How is this area for buying a house? Is it safe or sketchy?

[dregoinplaces]

Originally Posted by EasyBeezy

I would take the previous message with a grain of salt. Portland has it's haters. Saying houses in Montavilla should cost under $300,000 is not remotely realistic.

That said, I live in Milwaukie. It is a better option. It's cleaner, safer, and closer to the center of town. However, the secret is out and the real estate in Milwaukie is appreciating rapidly. It isn't the bargain it used to be.

Thanks for your comment and for sharing your thoughts on Milwaukie. I found a house I really like in the area on Olsen. Where the house is seemed nice and pretty quiet to me. There are two offers already, so I will be #3. Wish me luck

[EasyBeezy]

Originally Posted by jamesblazens

Milwaukie is slightly better and massively overvalued. With interest rates over 8%, I expect Portland will experience a deep dive in real estate values. At least to pre-Covid levels or -30%.

If the Portland metro were to see a dive in values due to the rates, it would have already happened. Values are for the most part holding steady and slowly rising in the suburbs. The inventory is even worse than before, as people with 2.75% mortgages aren't moving. Also, most people that are in the market are willing to bite the bullet on the bad rates with the expectation that they will refi when the rates become reasonable again. In a sense, now is a better time to buy as values aren't going up $10,000 a month like they were two years ago.

[ejisme]

Originally Posted by EasyBeezy

If the Portland metro were to see a dive in values due to the rates, it would have already happened. Values are for the most part holding steady and slowly rising in the suburbs. The inventory is even worse than before, as people with 2.75% mortgages aren't moving. Also, most people that are in the market are willing to bite the bullet on the bad rates with the expectation that they will refi when the rates become reasonable again. In a sense, now is a better time to buy as values aren't going up $10,000 a month like they were two years ago.

2.75% mortgage rates are not going to be the norm anytime soon, if ever again. Just a few years ago, in the life of a house/mortgage, 5% was considered a good rate. I know we bought our first house in 1992 at 8.5% and that was considered a fair deal. The house we're in now, in 2008 started at 5.75%, but we've refinance twice since then. I'd be surprised if mortgage rates get below 5% in the next 10 years or so, and maybe much longer. It will take another financial crisis that drives the fed to slash interest rates to near zero again as a way to pump money into the economy. I don't think another pandemic, huge housing surplus, burst housing bubble, is coming soon. More likely the Fed will miss payments due to congressional impasse, an that will just drive interest rates higher for everyone.

Maybe, if investors get stuck with their rental and ABnB houses going unrented, they may have to liquidate them. That would likely put a surplus of housing back on the market and might drive prices down, and maybe mortgages back down to the 5% range. Maybe we should all go on vacation to motels and leave the ABnB properties sitting empty!!