I thought you would enjoy seeing a tiny article below that confirms what you are seeing with your own eyes. Prices in Portland are rising. If you want to sell your home, AND it is the right time in life to change your living space, then you must consider two points:

1. There is likely no big price crazy rise in the foreseeable future so your house will most likely appreciate little by little. Great news. Is the Price rise pattern enough to justify “waiting” or  “jumping in” – Probably not. Small steady gains are back to the typical real estate appreciation pace – unpredictable always, but historically it seems to be steady 1-4% annually depending upon where you live.
    
2. If “A” is happening, as the article notes is happening in Portland, then IF you wish to move to a larger or slightly higher priced home, then your future home may be appreciating faster than your current home. 1%-4% of $600,000, in example, is simply more money than 1%-4% of $300,000.
   1.  In this example , waiting until the $300,000 home is worth about $325,000 (5 years at 2% a year appreciation) means that the “move to” house would then be worth $600,000 would be $649,458.00 at the same 2%. You pay an extra $24,729 trying to “time the market”.
   2. But often the area you want to move to may appreciate MORE than the area where you are selling. What an interesting dilemma! We all want to “sell high” and “buy low” but the reality is that simple math does not support that dream we share.
       
3. The news around Portland is fairly positive. Make sure to notice Portland specific real estate reports. There is a lot of real estate news but actually not a lot of accurate local real estate news.

Here is something for you to think about. If you or a friend do want to trade up, I can offer great ideas on maximizing the value of a home to sell while strongly negotiating the best possible price on the next home. My job is to help people catch a bit of the “sell high – buy low” dream. It is nice to deliver some good news once in awhile!

Portland home prices increased in September, according to CoreLogic.

Portland-area home prices increased 4.1 percent in September compared to a year ago, according to the latest take on the residential market.

Santa Ana, Calif.-based CoreLogic reports local home prices performed even better when distressed sales are excluded, rising 4.7 percent compared to a year ago.

Overall home sales were up 0.2 percent in September compared to August.

CoreLogic said national home prices, including distressed sales, rose five percent in September compared to a year ago, the largest increase since July 2006 and the seventh increase in home prices.

CoreLogic said all but seven states posted year-over-year gains.

The CoreLogic confirms a separate account by the Regional Multiple Listing Service. RMLS said Portland home prices rose 4.9 percent in September to an average of $281,400.

“Home prices are responding to better market fundamentals, such as reduced inventories and improved buyer demand,” said Anand Nallathambi, president and CEO of CoreLogic. “So far this year, we’re seeing clear signs of stabilization and improvement that show promise for a gradual recovery in the residential housing market.”

The much-watched S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Indices report for September will be released later this month.