Don’t Fence Me In…

“Oh, give me land, lots of land under starry skies above
Don’t fence me in
Let me ride through the wide open country that I love
Don’t fence me in
Let me be by myself in the evenin’ breeze
And listen to the murmur of the cottonwood trees
Send me off forever, but I ask you please
Don’t fence me in…”
See all those big, gorgeous trees?  They are now the beloved property of Chris and Adrianne;  all 5.83 acres of them.  5 ACRES, people!  After living smack dab in the heart of urban bustle on NE 81st and Fremont St in NE Portland for 14 years, Chris and Adrianne were ready for a change.  Chris and Adrianne were ready for a  big change.  They both had grown up in rural areas and were ready to get back to those roots.  Chris wanted land to work, and plant, and manage.  Adrianne wanted peace and tranquility with private space for a hot tub to enjoy not just a nice view, but a panorama.  And after living with 1418 adorable but quirky square feet spread out over three floors, they (and their two pups) wanted some space to spread out in their new home.  They loved the historic charm of their 1924 home for a decade and a half, but it was time for a more modern floor plan.  An open kitchen, great-room floor plan seemed almost too good to be true!
But Adrianne and Chris also wanted to buy and sell at the same time, which meant getting a contingent offer accepted in one of the hottest seller’s markets we’ve ever seen.  We definitely put some miles in looking at properties anywhere between Salem and Vernonia and then Chris and Adrianne saw this Amity property and we knew we were done.
Well, except the part where Adrianne and Chris needed to have their contingent offer accepted by the sellers, and then the part where they needed to get their current NE 81st house on the market within 6 days, and then receive an acceptable offer on NE 81st within another 6 days or all bets were off…
This Amity property had not just 1 acre, but almost 6!  This property had over 3000 square feet, all on one level.  And yes, this property had an open kitchen-dining room greatroom floorplan.  Chris and Adrianne were willing to move mountains to get this home.
So did they do it?  Did it all work out, you ask?  Why yes, it did.  With a ton of work on Adrianne and Chris’ parts, and with the help of their very experienced real estate team who came up with a good plan, and presented that plan in detail to the Sellers. We also analyzed the niche market details right down to the minutes before listing their NE 81st home and adjusted the listing price to ensure a quick sale and multiple offers.  Even with some unexpected hurdles, it all worked out like a beautiful fairy tale happy ending (because what Fairy Tale doesn’t have some serious roadblocks?).
If this all sounds daunting to you, well, it kind of is.  It takes some gumption and serious stamina to buy and sell a house all at the same time, but Chris and Adrianne just plugged away.  They took one step at a time and on the days where they had to take 7 steps at a time, they dug deep and got ‘er done.
Was it all worth it?