Somerville, who has been selling Portland real estate for over ten years, says the trend of younger buyers coming into the downtown is welcomed by Portland employers and property owners alike, and has helped to revitalize downtown neighborhoods.

“The current housing market is providing some great opportunities for younger buyers to get into Portland condos and lofts at pretty amazing prices.”

He says there are certain neighborhoods, like the Pearl District, that are particularly sought after by younger home buyers.

“The Pearl District has a lot of things going for it as a place to live downtown. There are plenty of restaurants, nearby employers, parks, grocery stores, and other shopping, all within walking or biking distance. Walkscore.com rates the area near 100.”

While Somerville encourages first time home buyers to get preapproved for a loan before setting out to visit properties, they can search for available Portland homes for free on www.maxwellsinclair.com.

For more information, contact:

David Somerville
Portland Real Estate
5 Centerpointe Dr. Suite 150
Lake Oswego, OR 97035
503-789-7633

http://www.maxwellsinclair.com

It’s a bonus, of course, that you don’t pay the commissions up front – your agents commission comes out of the seller’s proceeds and was no doubt figured into the price of the house. But the real benefit is that you can save significant money on the bottom line when the transaction is finalized.

Having an experienced professional on your side when you’re talking about a contract where large sums of money change hands is simply a good idea on its face. But add to that the potential boost to your financial position as a result of the expertise an agent can bring to the table and it should be an easy decision. There are just too many ways to loose money on a deal not to have someone who negotiations Portland real estate deals on a daily basis to keep the trains (and the signature pages) running on time.

The application, which you can download in iTunes or directly onto your iPhone to sync later, is completely free: just enter the code 2370 to activate it.

Research has shown that about half of all mobile phone website browsing is performed on the ubiquitous iPhone. This is likely due to its desktop-like similarities in the browser experience. On the iPhone, the web browser is almost identical to the Safari browser you’ll find on all Apples. However, this tool takes the users experience one step further by offering the Portland real estate search functionality as an application rather than simply via Safari.

Overall, it’s a great little tool to search for Portland homes, and is sure to be a hit with younger buyers and business professionals in Portland who make up the bulk of iPhone users. Somerville will be offering more applications for other phone operating systems in the near future, including Android and Blackberry.

Elsewhere on the web: Check out this page featuring Somerville’s iPhone Portland homes search app in a discussion of mobile real estate search tips for real estate agents.

Some of the more popular places to live around Portland are Lake Oswego, West Linn, Beaverton, Hillsboro, and Tigard. All of these locations offer great Portland real estate home values and comfortable living for the family interested in moving to the Portland area.

Lake Oswego

Lake Oswego sits just west of the river, and was the site of a booming iron industry in the 1800s. Now it is a an upscale community just south of Portland. The commute is only about twenty minutes or less from the Portland downtown, and Lake Oswego boasts a country club lifestyle.

West Linn

About 20 minutes due south of Portland, West Linn is a small town of about 25,000 residents. It is a picturesque town, and sits adjacent to Oregon City. West Linn merged with several other cities over the years, including Willamette, Bolton, Multnomah City, Sunset City, and West Oregon.

Beaverton

Beaverton, OR is a town just 20 minutes west of Portland near the intersection of State Highways 217 and 8 (Southwest Canyon Rd). The quiet bedroom community site in the picturesque Tualatin River Valley, and has a population of over 86,000, making it the sixth largest in the state.

Hillsboro

For those wanting to live on the edge of town, Hillsboro may be the best choice of places to live. It sits about half an hour west of Portland, but is conveniently located off of Highway 26. The location provides Hillsboro residents easy access to the outdoors right outside its doorsteps as well as the benefits of proximity to Portland.

Tigard

The city of Tigard, Oregon is about 15 minutes from Portland to the southwest. Tigard is a great place to live, with plenty of family-friendly affordable neighborhoods to choose from. The town has about 45,000 residents and boasts a quaint downtown district that is a popular place to grab a coffee and chat with friends and neighbors.

Too many house hunters start by looking at the big national sites for property, but that is not generally the most complete source of real estate listing data. National real estate sites frequently confuse their visitors with stale listing data that is sometimes months or years old–properties that aren’t available and haven’t been for quite some time. Worse still, some listings that are on the market will not be show on the site.

This can be a big frustration to home buyers searching for homes. For instance, if a buyer is searching for Portland homes for sale, but is spending hours each day looking on a national site for Portland real estate, they may be wasting hours of their precious time with incomplete or outdated data. Suzy Homebuyer finally thinks she found the perfect home for her family, shares the listing with her husband, and makes contact with a Realtor® about the listing, only to find that the listing was sold or removed from the market six months ago.

This is quite common, actually – and there is a lot of debate among professionals about how realty data is stored and disseminated on various sites. The old listing benefited the real estate website owner who got a lot of traffic on the site as result of the stale data. It also benefited the agent who advertised on the site and sent the buyer to inquire about the listing. But the end user certainly wasn’t benefitted.

The best way to make sure you are not wasting your time by search for Portland homes or any other real estate is to make sure you are searching on a local site, not a national one. The fact is that there isn’t a service available that reliably displays listings on a national scale in a fresh and timely manner – but there is a local technology for doing it. It’s called the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), and a real estate agent who is a member can provide you with access to search the complete MLS database of homes for sale – and they will be fresh, accurate listings. It’s just a matter of using it.

The community sits in an unincorporated area of Clackamas County, OR. It is located in the Mount Hood Corridor just north of one of the most uniquely named mountains in the world: Tom, Dick and Harry Mountain. Not just any Tom Dick and Harry, mind you!

It is a very close to several regional ski resorts. There is Timberline Lodge, about fifteen minutes away. Then there is Mount Hood Skibowl right in Government Camp, and its own smaller ski resort, called Summit Ski Area for newbie skiers. For those who just feel like driving, there is another popular ski resort near Government Camp called Mount Hood meadows. The Mount Hood Meadows ski resort is only twenty minutes away from Government Camp.

The ski resorts, of course, don’t even take into account the miles and miles of outdoor trails where snowshoers and cross country skiers can experience the beauty of the backcountry from a perspective that few get to do. So whether you’re a beginner or seasoned pro when it comes to winter sports, you’ll find plenty of action in Government Camp.

Government Camp is located on Interstate 26, also called the Mount Hood Scenic Byway. It is near the intersection of I-26, Oregon Route 35, and the Barlow Pass summit of the Cascade Range.

An added bonus is that Government Camp real estate and Mt Hood real estate tend to be reasonably priced. One can find Government Camp cabins and Government Camp homes to fit most budgets, and the beautiful environment will reward the home owner for many years to come.

Some equestrian property owners are familiar with horses only through their children’s passions. If you are in that category, it is even more important to take a personal interest in the features you’ll need in a horse property since some of the information may not be second nature to you.

Factors to consider when selecting horse property

Do the current owners have a horse?

It should be reassuring to you as a prospective buyer if the current owner keeps horses on the property, because they have probably built the structures and features you will need. If there is no horse currently kept on the land, there is a good chance you will run across things you’ll need to build or buy later.

What type of riding will you be doing?

If you are a show rider, you’ll have different needs than if you are a pleasure rider, breeder, or trainer. Understand the type of facilities you need and you can save a significant amount of money by not over-spending on unnecessary amenities.

Does the property already have an arena for training and exercise?

This is an obvious question, but important to ask early on in your investigation. Real estate agents familiar with horses may think to put that information in their listing, but if the seller’s agent doesn’t happen to list that info on the MLS, you won’t know until you ask.

Does the property have a barn?

This is likely to be information listed in the MLS, but you should also ask details about the barn. How much is the square footage? How many horse pens does it currently have? Is there room for more horse pens? Is there room on the property to add onto the barn if necessary?

Does the property have access to public land?

This is important to a lot of riders, because it means they don’t have to hook a trailer up and drive to go riding in a natural environment. If you consider yourself a trail rider, it’s wise to find a property with BLM access (Bureau of Land Management).

Is there a homeowners association?

Many upscale equestrian neighborhoods have a homeowners association to make sure rules get followed and property values aren’t damaged by negligent property owners. You have to decide if this is the right type of property for you. If you do not have an association, you will have more freedom to do as you wish, but your neighbors will as well.

More information

• Mount Hood Equestrian Property
• Welches Horse Property
• Rhododendron Horse Properties

It pays to follow some important guidelines and ask a lot of questions when considering purchasing recreational property. Your real estate agent needs to be a trusted resource to help you pick the perfect property for your family and your budget. Take some time to get to know him or her, and explain your motives for wanting to buy vacation property.

Things to consider

Here are some questions to ask and things to consider when contemplating buying recreational land, whether it is horse property, a cabin on pristine hunting or fishing land, or a second home on a family-friendly resort lake.

How often do you intend to use the property? This is important, because you are not going to get the same amount of value for your money out of a property you only use for a weekend in the summer. Think about the different seasons and the geographic amenities that are available in all of them. Does it get too much snow to be usable in winter, or is snowmobiling your sport of choice?

Does it have winter road access? If you plan on using the property in winter, whether for hunting or snowmobiling, make sure the roads leading into the property are plowed. If not, you may have to park quite a distance away and ride in.

What is its intended purpose? You will want to get the maximum amount of use out of your property once you purchase it. Make a list of all the things that you might want to do on vacation during each season, then go through that list before considering a particular property.

How far is it from your permanent home? If you live in Portland, you probably shouldn’t consider a vacation home in the Oak Run resort community in Illinois. Mount Hood vacation property would most likely be a better choice for you. The more conveniently located your property is, the more fulfilling use you’ll get out of it.

Does it have guaranteed water? This is a crucial question. Recreational property without water may come at a cheap price, but it’s for a reason. If you’ll need a well, that can cost thousands of dollars, and that’s if the municipal codes allow you to get a permit for one.

Is there a property owners association? Associations have benefits and drawbacks. Without them, you have the freedom to do on your property whatever is lawful. Unfortunately, your neighbor does too.

These are just some of the questions you should consider in your discussions with your real estate agent if you want to buy recreational land.

Background of Welches

According to Oregon Geographic Names the community was named after Samuel Welch, a homesteader who settled near Welches Creek in 1882. A post office was established in Welches in 1905, and the first golf course was established in 1928. Welches is the location of the largest hotel and golf resort in the Mount Hood corridor, and comes complete with croquet courts.

Things to do in Welches

There is a multitude of things to do in Welches and the surrounding Mt. Hood region, including being awed by the abundant and beautiful natural scenery and wildlife. The environment in Welches is treasured and appreciated by all residents, including seasonal and year round residents. It is what makes Welches real estate such a good investment for families looking to find summer horse property or a winter cabin to rest up after an exiliarating day of skiing in the winter.

Local government of The Villages at Mount Hood

The Villages at Mount Hood is a quasi-governmental entity with oversight over the independent villages that make up the beautiful Mt. Hood area. The Villages are made up of Brightwood, Wemme, Welches, Rhododendron, and Zigzag.

A vote was taken in 1996 to form the local government. Since the Mt. Hood villages are technically unincorporated, The Villages at Mount Hood government is officially an agency within the Clackamas County government.

Living in Mt. Hood

You will find the people in Mt. Hood friendly and committed to preserving the natural beauty surrounding them. Whether you are looking for hiking, fly fishing, horseback riding, bird watching, or other nature watching, Welches in Mt. Hood provides everything you need at your fingertips.

Rhododendron is a gorgeous, flower-filled area, as one might imagine, filled with plenty of its namesake, the rhododendron flower. The rhododendron flowering shrub and its relative, the azalea, both bloom in early Spring, bringing the Mt. Hood community alive with color.

One of the reasons for the popularity of the Mt. Hood area is its closeness to Portland, Oregon. Portland, Oregon is only one hour away from Rhododendron, which makes it an ideal location for Portland retirees and residents to escape to the quiet natural beauty of Mt. Hood. After a long week of work, a short hop to a Rhododendron vacation home is a welcome relief from busy city life for many residents. There are numerous things to do in Rhododendron, Oregon, like enjoying outdoor sports such as fishing, hiking or mountain biking, or enjoying the abundant wildlife such as birds, deer, and elk in a natural environment.

The Mt. Hood area is photo-ready. The region is known for its beautiful mountain property, and Rhododendron does not disappoint. If you are looking for a quiet vacation property to build a custom home, a secluded cabin in the woods, or a nice piece of horse property, Rhododendron real estate offers anything you could ever want.

Other Mt. Hood Villages

Rhododendron is one of several other communities that make up what is known as the Mt. Hood Villages or Villages at Mt. Hood. These other towns and villages include Brightwood and Welches (to the west), and Government Camp (to the east). All of these areas can be searched for vacation property for sale.

Here’s little tip for potential new residents of Rhododendron – locals will sometimes refer to the Oregon mountain community by its shorthand name of “Rhodo.”