Congratulations to Lauren and Taran on the successful purchase of their first home together! This was NOT your typical buying in Portland in 2021 scenario – and thank goodness for that.
Lauren and Taran are dear friends of mine, so we got down to the nitty gritty quickly. We saw a handful of “cute, charming” homes that would have “worked,” but nothing we saw felt right. As the days grew shorter, inventory dwindled. They were eager to get in the game, but nothing of interest was popping up. We had numerous conversations (almost every time we saw a home) about holding out until we found something that really clicked. They considered writing a few offers on a couple homes (one of which received 29 offers – no thanks!), but ultimately stuck to their guns.
And good thing, too! It was in early February that their patience paid off (maybe with the help of some divine weather intervention.) A home popped up that checked their boxes – especially the large-lot-in-fantastic-location box – and was well under budget. Thanks to an ice storm, we were some of the only people who viewed the property over the first weekend. (Reason #784 why I love my AWD RAV4!) Taran and Lauren excitedly submitted their first offer Friday evening and anxiously waited three days for the Seller’s response. Finally, the good news came: we were able to secure the house AT list price without giving up their firstborn child or a kidney!
From that point, the transaction moved forward smoothly. Overall, the home was in GREAT condition, especially for its age. We were able to negotiate a small credit for a honey-do list of repairs, and the appraisal came in a good chunk ABOVE what my clients paid.
In this incredibly competitive sellers market, this transaction was a HUGE win on all accounts. Now let’s carry this same easy-breezy energy into selling their home next month!