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Bonjour,

Should you buy today?

There is no doubt that there is a tremendous amount of uncertainty out there, however isn’t it true that just like in the stock market, the savvy investors reposition themselves during turbulent times. Well, that would also apply to real estate!

The state of the real estate market in Portland Oregon was sabotaged when the local news media exacerbated the situation by not clearly differentiating our current market condition with other real estate market around the country. We still have the lowest levels of short sales, and foreclosure in the country but yet, all we could hear on the news is how the real estate bubble burst and how many home owners could no longer pay their mortgage! So, yes, this is a buyer’s market and a fantastic time to buy.

Are most buyers out there scared to proceed with their purchase, and do not know what to do next? Sure, and I do not blame them. In fact it is OK to be concerned however lets look at the facts:

As a buyer, what do you look for?

1. Low interest rates
   1. Historically speaking, the interest rates are very low.
2. Defaults and foreclosures
   1. We have one of the lowest defaults and foreclosure level in the country
3. Land availability
   1. Very little land is left to build within the urban growth boundary
4. Job diversification
   1. Over the past 20 years, Portland has done a great job diversifying itself
5. Greenest city in the world
   1. Portland has 200 acres of forest and park right in the heart of the city! Amazing!!!
6. High standard of living
   1. During the past 10 years, the city has attracted many entrepreneurs who have transformed the city by opening new gourmet ethnic restaurants, expanded the art world and pushed for the expansion of the MAX (mass transit system). Lets not for
7. Top city to live in
   1. Where else can you be on the ski slopes in an hour an a half or walk on the beautiful scenic beach going the opposite direction?
8. Gas price
   1. Did you see how the price of gas affected the cost of food? So, the question to you is, in the building industry and more specifically in the residential market, will that translate to higher or cheaper material and labor?
9. High inventory
   1. As you can see from the above chart, we currently have the highest inventory than ever! And what does it mean to you? For one thing, it would make sense for an investor to purchase a property when the inventory is high and sell it when the inventory is low. As a regular buyer, there is really no better time to buy a home since you would most likely stay for many years to come.  
10. Can the property value still go down?
    1. Absolutely! Are we close to reaching the bottom? It really all depend on the overall state of the economy, and our perception of things.
11. World Economy
    1. I know that this is over simplified but if you look at the big picture, never in the history of the world have we had as big of a new middle class as we do today. Literally, as much as half a billion people (China, India and Eastern Europe) are coming on-board wanting what all of us have been enjoying in the past 30 years.

All of this can be overwhelming; however I hope that by looking at the above chart you can see where we are headed?