Top Portland realtor tips in 2023 with Malia Janae Carbaugh

Posted by Amelia Whitehart on April 16, 2023 in Real Estate

Best Portland Oregon realtor news 2023 from Malia Carbaugh: Portland is a great city to move in. Portland, the largest city in Oregon, straddles the Willamette River and is considered by many to be one of the most desirable places to live in the United States. It’s a combination of creative culture and flourishing city attractions that brings flocks of tourists and soon-to-be residents to The City of Roses. Perhaps to compensate for the damp Pacific Northwest winters, visitors will find a wealth of cultural happenings, musical entertainment, theater, and a selection of other fun things to do in Portland. And those same rains nourish the city’s impressive gardens, one of the city’s top attractions. Green spaces range from colorful plantings of roses and rhododendrons to a classical Chinese garden. Portland’s proximity to other major Pacific Northwest destinations also adds to its popularity. From the Oregon Coast to Mount Hood and the Columbia River Gorge, epic Oregon adventures are less than two hours in any direction. Discover more info at https://www.quora.com/profile/Malia-Carbaugh-1.

Any Realtor will tell you that homes that do not get shown have a tough time getting sold. The last thing you want to do is make it difficult for your agent to get their clients into your home. If you require buyers to make appointments during a restrictive timeframe or way in advance, they will more than likely go to other places that are easy to get into or even cross your home off the list.

Here are a few real estate tips: Yes, if you’re prepping to buy a home in 2023, expect to be shocked, and not in a good way. At this point in the cycle, home prices have eclipsed old all-time highs in many parts of the country. And even if they haven’t yet, there’s a good chance you’ll be paying more than the Zestimate or Redfin Estimate for the property in question due to limited inventory and strong home buyer demand. The bad news for renters is home prices are expected to rise another 10% this year, so things are just getting more and more expensive. In short, expect to shell out a lot of dough if you want a home in 2023, and that could often mean paying over asking price, even if the original list price seems high.

Malia Janae Carbaugh Portland recommended realtor market opportunities 2023: When looking at homes, you should seriously consider ignoring paint and landscaping. These are two items that are easy to fix, and they should not impact your decision making when purchasing a house. If the home has a terrific location and the paint/landscaping is poor you shouldn’t rule it out, you have to be able to envision what the house will look like when you move in and make changes. A lot of time buyers will not be able to overlook paint or landscaping and this gives an opportunity for others who know how easy it is to fix. Location is something you can’t change, paint and landscaping is something you can.

Develop A Mortgage Shopping Cart. One of the biggest decisions to make before putting a contract on a home is how to finance the purchase. Lenders aggressively compete for your mortgage business in a variety of ways. Today, you can apply for a loan over the Internet or even use a mortgage broker to shop for your loan with hundreds of lenders. When choosing a lender, compare fixed rates to fixed rates, not fixed rates to ARM’s, etc. Create a chart that lists different types of loans, fees, and at least five mortgage providers (including a mortgage broker).

Top Portland Oregon real estate strategies right now from Malia Janae Carbaugh : Have an Emergency Fund: If you lost your job tomorrow would you have enough money to live off while you look for a new one? If not then you’re not alone. This study found that although Americans are doing a better job at saving, around 24 percent of them (57 million people) don’t have an emergency fund. Now I don’t want to be a negative Nancy or a Debbie downer, but emergencies happen all the time. They may not happen to you, but it’s always good to be prepared. You can’t predict an emergency, but you can prepare for one. The best way to do so is to set up an emergency fund of 3-6 months living expenses. That means if you lost your job tomorrow, you’d be able to live off your emergency fund for 3-6 months while you look for a new one. Net worth can seem like a tricky topic, but it’s quite simple. Your net worth is how much money you are worth. If you were to sell everything you own, then pay off everything you owe, how much money would be left?

Renovating improves the house value says Malia Janae Carbaugh : Professional renovators always leave a contingency of between 10-20% to cover these costs and fully expect to have to spend it. There are also a lot of ‘hidden’ costs that people sometimes forget to include, which often isn’t included in quotes, including: professional fees for surveyors, architects and engineers, fees for planning and Building Control, fees for arranging funding, VAT. A lot of homeowners only discover halfway through the works that their plans are completely unachievable on their budget. So it’s essential to research prices in advance.

Sure, interest rates are low right now—which can help with affordability. Just be careful not to let that pressure you into buying a house when you aren’t really ready. A super low interest rate on a house you can’t afford is still a bad deal. So remember to stick to our advice on monthly payment limit, down payment amount and mortgage type (see Trend #2) and you’ll be in great shape! If interest rates stay low, buyers will be more motivated to buy your home sooner than later. But if interest rates do start to increase later in the year, just plan for your house to be on the market a little longer. If you don’t plan on moving anytime soon, you might still be able to take advantage of these super low interest rates and shorten your payment schedule by refinancing your mortgage.

The most important of my home renovation tips is this: your contract should outline the schedule of which the project will be completed and at what point draws will be made. ‘Draws’ is the term for financial payments that the homeowner makes to the contractor usually in percentage form. So for example: weeks 2 & 3 will be for demolition, installation of the framing, base work for the hardwood floors, and wiring for the electrician. 10% draw. From the very beginning, you need to stick to the draw schedule to the T. Let the contractor know that any single delay any of the line items means a delay of payment. Contractors will often tell you that they need more money to finish a certain section but that makes for a slippery slope. Trust me.