Portland Blog - This Week in Portland - July 25 - August 1, 2009

It's another gorgeous Portland morning, and here I sit on my back deck with cup of coffee and laptop, writing this week's Portland blog. From my deck, today's background sounds include the neighbor's power tools as he works on his back deck (reminding me of my neglected front porch step that needs repair), and my other neighbor's flock of chickens clucking happily away. Today, I am dying to get away from my computer and go on a hike. Sadly, I have not been on one in a while, and there is no excuse for that in Portland. I know it is supposed to be blazing hot out, but I don't care. Deep under the canopied trees of Forest Park, you can always find a cool shady spot to rest for a few minutes. This weekend, you should take a hike and then visit the World Forestry Center to view some great photos in the exhibit by Bruce MacGregor. Afterwards, head down to the Portland Waterfront and enjoy the Oregon Brew Fest. If that is too much outdoor action for you, visit our Portland Events Page, because there are several great Portland Theater Events going on this month, as well.

I don't know about you, but during the hot summer months after a long hard day at the office, I don't always feel like cooking, or even eating very much. Such was the case one night this week. We were looking for a cheap Portland happy hour dinner spot for a light meal this past week (besides the "Quizzy Night" Thursdays at Billy Ray's Dive bar I mentioned last time). Anyway, this week we made our way over to Wine Down on 28th.
I recommend it! It's cheap, it's tasty, and it's in a wonderful classic Portland neighborhood to relax and watch people going by on a lazy summer night. HH Beers are $2.50, wines are $4, and fine eats between $3-6! Happy Hour at Wine Down features their famous $5 gourmet Laurelhurst burger with carmelized onions, among other excellent choices. We will be back! If you have a favorite cheap local happy hour or eating spot, comment back and let us know!

Featured Portland Events

Oregon Brew Fest - Ah, luscious beers downtown on the Portland waterfront, what could be finer for a hot summer day? Come check it out, the amazing Oregon Brewer's Festival! Downtown this weekend. The Oregon Brewers Festival is one of the nation’s longest running and best loved craft beer festivals. Situated on the west bank of the Willamette River, with towering Mt. Hood as a backdrop, it is the ideal venue for anyone who loves craft beer. With a laid back attitude and scores of award-winning beers, the festival reflects the essence of the city of Portland.
View this Portland Event

Third Eye Theatre Presents: Dylan Hillerman's Grand Guignol (June 26th - Aug 1st) - "...And much of Madness, and more of Sin, And Horror the soul of the plot." -Edgar Allen Poe. For all you sci-fi / horror fans of cult theater who want to see more of it on stage... ...a quick and dirty teaser-trailer for a night of one-acts about Contemporary Fear in the hyper-sexed Age of Transitions, set in Portland, OR... all original plays by Portland playwrights...the first in a series... . View this Portland Event

A Year in the Long Life of Forest Park - World Forestry Center. Visitors to the World Forestry Center Discovery Museum, in partnership with the Forest Park Conservancy, will have the opportunity to see 45 stunning images of Forest Park taken by local photographer Bruce MacGregor. The exhibit will be on view through September 27 and is included with museum admission. Covering 5,400 acres and with a history that dates as far back as the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Forest Park has endured fires, logging, and real estate development to become one of the nation’s largest forested city parks. Its complex ecosystem contributes to Portland's clean air and water, providing habitats for more than 170 species of mammals and birds. View this Portland Event

There are many more great Portland events this week, just visit the Portland Events calendar!

Portland Photo of the Week

The featured photo of the week is a little something to cool you off in this hot summer weather: Multnomah Falls in Ice , by Kurt R. Thanks for sharing your great images, Kurt--nice set this week!

Arlington Heights Neighborhood Real Estate Report by Ross Seligman

Arlington Heights is a beautiful neighborhood of high end real estate, bordering Northwest Heights, Sylvan Highlands, Hillside, Northwest and Goose Hollow neighborhoods. You can see the neighborhood profile from your favoite experts at the .com side of things here: http://www.portlandneighborhood.com/arlingtonheights.html

Arlington Heights neighborhood map: http://www.portlandonline.com/shared/cfm/image.cfm?id=58349

In my monthly Portland real estate report, I always talk about how each individual neighborhood is a micro-market. If you are looking to buy or sell in a particular neighborhood, the most crucial information that
you need to know is what is going on in that neighborhood. In this situation, the overall Portland market report is less important and the national real estate report is just about useless. This posting is a real estate report for the Arlington Heights neighborhood of all homes in all price ranges. Feel free to request articular neighborhoods in which you are interested in buying or selling and I am be happy to do a report. You can contact me on this forum or on my website: http://www.propertiesofportland.com

The first thing you will notice about individual neighborhoods as compared to the overall Portland reports are that the numbers can be wildly different month to month. Basically, the bigger the pool of data you are working with, the smoother the stats become. As we focus on smaller areas, many different things can happen month to month.

Since Portland is a neighborhood city, you can now search by "Irvington, Alberta, etc.". You can check it out by clicking here.


On to the report:

Here is the overall chart of inventory, sold, and pending for the Arlington Heights neighborhood from 4/08 to 6/09:

Since February, both pending and closed sales have increased. You will notice that, compared to inventory, a small percentage of homes are selling each month, however, sales are up from last year. Higher end homes have a smaller pool of buyers, therefore, they frequently take more time to sell. Couple that with the jumbo loan problems of the past couple of years and sales will be low. The Portland real estate market
is better in general this year over last and getting a jumbo loan is not a problem now like it was before. This explains the increase in sales.


Read the rest of this report by local Portland Realtor and Ecobroker, Ross Seligman.

Visit my website where you can contact me and search all Portland Metro Area listings from the RMLS: http://www.propertiesofportland.com

Best Real Estate Deals in Portland

A pick of Ross Seligman's best real estate deals in Portland this week

If you are new to Portland or considering a move to Portland, you'll definitely want to check out our book, a Weekend Guide to Portland.

Refinancing Part 3 - Using your Equity to Become Debt Free - by Wade Willis

Read the rest of this report by Wade Willis.

Wade Willis, Loan Officer, Sound Mortgage, Inc., 503.819.8174 cell, 971.327.9750 office. Visit my website at: www.wadewillis.com.

New PortlandNeighborhood Members

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