transaction. However, in this case, Kim and I were faced with sale fails and numerous negotiations. This caused a high level of stress for both our seller and the potential buyers. The uniqueness and emotional pull of this property made it difficult for all. In the end, a buyer and the seller were able to come to terms acceptable for all and we could not be more thrilled.

Yesterday Kim and I received an e-mail from our client saying, “It’s been a pleasure working with you both. You’ve expended a lot of energy, time and expense, doing things above and beyond our expectations. From dealing with the inspections, well and septic folks, providing the cleaning and warranty, keeping good communications the whole while, and not pressuring any decisions, but providing lucid advice when asked for, has made this transaction as good as it could be. The icing on the cake is the thoughtful painting – it will give us a wonderful memory of the family farm.”

We couldn’t be happier for our client and that we were able to provide the type of service that we strive to give in every transaction. We would love to help you and your friends with your real estate needs. And, if you want a painting of your house, similar to the one of the barn above, we can hook you up with that too!

NICE AND SLOW WITH ROOM TO GROW

Posted on December 18, 2018 by Living Room Realty

Expecting their fourth boy. J&B were feeling the constraints of their first home. They had found a listing for the perfect little slice of rural life just outside the city and gave me a call. The property was a rural farm house in Canby, OR. With over 3,000 square feet and just over an acre of land. The photos online featured a river running through the backyard, one of the biggest Oak trees I have ever seen, and the cutest little pump house covered with ivy.

It was a chilly January afternoon when we decided to check it out. As we pulled up, the sun broke through the clouds. It didn’t take long to realize that this home was perfect for them. Soon after, I went to work developing a game plan
to rush their current house to market. Then we wrote an offer! This gem of a property had been listed for sale by owner for over a year. Imagine our surprise when another offer came in the same day as ours… and it was accepted!

We were all a bit devastated. It had been so easy envisioning them making that property their home. I knew how much they wanted that house. We had laid down all of their cards with the offer. The offer was well below asking and at the top of their budget. The house had sat for so long though. So back to the drawing board we went. It was pretty clear from the get go though, that they just weren’t ready to move on. J&B were not going to just get over “the one that got away”. So, with the impending birth of a new baby, J&B decided that moving just wasn’t meant to be. They decided to stay put for the time being.

Fast forward two months later and two weeks from baby 4’s arrival…. I got a call from the owner of their dream property. Rising interest rates had caused the accepted offer to fall out of contract. The house was going back on the market. The owner wanted to know if my clients were still interested? I immediately called J&B and told them I needed to talk to them in person. They had no idea what I was about to tell them (see the reaction photo above). They were beyond excited and we resubmitted!

Being a rural property. The inspections are a little more nuanced than they tend to be in city limits. We asked for one month to list and sell their old home. We then asked for a 20 business day inspection period rather than the usual 10. The rural property was located on a flood zone. It also had a well and septic tank that we needed to understand.

With baby T due in just two weeks, we went to work preparing their house for sale. Walls and cabinets were painted. Staging was brought in and some landscaping was done to ensure that the house would sell promptly. All the efforts paid off! The house went pending! We then wrapped up the purchase of their dream home!

Fast forward 5 months. This family is now settled into the rural life! They have spent the summer swimming, catching snakes, making new friends, and enjoying river view sunsets. This purchase certainly wasn’t a short one, but it was well worth it to see this family living their dream! Just as they had envisioned on that cold January afternoon.