Jen Woodbury's (jenwoodbury) Blog

The below link is great information on the resurgence of the 15 year mortgage. When home prices and interest rates were much higher than present, home affordability was difficult for many. A 30 year mortgage allowed payments to spread-out over 30 years. We get it. But, during that period, the 15 ...

Keep in mind, the word “predictions” as we enter into a new year of real estate. One of my favorite expressions in life is “nobody has a crystal ball.” And along with that, it has certainly been a crazy few years in real estate. But, the signs are showing some stabilization in the market. Reduced...

US home prices have risen 6.3% compared to this time last year and are reported to be the largest gain since July 2006. Portland, Oregon prices are up 4.5% over this time last year and up slightly from last month. We are not following the trend of a slight national decline from September. With ho...

It’s the time of year where people reach deep and reach out to charities and non-profits. There are so many great causes to support and most of us feel passionate about something. However you give back, with donations, time, labor, sponsorships; your favorite charity appreciates all you do. With ...

Happy Thanksgiving, may your home be filled with family, friends, fun and gratitude. Did you know, Thanksgiving is observed on the 2nd Monday in October (Canada), the 1st Thursday in November (Liberia), the last Wednesday in November (Norfolk Island) and the 4th Thursday in November (USA)? I love...

Some Oregon home loans were collectively cut by 50.5 million. 3,100 homeowners are seeing relief including some short sales with debt forgiveness as well as some second-lien debt forgiveness. Some 377 homeowners were also allowed to refinance saving them money as well. Most importantly, the settl...

According to RMLS, 2,103 Portland, Oregon homes sold in October and that’s up 42.7% from the same period last year and 11% from last month. Wow, can you say “inventory crunch?” Our current inventory is so low that it would sell through in 3.8 months if nothing else came on the market. These stati...

Based on Zillow stats, OregonLive.com reports that between July and September, 2012, the percentage of homeowners who are underwater in their mortgages fell about 4%. I have reported on this before and I’m glad to see the numbers are in a sustained trend. 29.3% of Portland homeowners are underwat...

The Portland, Oregon real estate market is changing. According to RMLS, year to date, the first 10 months of stats reflect new listings down by 3.3%, pending sales up by 17.6% and home sales also up by 20.4%. Home prices are still rising. The average home price in the Portland, Oregon home market...

According to S&P (see link below) home prices continued to rise. Average home prices increase by .09% in 19 of 20 metro areas analyzed. Seattle is the only metro area exception, showing a .1% decline for August 2012. Portland, Oregon shows a .5% increase for August 2012, a 1.2% increase for June/...