Back to My Roots

I dislike when bloggers stop writing for a long time, then they come back with tons of excuses about why they’ve been gone. I don’t CARE what you’ve been doing – I read you for content so don’t preface it with a paragraph of blubbering about how you’re going to be better from now on. Just write your crap, dude. All I have to say is the following: “oh, hey.”

On to the post. There have been a few changes around here, which I’ll announce with this:

No, I don’t live here. My point is, this is a damn fine house. Gorgeous Victorian architecture, excellent condition, and in a central, upscale neighborhood (I’ll just vouch for that). 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2,600 sq ft. So how much do you think it costs? $1 million? $1.4 million? $2 million?

This home just went into contract for a mere $585,000. And that, my friends, is because it is located in Portland, Oregon – land of reasonable prices.

Thus begins my reintroduction into Portland, where this crazy blog got its start. Yes, it’s true – I have left San Francisco. And far from the long, drawn-out saga of the move to SF, the move back to Portland was short and sweet. I (along with my S.O.) decided to move, signed a lease, and bam, here we are. We’re renting a lovely home not far from my furnished rental condo, which I’ll be managing full-time from now on. The best part is we’re paying the same rent we paid back in SF and are getting about 3 times the value in return.

Anyway, enough about me! On to the Portland real estate porn. This home was built in 1890 but appears to be fully updated. Interestingly, it sold for $489K in 2003, then for $720K in 2005 (nicely done, bubble!), and now it’s back down to $585K. Given the stellar location and large size, I’d say we’re back to a somewhat realistic price.

Check it out:

[Show as slideshow]

I love being back in an area where even fancy pants homes are vaguely, one day, attainable–I mean, if you squint really hard and it’s kinda dark. [View on Redfin]