Category: General

All About Lake Oswego, Oregon real estate topics

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What Renewal Looks Like in 2020

Rod Long

As we all slow down a bit, most of us celebrate renewal this time of year with Easter, Passover or other traditions.  As I was out showing properties today, I was noticing the way we really are all in this together. Standing six feel apart with our masks on, I slowly and carefully remove the keys from the lockbox with a sanitizing wipe and move through all the precautions we are taking nowadays… fresh booties at each house, gloves, more wipes, hand sanitizer… We carefully tiptoe into people’s homes pondering if this one might be “the one”, careful to respect the human life that inhabits each home and leaving everything untouched and “safe” for those who follow behind or return home. We are all slowed down together.  Still moving forward with our various dreams and plans… just a little slower and a bit more thoughtfully. Considering each other slightly more seriously. Considering ourselves. It is a very sweet realization amid the madness… to see and to help the dreams unfold, and again to notice the truth of the fact that we really are all in this together.

How poignant the holiday of renewal at this moment in time.

May each of our dear Property Blotter readers be safe & healthy, and may your dreams stay intact and your plans proceed unhindered. My hope is that we all emerge with a renewed & lasting appreciation for each other and our unique yet intertwined lives in the years ahead.

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Hoping For an Aquatics Center

Not including the 6 years I lived in Lake Oswego as a teenager, I have been living in Lake Oswego for 22 years. In all of that time, I have been wanting a decent swim center. I don’t swim regularly, I’m a walker, but I do love to swim. I think the reason I don’t swim regularly is because the current city pool is, well, awful. It’s located at Lake Oswego High School and was built many decades ago. It’s old, and dank, and just not inviting. So the news I got in the latest issue of Hello LO really lifted my spirits.

On March 16th, the Lake Oswego City Council, along with the Lake Oswego School Board, voted unanimously to proceed with planning and construction of a new Community Recreation and Aquatics Center. The plan is to build it where the Municipal Golf Course currently sits at the junction of Stafford Rd and Overlook Dr. The planned facility will include a lap pool, warm water pool (I think that means a spa), plus space for meetings and activities.

I currently swim at the SW Community Center in the Multnomah Village neighborhood of Portland. It’s about a 15 minute drive from my house, but worth it. I so hope what Lake Oswego builds will be something similar.

The nicest pool I’ve ever enjoyed was in Victoria, B.C. Called Saanich Commonwealth Place, it was built for The Commonwealth Games in 1994. What this swim center has that I think is pretty much pure genius, is a library and a coffee shop. Think about it. The kids need some exercise, you want a cup of coffee, and everyone needs a good book. Pure Genius.

Wishing you well in these strange times, and hoping that this swim center can still come to life,
Dianne

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Real Estate in the Time of COVID

Dear Property Blotter Readers,

Dianne and I are thinking of you during this challenging moment & wishing health and peace to you and yours. I hope this is a time of staying at home with your loved ones & enjoying some things you usually don’t get to enjoy.

I’m told by my trusted Mortgage Advisors that mortgage interest rates are supposed to dip to 3-ish again shortly as that zero interest rate flushes out the crush that happened a few weeks ago when they went down that low (the saturation pushed them back up to 4-ish for a time). Sales are actually moving along really well in Lake Oswego and the overall Portland area right now (see Market Report). Prices are lowering in some cases and being pushed up in others with multiple offers. In other words- the usual, and right now we have 182 Active Properties for sale in Lake Oswego, with 87 currently Pending and 22 Sold/Closed last week. 22 of those Active Properties went on the market just last week.

The other day RMLS removed the Open House section from the site. Some Agents will still choose to have them and be very careful, but most are not doing so out of an appropriate abundance of caution, for now. Everyone is being extremely careful with sanitizing everything and following Seller guidelines for private in-person showings. Buyers are demonstrating a bit more discernment up front & are seeing only properties they’ve decided are on their “serious” list, which cuts down on any potential exposure for everyone as we all do our part. Typically hand-sanitizer is out, booties are used for shoes, Buyers are advised not to touch anything (for them and for the Seller) and Agents will generally wipe the lockbox, door handles, switches etc. Buyers are encouraged to bring their own wipes & sanitizer with them and to wear gloves and/or masks as warranted either by Seller instruction or their own sensibilities. Some Sellers will want their own Agent at showings to observe that nothing is touched in the home so that their Seller can return home with their mind at ease, and/but either way, Agents are doing their utmost to ensure safe protocols are followed.

As for promoting Listings, there are, of course, cool tools that can and are being promoted more liberally like Virtual Open Houses, Video Walk-Through’s and other things. Ask me if you’re interested in learning more about that.

In general, we all are in this together, and the camaraderie at-a-distance and diligence in every sector of the real estate community is truly impressive ~ People helping people fulfill their life-goals and stay safe & healthy in the process.

Please take care and do get in touch with me or with Dianne if you have a life-goal you don’t really want to put off ; ) We can make it happen, efficiently and safely.

Be Well~
Linda

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News & Notes ~ Feb Numbers 2020

Here is your look at the most recent data for the entire Portland area (February 2020) and how Lake Oswego fits in to this picture just below.

Inventory remains low and Buyers are out en force. Interest rates have taken a steep dive and that is fueling this busy season as well. We’ve got increases in every segment (New, Pending & Closed), with Pending & Closed Sales really jumping up from January, and everything up significantly from 2019. Sale Prices are up over Feb 2019, and down a little bit from January. Areas in & around Gresham, Oregon City, Milwaukie/Clackamas, & Hillsboro, are the strongest as far as Appreciation goes.

According to the RMLS Market Action Report for the Portland Metro Area, February 2020:

  • There were 2,759  New Listings in February 2020 which increased 12.9%  from February of 2019’s 2,444, and also increased slightly at 0.2% from the previous month/January’s 2,754.
  • At 1,897, February 2020’s Closed Sales were up 9.9% over February 2019’s 1,726, and also up 14.1% from the previous month/January 2020’s total of 1,663.
  • At 2,598, February 2020’s Pending Sales rose 17.7% over February  2019’s 2,208, and rose 14.4% from the previous month/January 2020’s total of 2,271.
  • The Average Sale Price in February 2020 of $457,900 up $16,800 from last year/February 2019’s $441,100, and came down $5,100 from the previous month/January 2020’s $463,000.  
  • The “Median” Sale Price (the price smack dab in the middle of all sales) in February 2020 of $407,000 was up from last year/February 2019’s $399,900 by $7,100, and up $1,000 from the previous month/January 2020’s $406,000.   

Neighborhoods: February’s Average Sale Price + 12-month Appreciation:

  • North Portland:  $407,900              0.8%   (Jan $392,900)
    •                                                     YTD Median: $385,000
  • NE Portland:  $482,200                   2.5%   (Jan $483,100)
    •                                                     YTD Median: $410,000
  • SE Portland:  $424,700                   1.1%   (Jan $427,000)
    •                                                     YTD Median: $370,200
  • Gresham/Troutdale:   $376,600     5.4%   (Jan $363,700)
    •                                                     YTD Median: $356,000
  • Milwaukie/Clackamas:  $443,700  4.3%   (Jan $451,300 )
    •                                                     YTD Median: $424,000
  • Oregon City/Canby:   $448,600      4.8%   (Jan $449,300)
    •                                                     YTD Median: $433,600
  • Lake Oswego/West Linn:$705,100  2.8%  (Jan $712,600)
    •                                                      YTD Median: $585,000
  • West Portland:    $581,600             -1.8%  (Jan $601,000 )
    •                                                     YTD Median: $510,000
  • NW Wash County:  $510,400         -1.2%   (Jan $498,000)
    •                                                      YTD Median: $460,000
  • Beaverton/Aloha:     $412,800       2.6%   (Jan $414,500)
    •                                                     YTD Median: $400,000
  • Tigard/Wilsonville:   $485,600        0.9%   (Jan $507,100)
    •                                                      YTD Median: $455,000
  • Hillsboro/Forest Grove: $414,200  5.8%   (Jan $419,500)
    •                                                      YTD Median: $394,300

LAKE OSWEGO:

The combined areas of Lake Oswego and West Linn  for  the month of February 2020 reported:

    •  226 Active Listings  (Jan 217)
    •  151 New Listings     (Jan 153)
    •  119 Pending Sales   (Jan 106)
    •   72 Closed Sales       (Jan   72)
    • Average Sale Price for February: $705,100  (Jan $712,600)
      • NOTE: Higher-Priced vs Lower-Priced Homes Sales can skew the “Average” in any given month.  Lake Oswego has quite a variety, so this tends to be a less meaningful stat, generally speaking, in this niche.
    •   86 Average Days on the Market   (Jan 117)

 

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Big Zone Change

Last year the Oregon legislature passed two zoning laws that are going to have big impact on every town in Oregon that has a population of over 10,000 people.

House bill 2001 requires towns with more than 10,000 to allow “middle housing” in neighborhoods that have previously been zoned for single family dwellings. Middle housing is duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, townhomes and cottage clusters. Duplexes must be allowed on every lot where single family housing is allowed. The other options have some restrictions. The State Department of Land Conservation and Development is currently working to determine what this means and what cities must do to be in compliance.

House bill 2003 requires cities to study future housing needs and to develop strategies to meet those needs. Lake Oswego is required to do this study and provide a housing needs assessment by 2023.

Obviously this is super controversial. The need for more housing is evident and it is good the State is working to provide more housing options. It could be a win-win for homeowners who want some rental income or want to provide affordable housing to friends or family members. But the flip side is that it will have an impact on the character of our neighborhoods. It will also create greater density that will put a strain on city infrastructure.

For more information visit the City of Lake Oswego website, www.lakeosweago.ciy and search for file “PP 19-0008”, or call Erik Oson, Senior Planner, at 503-697-6524.

As always, thanks for reading the blotter.
Dianne

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Oswego Heritage Council

I am a big fan of history and I really appreciate it when it is well preserved and appreciated. Lake Oswego history is quite fascinating. The town was originally founded as a result of the discovery of iron ore in hills where Iron Mountain Drive now runs. The ore was brought down out of the mountain, loaded onto barges and taken across the lake to the Willamette River where it was smelted into usable iron.

While LO never did actually become “the Pittsburgh of the West”, it did get it’s start as a company town that evolved into a vacation town for folks in Portland, and eventually into what it is today with a population of just under 40,000 people.

Preserving the history of the town is the focus of the Oswego Heritage Council. Located as 398 10th Street in downtown LO, the council is located in an elegant formal residence that houses a museum, meeting rooms and a formal garden. There is a permanent exhibit as well as rotating exhibits. Currently being shown is the Bickner and Woodward family collection of photographs from 1919-1921. The museum is open Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 10-3. It is free.

The council is a 501 (c)(3) non profit. It is financed by the efforts of the council itself. In keeping with it historic mission, these efforts are primarily well known and respected annual events that include a classic car and boat show in August and a home and garden tour in June.

The facility is also available for rent. It’s suitable for meetings, luncheons, and small weddings.

As always, thanks for reading,
Dianne

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Wishes of Peace

Dianne and I wish you and yours the happiest holiday ever!  Enjoy those things you treasure most, indulge in your fondest memories and go ahead… have that food that you usually do not. We wish for you that deep feeling of contentment that comes from the memories or the people or the combination of it all…  depending on your circumstances. Most of all we wish you a heart filled with a cherished, peaceful feeling. Maybe one from childhood where you could hear the big people still talking in the other room and knew you could fall asleep with all things well in the world. Whichever holiday you celebrate, we want you to know we truly appreciate you and will be thinking of you till we return from a little break. We’ll be back here with all the news and content we love to bring you about Lake Oswego after the New Year begins!

See you soon. May Peace reign in your life this holiday season~

Linda & Dianne

 

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Market Activity Nov 18-24, 2019

Yes, there is a very small chance of snow flurries this week. Nothing like what is happening in the midwest, but still a clear sign that winter is around the corner. Meanwhile, real estate chugs right along. The numbers remain interesting. Last week in Lake Oswego there were 3 new listings, 17 properties that went pending, and 25 closed sales. Folks who want to buy at this time of year are highly aware of the holidays. It’s a natural time to make a move as most employers give time off during the holidays, which makes organizing the move easier. So lots of houses continue to sell with the target of moving by the holiday.

Following is the breakdown for you according to RMLS:

New on the Market (Nov 18-24, 2019)

Address Type Price BR Baths Sq Ft
1293 Hide A Way Ln Detached $585,000 3 2.5 1720
2425 Prestwick Rd Detached $719,000 3 2 1464
6351 Burma Rd Detached $899,500 4 4 3500

Pending Sales (Nov 18-24, 2019)

Address Type Price BR Baths Sq Ft CDOM
8 Crestfield Ct Condo $162,900 1 1 689 132
218 Cervantes #219 Condo $229,000 2 2 1100 135
3433 McNary Pkwy #107 Condo $235,000 2 2 1008 6
4057 Jefferson Pdwy Attached $295,000 3 2.5 1247 24
5060 Foothills Dr B Condo $350,000 2 2 1252 30
668 McVey Ave #36 Condo $410,000 2 1 852 31
6315 Dawn St Detached $469,500 3 2 1934 127
15371 Twin Fir Rd Detached $485,000 4 2 2876 3
1611 Lee St Detached $589,900 3 2.5 2539 2
41 Tanglewood Dr Detached $632,500 4 3 3001 141
18263 Anduin Terr Detached $690,000 4 3 3103 133
615 Lake Bay Ct Detached $900,000 3 3 2555 129
17808 Hillside Way Detached $995,900 4 3.5 3166 118
13581 Rogers Rd Detached $999,500 4 2.5 2971 287
15136 Glen Eagles Ct Detached $1,100,000 4 2.5 3150 3
4277 Upper Dr Detached $1,625,000 5 3.5 3851 141
6720 Childs Rd Detached $1,850,000 4 4.5 6898 153

Sold/Closed (Nov 18-24, 2019)

Address Type List Price Sold Price Sq Ft CDOM
319 Cervantes Condo $239,900 $225,000 1209 60
56 Galen St Condo $239,950 $235,500 989 14
3968 Carman Dr Condo $309,900 $290,000 1107 35
48 Oriole Ln Townhouse $509,000 $455,000 2072 147
17273 Bryant Rd Detached $492,000 $465,000 1452 88
17518 Redfern Ave Detached $499,000 $535,500 1831 7
17144 Rebecca Ln Detached $539,900 $545,900 2018 3
13455 Auburn Ct Attached $549,900 $549,900 1937 14
14201 Dolph Ct Detached $699,000 $577,000 1916 91
17521 Tree top Ln Detached $589,000 $589,000 2488 3
975 Southshore Blvd Detached $639,900 $629,900 2191 44
18381 Heather Ann Ct Detached $709,900 $650,000 2983 315
71 Nansen Summit Detached $749,000 $680,000 3523 63
16805 Gassner Ln Detached $699,000 $755,000 1773 4
14100 Edenberry Dr Detached $775,000 $775,000 2881 2
654 1st St Condo $824,900 $790,000 2140 167
630 9th St Detached $900,000 $859,000 2683 14
15870 Twin Fir Rd Detached $900,000 $875,000 2856 71
13978 Westcott Ct Detached $945,000 $885,000 3267 56
5685 Charles Circle Detached $929,900 $895,000 2542 35
18049 Skyland Circle Detached $1,080,000 $1,050,000 3717 188
17912 Kelok Rd Detached $1,225,000 $1,225,000 3218 6
4011 Westbay Rd Detached $1,895,000 $1,635,000 4518 196
1120 Crestline Ct Detached $2,800,000 $2,500,000 6440 233
1142 Crestline Ct Detached $3,850,000 $3,300,000 6440 233

Criteria: Homes in the 97034 and 97035 zip code, listed, pending or sold between the dates listed above as reported by the Regional Multiple Listing Service (RMLS). DETACHD refers to Single Family Detached Residence, MFG refers to manufactured housing, and ATTACHD refers to single-family residences with some portion of the structure attached to another property, but not constituting CONDO ownership. DOM stands for days on market, or the number of days from when the listing became active and when it received an acceptable offer, with CDOM standing for “cumulative days on market” accounting for “refreshed” listings.

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Convenience

Today I want to talk about convenience. More specifically, the convenience of where Lake Oswego is located.

We are about 10 miles South of downtown Portland, on the West side of the Willamette River. Interstate 5 is along our West boundary. Hwy 217 ends where LO begins. Interstate 205 is about a mile South of our South boundary. What does this mean? Well, it means you can get anywhere in the Portland metro area pretty darn easily. I-5 is the main artery of the entire West coast of the United States. Besides getting you into downtown Portland fairly quickly, it also takes you to Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles. 217 takes you to the largest employers in the state. You know, Nike, Intel, those guys. And 205 takes you to the East side of the metro area, including the airport. It’s kinda ideal.

Then there is she convenience of shopping. I’ve made this point before, so I’ll keep it brief. You need to buy something? It’s just minutes away. I’m talking more grocery stores than are really needed (is that possible?), Trader Joe’s, Costco, Home Depot, Bridgeport Village and Washington Square, it’s all super easy and quick to get to.

But what I really want to talk about are the parks. I’m a walker. I love to walk in nature parks. I first started doing this because I was putting in a lot of miles to train for a goal I had set for myself. I was looking for dirt paths that would be easy on my joints. Two parks I am completely in love with are Tryon Creek State Park and the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge. Tryon Creek has 8 miles of hiking trails, 3.5 miles of horse trails, 3 miles of biking trails, and a handicapped accessible trail. It meanders around a small stream that is in a revine, so the trails are very up and down (a great workout!) and through a lush forest. The Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge is through a wetlands that is set aside for the migration of birds. The walk is flat but so majestic. What I love about this place, besides viewing the wildlife (which I see every time I go), is that it is set aside for the exclusive use of people on foot, walking. There are no bikes, no dogs, not even joggers. It’s extremely quiet and serene. Such a refuge to the soul in a world that is so busy and loud. I like to go early in the morning because the birds are just getting going. By mid afternoon they tend to be less evident. Heron, geese, ducks, red-wing blackbirds, nutria, on one occasion, an otter. It’s super enjoyable to see what can be seen, and it’s just a few miles from LO.

It’s all about quality of life!
Dianne