Is This Home?

Today we looked at about six more houses in Portland and Beaverton, and the first one we visited was a real winner! It just came on the market and our realtor brought it to our attention - hopefully this time we'll have a chance before someone else buys it! The condo isn't the only one we've lost that we've really liked.



In fact, since we liked it so much, and since we feel satisfied we've exhausted pretty much all the good options in the Portland area, we're planning to make an offer on it! We are meeting with the realtor at 9:30am tomorrow morning to do so.

Making an offer isn't binding, so it makes sense to try to get in there early before we have to compete with someone else. Maybe we can even get a great deal. Our realtor is going to check the local market so she can advise us on where to start with the offer.

It is a really great place at a good price - the same listing price as the condo, but with no HOA fees. And it's in Washington County, so the property taxes are low. So it's comfortably within our budget, which is a nice change.

The house has all three things we hear are important for real estate: location, location, location! It's located west of Portland in the area below Forest Park, at the end of a private road in a cozy neighborhood. The neighborhood is incredibly quiet - we only heard birds chirping.


Aerial view of location (click to enlarge). Or see it on an interactive map. You can just see Skyline Blvd. at the top right corner - that marks the boundary of Forest Park.

It backs up to a big forest, to which we'd have actual access from the backyard! So that means beautiful forest views from the living area and back bedrooms. The views from the front of the house are nice too - over rooftops and trees. The side windows only have views of the neighboring houses, but fortunately very few windows look in that direction. The layout was well-designed with that in mind.

The house was built in 2005 and is exceptionally big - 3,534 square feet! It has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms and a great modern style. The kitchen is amazing. I think the front is super cute. There is very little we'd want to change - just some paint and maybe some carpet. The stairs are the only real drawback to the house, but they look nice and provide some great views. The house faces almost exactly west - the front looks dark because we visited in the morning.

For 360° views of all the main rooms with nice furniture, please check out this excellent virtual tour. And over 60 photos here: http://flickr.com/gp/sacred_destinations/94ZE3B


Front porch and front door (I love a good red door)


View down from the front porch



Area just inside entrance - formal living and dining room.


Real estate photo, with furniture and red columns


A unique feature - a big den that they used as a games room! It's just inside the entrance on the right. We would paint it immediately, but the molding and wet bar are pretty great.




Games room as it looks now


Beautiful kitchen with big granite island and tree views


Real estate photo with furniture and pots


Informal dining room and deck (real estate photo)


Living room with gas fireplace


Real estate photo with furniture


The backyard is small, but it leads into this


Side view from deck (north)


Side view from deck (south)


Small backyard - we might want to put a little lawn here


Backyard looking a little nicer in the real estate photo


Stairs from the main floor down to the garage - a slightly shorter and more comfy route than the exterior stairs



Huge bonus room in basement - we're thinking exercise room and/or home theater!


Top floor: hallway; laundry room; bathroom


Doors of master bedroom


Master bedroom, with west-facing windows


Master bedroom with furniture


Master bathroom and walk-in closet


Two bedrooms at the front of the house


Third extra bedroom at the back of the house with forest views (real estate photo) - this looks like a good office to me!

I'll post an update tomorrow after our meeting - wish us luck!