Tag: Portland LGBTQ REALTOR®

Gifting to Trans Youth in Need

Posted on by Living Room Realty

Howdy y’all! Please consider donating or gifting to trans youth this holiday season through Transanta! Transanta is a community organization who delivers gifts to trans youth both safely and anonymously. Queer & trans people have been at the center of hate in more ways than one — whether that be direct tragic attacks or anti-trans legislation being proposed across the country. It isn’t difficult to see or understand how this negatively impacts our community deeply, especially BIPOC trans youth. While there is a plethora of work to do and many conversations to have; focusing on giving to trans youth is more important than ever. If you have the means to donate, please do and help bring some joy to trans youth. Being queer and trans is beautiful; let’s do our best to support trans youth and that notion. Happy holidays to you and yours! Wishing you all warmth and safety.

You can donate on the Transanta website or if you’re looking to gift directly, check out the wishlists on their Instagram.

Exploration and location

Posted on by Natalie Tracy

Dolly and Steve were living on the East Coast when they first reached out to me last Spring, following a referral from lovely recent clients. They had visited Portland before and felt strongly committed to relocating here.

Initially their goal was to find a home remotely. Specifically, they wanted to find a new construction home that was not yet complete. But they didn’t really know Portland that well. They had never lived here, nor visited enough to be very
familiar with the area. Of course, the various neighborhoods of Portland are so different from each other, and they were even considering including Vancouver in their search. So, I encouraged them to do what I recommend for all my relocating clients: rent first, short-term if possible, so they can explore, get the lay of the land, and be more confident about what areas they should be looking in.

They followed my advice and got a short-term rental in Vancouver in the fall. Within two weeks of being here, and with a list of areas we’d come up with for them to explore, they’d honed in on neighborhoods that felt like a potential fit for them and their daughter. They continued to spend time exploring the city as a family on weekends. And when the timing felt right, we got out looking at houses.

In the process of touring homes, we narrowed the search to several neighborhoods on Portland’s west side. We looked at homes in West Haven, none of which were quite right. But the neighborhood was perfect for them, so when this home came on the market, we saw it right away and they loved it!

We submitted their offer over an unusually busy New Year’s weekend, with a cash offer was hot on our heels. They came at it with all the bells and whistles and their offer was accepted!

Dolly and Steve were over the moon. In just a little over three months from when they arrived and began exploring, we got them the right house in the right location. They can’t wait to settle in and make it their own!

If At First You Don’t Succeed

Posted on by Natalie Tracy

Katie and Krista had a clear picture of what they wanted in their first home. A lovely home in a lovely location. With home offices, a home gym, and room for guests. But they weren’t sure exactly where they wanted to land or if they could actually get what they wanted in the competitive late spring/summer market. We strategized and processed and distilled down the ‘must haves’ versus the ‘nice to haves’. And then we saw A LOT of houses.

I love this part of the journey with my clients. The casting of a broad net, and then mindfully sorting through a day’s/week’s/months’s haul of listings. Learning what hits the mark and what doesn’t. The growing confidence that I could preview a home without them, and know whether or not it could be “the one”.

It’s so much about listening and watching. How do they react to a particular house? To a particular location. To a house that could use a kitchen overhaul and then some. To a house that’s had a kitchen overhaul and then some. Pulling in their fantastic local lender to fill in the numbers end of the picture. Because how folks react to a home is very much impacted by their particular home buying big picture. And no one can make good decisions without information. Without people in their corner guiding them along the way.

I love this part of the journey. What I love even more is finding “the one”. With Katie and Krista, that took a few swings and misses. They ended up in second place twice, on really lovely houses, in really lovely locations. Fast forward a few months. We found ourselves walking into the loveliest house in the loveliest location. It was their favorite location yet. And we all felt it the minute we walked in the door.

Krista took one step in and said “This is it, this is our house!” And Katie and I knew she was right.

And she was.

There was TOUGH competition for the house. And TOUGH navigating of party sewer lines and oil tanks and leaning chimneys. But when it’s “the one”, it has a way of working out.

And it did. They hung in there. They stayed focused on the end game. They had a great team in their corner. And we all worked together to make it a go.

And now they have the lovely home in the lovely location. With home offices, a home gym, and room for guests. The home that checks so many boxes and then some. I can’t wait to see them make it their own!

Relocating? Rent first!

Posted on by Natalie Tracy

There are times when it makes sense to move to a new city and buy a house right away. For instance, if an employer is part of the process, or if you already know the city well. But for many folks, moving to a new state or new city is overwhelming all by itself, without throwing a house search in the mix. They don’t know the neighborhoods, the transit system, bike routes, schools, coffee shops, and so on. They aren’t yet sure where in the city the want to settle long-term.

And for folks in this category, it just makes sense to rent first! Christy, Aaron, and Maddie were in just this situation when we met. They were referred by a friend prior to their move from the east coast, and had a goal to buy a house within 1-2 months. They’d been looking online, and had some ideas. But they weren’t sure whether they wanted to buy their first home in Portland or Vancouver. After several conversations, I advised them to consider renting for at least 3-6 months after moving, so they could explore neighborhoods.

Oh, and did I mention they were moving with their then 2-month-old baby? Yeah, it just made sense to let their family settle before taking on a house search! So they found a rental with some flexibility, and went about exploring Portland and Vancouver neighborhoods.

Fast forward to May 2020. They had a handle on what would work for their family for their first home. They had tested commute times. They had a list of neighborhoods. And we were off on the search! And as so often happens, because they had focus and knew what they wanted, we found their sweet first home within a few weeks. Now they’re getting ready to enjoy their backyard, have their baby take her first steps in their first home, and just enjoy being new homeowners!

Real estate in the time of COVID-19: Part I

Posted on by Natalie Tracy

The most common question I get from clients of late – buyers and sellers alike – is “what’s it like to buy/sell a house right now?” The short answer is: not much different than buying/selling a house at any other time. The long answer: well, it is different in some key ways.

First and foremost, those of us conducting real estate right now want to keep people safe. We want to do the very best for our clients, as always. But that means doing our best to keep them safe while also getting them the house of their dreams and/or selling their house with an optimal outcome. To this end, the first big change to the home buying and selling process in the time of COVID-19 has been the huge shift to virtual options.

We’ve had the options of 3D virtual tours, video tours, virtual showings, and virtual open houses for a long time now. But when we could be face-to-face with most folks most of the time, virtual was more seen as a nice-to-have versus a must-have. During a pandemic, when we need to limit in-person contacts for everyone, virtual has taken center stage and become an absolute must.

All of my listings now have 3D virtual tours and video tours. I offer virtual showings to all of my buyers, and make them available on all of my listings. I am starting to offer virtual open houses on all of my listings. This takes what used to be a much less accessible and much more time consuming process for buyers and potential buyers, and makes it accessible to everyone and much less time consuming.

For instance, if buyers are interested in ten homes, but they can narrow that down to two homes by viewing 3D tours and/or having virtual showings – guess how much time they save, let alone how much less driving has to happen? It’s a win-win for people and the planet. And it allows me to more efficiently and effectively serve my clients, hooray! Additionally, those folks just beginning the process, who may not yet have an agent helping them, have full access to homes virtually. It helps them dream and plan, and it can also help them find THE one!

So a much bigger push to virtual is the first key change to buying and selling homes in the time of COVID-19. And with the need to rethink how we do business longer-term for the sake of our planet, this is a change I believe will stick around. Even when we can conduct business more readily in person again.

Stay tuned for more soon!