It’s fun to see what you can buy at different price points in cities. That’s half the appeal of those HGTV shows, don’t you think?
Come with me, take your imaginary money, and when you find something you like, call my realtor. She’s 39.5 weeks pregnant, but she’s insane enough to help you out anyway. :)
We’ll only look in Portland, not the greater metro area, and since Andi is busy, we’ll go ahead and use data from Redfin instead.
Under $250,000
There are 107 results, and since you seem pretty hip, we’ll find you a sweet little place on the east side.
SE 74th and Stark. Two bedrooms, one bath. Built in 1904. $221,000. Here’s the Redfin listing. Sure, it could use a little work, but it’s charming, and it’s 110 years old! It’s in Montavilla, a fun neighborhood, not super close to downtown, but they have great restaurants out there. This is what I’d pick for you if you were willing to spend up to $250,000.
Between $250,000 and $500,000
1216 listings. Whoa, let’s find a good example, and fast! Let’s switch neighborhoods. It seems that half a million dollars can get you a lot of nice things in this city, which is good, because it’s half a million dollars.
Okay, here’s a really beautiful home. NE 16th and Prescott. Four bedrooms, two baths. Built in 1927. Here’s the Redfin listing. It comes in $500 less than $500,000. But this is stunning. It’s in Irvington, which is a lovely part of town. Close to shops, close to great schools, close to other large and beautiful houses, and close to parks.
$500,000 to $750,000
459 results. It’s hard to find a good example. Do you want a high rise condo downtown? Do you want to live in the hills? Portland sits in a valley surrounded by hills on the west side, and some of the nicest neighborhoods are in the northwest and southwest hills. 90s reference ahead: do you remember that Everclear song, I will buy you a new life? They’re from Portland, and he sings about being rich one day: I will buy you that big house | Way up in the west hills | I will buy you a new life | Yes I will.
So, let’s go there, if that’s the rich life.
Okay, we’re in the southwest hills. Basically if you drive past Portland State University, you go up a hill. It’s probably less than a mile from downtown, and definitely less than two miles. It’s awesome up there. This one is four bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms, some strange little zen room, built in 1925, and costs $749,500. Here’s its listing.
$750,000 to $1,000,000
126 results. Again, you could buy a condo downtown, but paying an HOA is like throwing money down the tube, so let’s not do that. Let’s get you a house, with a yard, and a view. And since I’m the imaginary realtor here, you get to only look at older homes with charm. Here’s my favorite.
It’s SO CUTE. Three bedrooms, three bathrooms, built in 1928 but remodeled extensively since then (I mean, who in 1928 was putting three bathrooms in a house?), $995,000. Looks like something straight out of a fable. Here, if you want to buy it, is the listing. If you buy it, can I come over for dinner?
Summary
I’m actually surprised at how many actual houses there are in the under $250,000 range. That simply wasn’t the case when I was looking. Maybe the market has cooled somewhat in the last year and a half? Or, more likely, it’s heated and cooled several times, and right now, people are focusing on going back to school, or planning a wedding or something, instead of buying homes.
I love the architecture of Portland. At every price point we looked at, there’s something kind of wonderful to see. And real estate shopping, especially way out of my price range, is pretty fun.