Tag: portland oregon relocation

4 Tips for Successfully Relocating to Portland and Buying a Home

Posted on by Lydia Hallay

Relocating to Portland is an exciting but complex process. The housing market in Portland is competitive, and navigating it from another afar requires a solid strategy and a supportive team. Here are four essential tips to help you successfully buy a home in Portland from out of state.

1. Hire with a Portland Realtor Who Specializes in Relocations

Your first step to relocation success is to find a realtor partner who is experienced in helping out of state buyers transition to Portland can make a huge difference. Look for a real estate agent who:

  • Has experience assisting out-of-state buyers with virtual tours and remote transactions.
  • Can provide insights on neighborhoods that align with your lifestyle and budget.
  • Knows how to structure competitive offers that stand out in a multiple-bid market.

You will need to have a Buyer Broker Agreement in place prior to touring properties. The Buyer Broker Agreement (or BBA) is your tool to hire a realtor; it outlines your working relationship and allows your realtor to get to work on your behalf.

2. Get Pre-Approved and Identify Your Wants and Needs

Portland’s real estate market can be fast-paced and competitive; preparation is key:

  • Get pre-approved for a mortgage with a lender familiar with Oregon’s financing options (unless you’re buying with cash). Without a clear plan for how to finance your purchase, you can’t shop in earnest. Before you can go out shopping with your realtor, you’ll need a pre-approval letter stating how much you can borrow- and, enough funds available to cover your earnest money, down-payment, and closing costs.
  • Research property taxes and cost-of-living differences between your current state and Portland.
  • Monitor market trends to understand pricing fluctuations and inventory levels. Your realtor should be your resident expert on this topic.
  • Plan for additional costs, such as inspections, repairs, and relocation expenses. 

3. Plan a Strategic Visit to Explore Homes and Neighborhoods

If at all possible, schedule a trip to tour homes in person. Photos and videos often don’t do properties justice. Your realtor can only convey so much about the “je ne sais quoi” of a property.

To make the most of your visit:

  • Prepare for back-to-back showings to maximize your time viewing homes. Generally speaking, it takes 30-45 minutes to tour each property. With travel time between properties, that could mean a long day of visits! Your realtor will typically plan the day on your behalf, with properties you’ve either discussed in advance or that they think meet your criteria.
  • Explore various neighborhoods and types of homes to find the right fit for your lifestyle and needs.
  • Meet with your realtor prior to your visit to discuss your home-buying strategy. That will help you make the most of your time- and ensure you’re on the same page about what you’re looking for in a new home.

4. Be Ready to Act Quickly & Decisively

When relocating to Portland from out of state, it’s important that you and your realtor are aligned on your wants & needs. If your search parameters are too broad, it can be difficult to know when you’ve found “the one.” Your agent can tour on your behalf, answer questions you have about the property/neighborhood… but only you know whether a home is truly right for you.

If your search criteria is scattered and you find yourself drawn to properties across the entire metro area, in a wide range of styles or price points, or in all kinds of conditions (fixer, new, renovated, etc.)- it might be a sign that you need to visit in person to narrow your wants & needs.

In Portland’s highly competitive market, homes often go pending days.  Decisive action might mean submitting an offer sight unseen, or getting on a flight so you can see a property in person.

Final Thoughts: Making a Smooth Transition to Portland

Relocating to Portland requires careful planning and the right real estate team. By working with an experienced relocation realtor, understanding the market, strategically exploring homes, and acting quickly and decisively, you can make a confident and successful purchase.

Ready to start your home-buying journey? As a 20-year resident of Portland, I love helping out of state buyers find their perfect place to land. I work with lots of relocation clients, and would love to hear more about your home hopes & dreams. Reach out today!

Schedule a next steps huddle here.

Portland Oregon Real Estate Market Update for June 2024

Posted on by Lily Ray Wyss

What we discuss:

Some normalcy and balance returning to the market.

An update on interest rates.

What both home buyers and home sellers can expect from the summer market.

Home prices during an election year.


Is the frenzy of the early Spring market over? It seems so.

The hottest of hot homes are still selling for over asking, but it seems that data and comparables have caught up to the epic price jumps we were seeing a few months ago.

Balancing the market some.

Though the data does show that we are still seeing activity increase across the board:

New listings are up 12% with 3,508 homes hitting the market.

Pending sales are marginally up by just 2% with 2,363 homes going under contract.

Sold homes are up 13% with 2,140 homes going to new homeowners.

Inventory of homes has stayed steady at 2.3 months (from 2.4 months in April).

What does this “new” market mean?

For home buyers, this means that while you will still deal with a seller’s market, especially if you are shopping in a hot area, there will be more homes sitting on the market and with those homes, the opportunity returns to ask for price reductions and credit asks.

And on the hot homes, while you may still deal with competition, it’s likely not the 10+ offers of the Spring market but a normal 3-4.

For home sellers, this means that demand for your home will typically still be great, it is just more important than ever that you price your home well.

Interest rates are still high and buyers are not just as frenzied as they were in the Spring. So your likelihood of sitting on the market and not getting multiple offers is higher if you don’t price accordingly and prep your home correctly.

On the note of interest rates, it is still predicted that we will only see one significant decrease in rates this year.

In terms of what you can expect for the summer, we should see activity remain high throughout July and then slow down as it historically does in August.

But no worries if you are someone who is thinking of selling around that time or plan to buy in August, those who are serious in the market will still be making real estate moves, and things do always pick up in September.

Speaking of August, August 17th is now the new date that changes will be implemented across the real estate industry for those who belong to the National Association of Realtors (which all Portland area agents do). The main changes are that buyers will need to enter into a contract with their agent prior to seeing homes, and buyers’ agent commissions can no longer be displayed on the MLS, but counter to what has been stated in some places, as of now, sellers are still able to offer compensation to the buyer’s agent.

This will certainly still bring changes to our industry, as an experienced realtor of 7 years, I believe many of them will be positive but if you have any questions or concerns and would like to discuss them I would be happy to talk.

Have questions or want to discuss your next move? I would love to chat. You can find my contact informatin below.