It is the most wonderful time of the year... if you are a seller.

Condo and Single Family Home inventory continues to be exceptionally low.  If you would like to see all MLS listed condos in Portland, please visit my website www.portlandlistings.com

Photo of the John Ross Condos in Summer

The holidays have past, and we were in the depths of winter.  A lot of people in Portland get depressed this time of the year because of the lack of sunlight, but people who want to sell condos or homes in Portland are in full party mode.  They are dancing a jig.  It is still the most wonderful time of the year if you have real estate to sell.

Inventory is of condos and homes is pathetic... leftovers from last year that were over priced or poor quality.    Yesterday I went on "Broker's Tour" to see if I could come across some decent homes for buyers that I am working with, and I found some!!  However, the listing agents were talking about multiple offers.  I was looking for homes for one particular buyer, and she will not be available to look at homes until January 19th. I am afraid that it will be too late for the nice properties that I looked at yesterday.

I wrote an offer on a bank owned condo in downtown Portland last week, and I received an email from the listing agent that said, we have multiple offers, please submit your highest and best offer.  My client instructed me to write an above list price offer, and now we wait.  This is the state of the market.  Condos and homes that are appropriately priced are selling very fast.

One very interesting opportunity that I have identified is condos at the John Ross and the Atwater at the South Waterfront.  These two buildings are not subject to pending litigation, and for the next few months the only inventory available to non-cash purchasers will be at the John Ross and the Atwater.  The Meriwether is still mired in the lawsuit against the developer, and this means that roughly 50% of the condo inventory at the South Waterfront is still frozen.  Once the lawsuit is resolved, Katie bar the door.  There is going to be a waterfall of inventory coming out of Meriwether buildings... no pun intended.

The John Ross Condos... What is it like to live in a condo?

I live in The John Ross Condominiums at the south waterfront in Portland Oregon, and there are a few things about living in condos that I would like to share with readers.

I have a great view.  Because many condos are high rises, many condos have great views.  I love the great view, especially at night.

They build condos where people want to live, so the location plays a huge role in the decision to buy a condo.  There are no free standing homes in the South Waterfront or the Pearl District, so if you want the convenience of living downtown in these neighborhoods, condos, townhouses and apartments are your only options.

Living in a condo is very convenient is some ways, and awkward in other ways.  It is super convenient having a trash chute just a few feet away from my door.  Underground parking is awesome. Having a concierge is fantastic.  There aren't any bugs on the 19th floor.  Seriously, I haven't seen a single spider, ant or moth since I live here.

Riding the elevator is awkward.  You are in a box with a stranger for 30 seconds or a minute.  Grocery shopping is awkward.  If you have more than what you can carry in one load, you have to get a cart or make more than one trip.

There is almost no noise transfer in this building, but I would never play loud music.

I love living in a condo.  It is a lifestyle choice that really works for me.

brian porter

Atwater Place Condos

The Atwater Place Condominiums at The South Waterfront in Portland, OR





















23 Story Building with Leed Gold Certification

















The Atwater has condos and townhouses on the Willamette River
















Kitchens have stainless appliances, granite counters, large islands, hood vented to outside, cabinet front diswashers and high quality cabinets with easy close feature.
















The lobby features an amazing art collection, with art from Lucinda Parker. There is also a concierge and 24 hour security at The Atwater.
















River View (from unit 812)

Party Room

Walkway along the Willamette River

Community Garden, as seen from Unit 812

Atwater Place Condominiums are high end, high quality condos, at surprisingly low prices. The Atwater building was finished in 2007, but there are still some developer units left. Out of 214 units in the building about 50 condos are still available. The current prices of the developer units start at $299,900 and go up to 1.3 Million. The sizes of range from 1060sf to 2350sf.

Sales have been steady of the past few months at 4 to 5 units per month, and the average asking price of available units is about 600K.

The Atwater was built with very high quality standards. For example, the walls between units are really two walls. There are two rows of metal studs and double sheets of drywall on each side of the wall. This helps keep the condos quiet. There is also several layers in the floor/ceiling constuction: hardwoods or carpet, padding, concrete, padding, concrete, airspace, insulation or noise abatement material and then drywall. This multilayer constrution keep sound transfer to a minimum.

I am a Realtor in Portland Oregon, and I am currenty representating a buyer who is buying a condo at the Atwater. Their staff is very nice and informative. Kudos to Sheridan, Cassie and Bob for their assistance with the transaction and for the information that they have given me.

On June 12th, there will be a "Designer Showcase" with 3 designers with 5 featured units. Let me know if you will be able to attend this event.

For more information about Atwater Place or other South Waterfront Condos please give me a call: 503-810-2219 Brian Porter or visit my website: www.portlandlistings.com

Eliot Tower, The Eliot Condos

The Eliot Condominiums are some of the most luxurious condos in Portland.

Condos in Portland fall into two main categories: those that have a concierge and those that don't. The Eliot does have a concierge, and they also have a gym, a party kitchen, an outdoor BBQ area and eating area, a library, a meeting room and an impressive lobby with very high ceilings. It is a very nice building built during Portland's condo boom of 2006. It managed to sell out before the crash occurred, and it has not been as negatively affected as condos that were finished in 2007 or later.

The Eliot has 223 units, from large to small, and currently there are 10 units for sale. That is less than 5% of the units... not bad. The lowest price unit is $319,000 for 917 sf ($348) per square foot), and the most expensive unit is $2,700,000 for the 18th floor penthouse ($616 per square foot).

Not only is the Eliot Tower a luxurious building, it is one of only a handful of condo buildings in Downtown Portland, and its location is truly stellar. Right across the street from the Portland Art Museum, and next door to Safeway. It also is on Portland's streetcar line.

Portland has 3 main condo areas near or in downtown. The Southwaterfront (The Meriwether East and West, The John Ross and the Atwater), Downtown (The Eliot, The Benson, The Harrison, Portland Plaza, American Plaza etc.,) and the Pearl District, with way to many condo buildings to mentions. The South Waterfront is still in its infancy. Just 4 condo buildings, and not quite the "critical mass" to support commerce. Downtown is very grown up, with all types of commerce and cultural activities, and the Pearl District is boutique living. Of the downtown condos, the Eliot is the most sophisticated and quality building, and the location can be beat..

The Meriwether Condos at the South Waterfront, Portland

There are two Meriwether Condominiums at the south waterfront. The East tower is adjacent to the Willamette river and the West Tower is set back a little bit from the river, but it still offers river, city and mountain views. The two towers share underground parking and several common elements, but they both have their own concierge.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to see unit 2305 at the Meriwether West. It is a two bedroom, two bath unit with river, city and mountain views. It has 1608SF and it is currently selling for 499K. It comes with 2 parking places and storage unit. At $311/sf it is one of the best deals out there on downtown condos. The only downside of this condo is that the taxes are almost $800/month.

The finishes of the Meriwether common areas are very nice. Not as much art as the Atwater, but very nice all the same.

The south waterfront is growing up. It still needs more retail space to give it the vibrant feel that the pearl district enjoys, but on my most recent trip down there, I observed a few more stores and restaurants. It is only a matter of time before the south waterfront reaches the critial mass required to be a vibrant downtown district. For the moment, the streetcar will take you to downtown, the pearl or 23rd ave.

The south waterfront is still has the best deals on condos, but inventory is drying up.

Portland Condos

The Casey Condos, Portland Oregon

The Casey Condos in Portland, OR are among the most exclusive and expensive condos in the Pearl District.

I have had the opportunity to visit the Casey 3 times over the past few weeks, and it is truly an impressive building. The architects, designers, builders and craftsmen have paid attention to detail and have created a beautiful and unique condominium. From the self opening doors, to the concierge, to the bullseye glass art that adorns the lobby and hallways, all of the elements are in place to have quality building.

Furthermore, The Casey was the first residential high rise building in the USA to receive the coveted LEED platinum certification for “green” building. The Casey was designed to us 32% less water and 52% less energy than similar buildings.

The Casey Condominiums are located at 311 NW 12th Ave. at the corner of NW 12 and Everett, and it has 61 units on 16 floors. That is an average of only about 4 units per floor. There is commercial space on the main floor including the outstanding Café Umbria.

There are about 290 condos for sale in the 97209 zip code (mostly in the Pearl District), but there are not any units in the Casey currently listed in the RMLS.

The Concierge
















Living Room (unit 903)

This blog was posted on 7/20/2010

The Benson Towers, Condos in Portland Oregon

The Benson Condominiums are in SW Portland at 11th Ave and Clay.

One Portland Condominium  that should not be overlooked is the Benson Tower.   It is on the streetcar line, 2 blocks from Safeway, 2 blocks from the Park Blocks and close to the cultural district and PSU. The units are somewhat small, but the use of space is impressive. I recently view a 603sf one bedroom, and it seemed more livable than most 800 sf studios that I have seen. They 910 sf units are actually 2 bedrooms, so this is one of the few buildings downtown that offer 2 Bedroom units for less than 400K. The prices have come down quite a bit of the past two years, and an example of the pricing of the building is unit 2002 at $438/sf x 910SF = $399,000. I was told that this unit was formerly over $500,000.

The condos at the Benson have walls of windows and fantastic views, terraces, gas appliances, teak floors, quartz countertops and other high end finishes. The building has an outdoor garden, fountains, secure parking, a library, and a fitness center with a Jacuzzi. This is a very nice building that was finished just as the market started to take a turn for the worse. However, it is over 90% sold out, and the most of the remaining units have never been lived in.

I revisted the Benson on January 15th, and they have a 2BR plus a den condo for about $375,000. It is a corner unit and it has a view of PSU and a park. It is a bank owned property, and I think it is a great deal.