Tag: timeline

The Long and the Short of It: A Quick Chat On Closing Timelines

Posted on by Living Room Realty

Congrats to our buyer J for the successful close of his dream home, in his dream neighborhood, of Lake O!

Let’s have a quick chat about closing timelines: nowadays, its rare to encounter sellers wanting a longer close (than the typical 30 days). This case was a little different. The house was truly decorated like a museum, and they needed time to be able to move all of their worldly possessions out and patch the walls for the new owner.

More often than not, in competitive scenarios we’re seeing cash closes of two weeks, sometimes even three week closes on financed transactions – such short timelines for all that goes into such a big purchase!

Occasionally, a seller prefers either a longer close, or “rent back” period (when the home closes on a typical timeline but then the seller “rents” the home back from the new owner).

In general, it is most advantageous for buyers to be amenable to the timeline of the sellers when writing offers, whether or not there’s competition: if it’s not a match, the seller will either reject the offer or accept with a sour taste in their mouth going into the transaction.

In this case, the seller didn’t mind waiting for the funds (or didn’t need the funds to be able to move forward with their next home purchase) and didn’t want to deal with the nuances of a “rent back”, so we adjusted to a longer close. It allowed for a comfortable inspection period and a cushy timeline for back and forth communications – what a change of pace in this crazy market! It was also just the concession needed to get our offer accepted $50k UNDER list price !!

Thankfully, buyers don’t get any cooler (or more reasonable) than J, who was uber flexible on timelines and understood what it would take to make his homeownership goals a reality.

Don’t hesitate to reach out if you’d like to discuss more in depth how closing timelines can help to inform your offer-writing strategy as a buyer.

Celebrating a Decade of Living Room Realty

Posted on by Living Room Realty

The first Living Realty office door opened in March 2009 at 1422 NE Alberta Street in the heart of the Alberta Arts neighborhood.

We started small. Adding a few agents at a time—people who were looking for a different kind of real estate brokerage. We were creating a place where we could do the work we loved while supporting each other and the communities we served.

And then a few more agents came. And it was time for another office. SE Portland offered up just the right spot in the Clinton neighborhood.

In 2013, we became the first real estate brokerage on the West Coast to become a Certified B Corp. We were now officially—in a certified way—using business as a force for good.

That brought more agents. And more clients. We were doing something different and word was getting out.

Half a decade in, we opened an office at the coast in Manzanita. Then an office in Vancouver, WA. Then Portand’s westside came calling, and soon we found our spots in the Pearl and Multnomah Village.

And so it went—for 10 years—living by our values every day. Donating 5% of our profits to charity. Launching our Loving Room Fund. Attracting the best agents in the city, and supporting them so they could support their families, friends, and clients.

And then we looked up and it was time. Time to celebrate this important milestone.

We considered having a birthday party where we served cake and champagne and gave speeches and toasts. That would have made for a delicious and enjoyable night, no doubt.

But, instead, we paused and looked around at the 130 agents we work with every day. We considered all the talent they possess beyond expertly negotiating a real estate transaction. And, naturally, our next thought was:

“Let’s put on a show!!”

And we did. And we called it the Decade Party. And it was good. It was really good. Watch the video below while listening to our new theme song, “Make a Move.” You’ll see the joy and fun and talent we swim in. If the video makes you feel good, know that feeling is similar to what you feel when you walk into one of our offices. Try it.

Seriously, come visit us at any of our offices. Come in and say hi. We mean it.

Once you turn 10, you start thinking in terms of decades. We’re thinking about the coming days, weeks, months, and years; and what they’ll look like when they add up to our next decade. We’re asking ourselves, what can we do that we haven’t done yet? What can we do better that we have done before? What can we build on top of the foundation we’ve established over the past 10 years?

We know we want to keep living by our values. We know we want to have an impact on the communities around us. We know we want to keep working with agents who care. We know we want to continue to create space for our agents to tell their own stories and the stories of the buyers and sellers they work with.

Above all, we want to keep fulfilling our company mission to “Develop Vibrant Communities.”