Thinking About Moving to Portland? Here's What You Need to Know!

Are you considering a move to Portland, Oregon? Whether it's for work, lifestyle, or simply the draw of the Pacific Northwest, relocating to a new city can be overwhelming. In this episode of Off the Record: Talking Real Estate, Joe and Makayla break down everything you need to know about making the move to Portland. From understanding different neighborhoods to market insights and lifestyle expectations, we’re covering it all!

Episode Highlights:

• The reality of Portland’s real estate market—what to expect when buying a home.
• Best neighborhoods for different lifestyles and budgets.
• The Portland vibe: What makes this city unique?
• Insider tips for relocating to Portland stress-free.
• Common questions out-of-town buyers ask and how we guide them to the right home.
• Portland beyond the stereotypes—yes, we love Portlandia, but there’s so much more to this city!

Why People Love Portland: Portland is more than just coffee shops, craft beer, and scenic hikes (though we have plenty of those!). With the Cascade Mountains to the east, the Oregon Coast to the west, and incredible vineyards in between, Portland offers a balanced blend of city life and outdoor adventure. Whether you’re looking for a bustling urban neighborhood, a quiet suburban retreat, or a place with great schools, we’ll help you navigate the options.

Neighborhoods Covered in This Episode:

• Downtown Portland & Pearl District – Urban living with high-rise condos, restaurants, and culture.
• Northeast Portland – A mix of historic charm and trendy spots.
• Southeast Portland – Vibrant, artsy, and filled with great food.
• Beaverton & Hillsboro – Perfect for families and those working in tech (hello, Intel!).
• Lake Oswego – A picturesque lakeside community with top schools.
• West Linn & Tigard – Great for families and those seeking space.

Thinking About Moving? Let’s Talk! If you're considering a move to Portland, don't navigate the market alone. Let’s connect and find the perfect home for you. Visit LivPortland.com to browse listings and schedule a consultation with us!

Thank you for listening to this episode. Stay up to date on the latest trends and insights by subscribing to our podcast and following us on social media.

For more information about buying or selling in the Portland Metro real estate market, please visit www.LivPortland.com or contact us directly.

We appreciate your feedback, so please leave a review and let us know what topics you would like to hear more about.

Transcript

00;00;08;21 - 00;00;26;00

Joe Reitzug

Welcome to Off the Record talking real estate with Joe and Makayla. If you're interested in the Portland, Oregon real estate market and want the unvarnished inside scoop, you've come to the right place. Thanks for giving us a listen. Okay, welcome to the show, everyone. Thanks for joining us. Makayla. Hello.

00;00;26;05 - 00;00;28;22

Makayla Mast

Hi. How are you today?

00;00;28;24 - 00;00;50;14

Joe Reitzug

I'm just dandy. I am just dandy. It's, You know, it's a Tuesday in the real estate world, and, things are crazy. We got a lot going on, and that's always a good thing. But between inspections and repairs and showing properties and getting showings set up and all that sort of good stuff, it's it's a lot.

00;00;50;14 - 00;00;55;02

Makayla Mast

Sometimes it is. But we love taking the time to talk to our podcast listeners.

00;00;55;04 - 00;01;13;07

Joe Reitzug

Yes we do. And today we have a great episode. So today is thinking about moving to Portland. Whether you're relocating for work life style or just drawn to the Pacific Northwest vibe, today we're breaking down what you really need to know before making a life move.

00;01;13;10 - 00;01;14;12

Makayla Mast

I love it.

00;01;14;15 - 00;01;20;04

Joe Reitzug

I thought that was really well written.

00;01;20;06 - 00;01;47;15

Joe Reitzug

But it hits the point of what we're talking about today. And so today we're we're going to take a viewpoint from if you are not from Portland and you'd like to see or hear what's going on here, what you can expect some of the different price ranges and amenities and the different areas to maybe look. And then we'll share a little bit of our experience with working with people that are from out of town, and then also give it a little advice at the end.

00;01;47;21 - 00;02;09;21

Makayla Mast

Of course, we have to give some advice. Sure. When I first got into the business, working with an out-of-town buyer was always so intimidating to me because it's a lot of pressure. You got to show them the whole city and learn about their lifestyle and what they not just want. Wanting a home, but what they want in a lifestyle and match them to a neighborhood that fits their needs and their price point.

00;02;09;23 - 00;02;19;26

Makayla Mast

But I think we got a pretty good system down now, so I feel more comfortable about it. And I think it's I think this is one of my, you know, the clients I get most excited about. Really. Yes.

00;02;19;29 - 00;02;41;15

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. I do think it's there's a lot of preplanning and we'll talk about that a little bit later, but also a lot of questions. You know, after you work with people for a while, you start to develop and understand what questions to ask. And you start to understand and who they are and what they're looking for and what a good fit might be.

00;02;41;18 - 00;03;00;21

Joe Reitzug

It's always one of those moments, you know, when you're working with someone and you're like, I bet they would love this neighborhood or this school system or this area that has all these different kind of restaurants. They're looking for something like that. It's kind of a neat feeling when you're like, okay, I get what they're what they're all about and what they're trying to accomplish here.

00;03;00;22 - 00;03;02;26

Makayla Mast

I agree, it's a good it's a fun process.

00;03;03;02 - 00;03;23;06

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. For those of you from out of town, Portland does have a very unique vibe. It has, a very unique real estate market. And compared to other places on the West Coast, it's just different. And a lot of people are drawn to that. A lot of people are just told that they're moving here.

00;03;23;09 - 00;03;24;19

Makayla Mast

And they don't like it.

00;03;24;25 - 00;03;48;09

Joe Reitzug

They have to like it. But I do think there's a real large contingent of people that once they live here or once they visit here, it's a really cool spot. And I've lived all around the United States. When I was growing up, my dad was in the military, you know, Indiana, Kentucky, Washington, Oregon. And I couldn't imagine leaving Portland.

00;03;48;09 - 00;04;06;09

Joe Reitzug

It's just such an incredible spot between the mountains, you know, to the east and the Coast Range to the west, and then the beautiful Oregon beaches and the coast that are out there. When country. It's just a really special place.

00;04;06;12 - 00;04;25;18

Makayla Mast

I could not agree more. I think a lot of people assume that Portland is just like an episode from Portlandia. And, you know, if that's your vibe, you can find those people here for sure. Yeah, you can, but it's not everybody on every corner either. Yeah. And that's kind of given us an interesting portrayal.

00;04;25;18 - 00;04;26;18

Joe Reitzug

But yeah.

00;04;26;21 - 00;04;28;26

Makayla Mast

I got to say, I don't totally agree with it.

00;04;28;29 - 00;04;32;02

Joe Reitzug

The Portlandia. Yeah. Yeah, I love that.

00;04;32;02 - 00;04;33;06

Makayla Mast

Show. Oh, it's great.

00;04;33;07 - 00;04;43;29

Joe Reitzug

It's Fred Armisen is the absolute best. And Carrie is also incredibly talented. I think that show is more hilarious when you know, Portland well said.

00;04;43;29 - 00;04;44;14

Makayla Mast

Yes.

00;04;44;21 - 00;04;56;19

Joe Reitzug

But it's so, you know, it's so crazy when you're not from Portland and you look at it and go, oh, that can't be real. But trust me, people, a lot of that stuff is it's.

00;04;56;21 - 00;04;58;27

Makayla Mast

And that's okay. Come one, come all.

00;04;59;00 - 00;05;02;07

Joe Reitzug

You know that my wife's ringtone on my phone is the Portlandia theme.

00;05;02;08 - 00;05;06;07

Makayla Mast

I didn't know this. Yeah. Wow. I didn't know you're such a diehard.

00;05;06;09 - 00;05;10;20

Joe Reitzug

I just love the song. But also, it kind of makes you and I crack up, so.

00;05;10;22 - 00;05;11;21

Makayla Mast

Oh, that's great.

00;05;11;21 - 00;05;35;25

Joe Reitzug

So it is. It's different than anywhere else. Obviously. Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sacramento, you know, San Jose, all those places in California. And then you have Seattle up in Puget Sound and Tacoma. It's just all of those are different. But Portland is uniquely different from all of them and what it can offer. And it's pretty cool as far as a business standpoint.

00;05;35;28 - 00;06;06;28

Joe Reitzug

Extremely strong tech. There's a very, you know, jobs here are, for the most part, good jobs and the employment situation in Portland is really strong. Multnomah County, which is downtown Portland and a lot of northeast Portland has had some struggles over the past year or two. But even that starting to rebound a little bit. But Washington County, Clackamas County, you know, west side, southern part of of Portland, very, very strong, a lot of good jobs.

00;06;07;06 - 00;06;38;01

Joe Reitzug

We work with a lot of relocation. So if your company offers you a relocation package, we've been doing that for 25 years, plus a lot of incoming people right now, because their jobs are sending and sending them here. So, very strong that way. It's a structured city. Right. So I think the thing that a lot of, people who visit Portland looking for a home or thinking about buying here are impressed with is there's not a lot of sprawl.

00;06;38;03 - 00;06;53;22

Joe Reitzug

So like, you know, I go down to the Bay area every once in a while. I've got friends down there, different things going on, and it is every well everywhere, same as LA and a lot of the rest of the country. It's just not very planned. You just get strip malls, you get, you know, it's just.

00;06;53;22 - 00;06;54;16

Makayla Mast

Randomness.

00;06;54;23 - 00;07;26;05

Joe Reitzug

All over the place. Portland is very much planned out and it's extremely difficult to build developments and get large neighborhoods put together because there is a process to it. And it's a double edged sword, which means that our inventory is very difficult, a very difficult situation right now because we don't have a lot of it. But also it's hard to, you know, build that, that, that base of new construction when you're so planned about it.

00;07;26;05 - 00;07;38;26

Joe Reitzug

That's tough. The upside is when you do get new developments, they're really, really beautiful. They've got parks, they're really thought out, lots of, bike paths, a lot of walking paths.

00;07;38;28 - 00;07;41;24

Makayla Mast

Public transportation, public transportation.

00;07;41;26 - 00;07;46;12

Joe Reitzug

So that's very, you know, it's very unique. I think about Portland, wouldn't you say? Yeah.

00;07;46;12 - 00;07;56;15

Makayla Mast

I think we take that for granted. I know, I definitely do. I mean, the fact that you can get from one end of the metro to other in an hour in a non traffic time is pretty amazing.

00;07;56;18 - 00;08;19;20

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. I live in Hillsboro which is on the west side of Portland, very west side of Portland. And I can walk to our what we call our max, which is our light rail. And I can walk there with a suitcase from my house. It takes me five minutes and take the light rail all the way across town and get out at the Portland airport.

00;08;19;23 - 00;08;22;05

Makayla Mast

Yes you can. You're very spoiled with that.

00;08;22;07 - 00;08;23;23

Joe Reitzug

I know, I love that.

00;08;23;25 - 00;08;28;10

Makayla Mast

But for most neighborhoods in Portland, it's very easy to get to the max.

00;08;28;10 - 00;08;43;25

Joe Reitzug

Yeah, yeah. For sure. The other thing to know about Portland, it is fiercely strong, ferociously independent. And you say, I mean, from the music scene to the restaurant scene.

00;08;43;27 - 00;08;44;12

Makayla Mast

Oh, I.

00;08;44;12 - 00;08;49;19

Joe Reitzug

See Portland is very independent and does not conform well.

00;08;49;24 - 00;08;53;03

Makayla Mast

Oh, sure. Yeah. There's there's not a box.

00;08;53;03 - 00;08;55;29

Joe Reitzug

There's not a box. Do you see what you're saying? Yeah.

00;08;56;02 - 00;09;04;20

Makayla Mast

Very well said. Yeah. So a lot of people compare us to Seattle. And I think in a lot of ways we are like Seattle. But the vibe is just a little different.

00;09;04;22 - 00;09;13;14

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. Yeah. They're if you spend any amount of time here in Portland, you will see bumper bumper stickers that say Keep Portland Weird.

00;09;13;16 - 00;09;15;08

Makayla Mast

And it's very important to us.

00;09;15;11 - 00;09;38;20

Joe Reitzug

I guess, like, I mean, define weird would be my question, but okay. But it does. It does cross over to the music scene, the restaurants, all of it. And it really promotes all sorts of different lifestyles, you know, diversity, all sorts of really cool stuff. And sometimes Portland gets bashed for that, but a lot of times it doesn't get credit for that.

00;09;38;20 - 00;09;59;02

Joe Reitzug

Right. And if you like food, which you know, I do, this is one of the top 2 or 3 cities in the United States for food scenes. And that is because of people aren't afraid to try different. Let's, you know, let's have a restaurant do this. Let's have a restaurant do that. Let's try this style, that style. So that is the Portland set up.

00;09;59;04 - 00;10;00;25

Joe Reitzug

So that yeah, you want to move.

00;10;00;25 - 00;10;01;28

Makayla Mast

That I can.

00;10;01;28 - 00;10;03;11

Joe Reitzug

I can I say your house.

00;10;03;14 - 00;10;04;18

Makayla Mast

Please?

00;10;04;21 - 00;10;05;29

Joe Reitzug

I know you're looking right now.

00;10;06;01 - 00;10;07;00

Makayla Mast

Yeah. It's hard.

00;10;07;05 - 00;10;23;15

Joe Reitzug

It is hard. Let's move on to, a quick little market overview of what the Portland metro real estate market looks like right now. And I got a question for you, Makayla. Would you say that our current market is favored towards buyers or sellers?

00;10;23;17 - 00;10;44;03

Makayla Mast

I'm reading your notes, but I have a different opinion than your notes. Yeah. Go ahead. Okay. I think in some ways it's favored towards sellers if they're in an extremely desirable location and their house is extremely well done and maintained and updated. Everyone for everyone else it's kind of leaning towards buyers.

00;10;44;08 - 00;11;10;14

Joe Reitzug

Yeah I think there are so few buyers in the market place right now that it's slowed the cycle down. Right. And I think it's very buyer friendly right now. But I still think it's a great time to sell. Yeah. Like you said if you've taken care of your home, if you're in a great location, if it doesn't have any big red flags and if you price appropriately it's going to sell.

00;11;10;16 - 00;11;34;09

Joe Reitzug

Right. And probably for with multiple offers. But that's the top 5% of the homes that are on the market in any price point. And if you're moving to Portland Or you're thinking about it, that's one thing you should know is if you're looking for something in a certain neighborhood, a certain area, and something that's highly desirable, it's going to be competitive.

00;11;34;09 - 00;11;34;28

Joe Reitzug

Still, don't.

00;11;34;28 - 00;11;40;06

Makayla Mast

You think that, well, they need to be extremely well prepared. Yeah. Before going to make offers.

00;11;40;13 - 00;11;46;10

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. So average sale price is about 615,000. Median about 580 I think.

00;11;46;14 - 00;11;46;25

Makayla Mast

Okay.

00;11;46;25 - 00;11;59;02

Joe Reitzug

So much more affordable than a lot of the rest of the West Coast and a lot of the other spots around the United States still, that does that does take about $650,000, right?

00;11;59;07 - 00;12;00;10

Makayla Mast

It's not cheap.

00;12;00;11 - 00;12;22;26

Joe Reitzug

No. Especially if you have very, very low down payment in our current interest rates. But it can be done. And depending on your situation, you want to take a look at that. That's a whole nother show. But you can still find in the mid to high four hundreds and very nice locations. I know it's tough. For those of you listening in the face that Michael made was like, are you putting me on the spot here?

00;12;23;01 - 00;12;30;26

Makayla Mast

I yeah, I agree, but you're going to be a little bit further out from downtown Portland. Yes. And that's okay.

00;12;30;29 - 00;12;41;26

Joe Reitzug

That is okay. That's okay. We have a property on the market right now in Hillsboro and a very, very nice neighborhood. Great location for 525.

00;12;41;29 - 00;12;44;20

Makayla Mast

Amazing lot. The yard is amazing.

00;12;44;20 - 00;12;52;00

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. Four bedrooms two and a half baths. Nice big lot. So there is some affordability out there.

00;12;52;02 - 00;12;56;19

Makayla Mast

Should we talk really quick about counties and taxes. How that varies.

00;12;56;21 - 00;12;57;14

Joe Reitzug

Yes we can.

00;12;57;15 - 00;13;25;18

Makayla Mast

Okay. So the rule of thumb when you're going to shop for homes in the area. There's three major counties in the Portland metro area. Multnomah County like Joe mentioned is downtown Portland. Washington County is west of downtown Portland, and Clackamas County is east of Portland. And the taxes generally are most affordable. And Washington County middle is Clackamas. And then Multnomah is, yeah, most expensive property taxes.

00;13;25;22 - 00;13;41;02

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. In the further you go out and Clackamas. Mr.. More affordable it is Lake Oswego. Which one is one of the top price points here in Portland? Kind of skews that for Clackamas a little bit, because you do find some homes that have 30, 40, $50,000 tax bills per year.

00;13;41;03 - 00;13;44;03

Makayla Mast

Right, 8000ft². Yeah.

00;13;44;05 - 00;14;03;07

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. So but I think that's a great point. And we'll talk about that a little bit when we're giving some advice on on what to do if you're thinking about making the move to Portland. But the other thing about our market is price point matters. Anything below 700 is it's just tough right now because it's so interest rate sensitive.

00;14;03;09 - 00;14;30;17

Joe Reitzug

Right. And so it's a much slower burn. But that means if you're coming into town and you're qualified, you're pre-approved, you're ready to go. You can find some good deals below 700,000, because there's not as much competition. When you go 700 to 1.5, 700 to 1.25, it gets very competitive. And then surprisingly 1.5 and above moves extremely quickly, right?

00;14;30;17 - 00;14;55;06

Joe Reitzug

So if you're a luxury buyer, there's some amazing properties in Portland every all the cool properties you might see on, Sotheby's International realty.com or on our website, Livportland.com around the country in different places. Portland can match any of those areas for really, really cool properties. Some on acreage, you know, some just really, really well done. But those properties go quick.

00;14;55;06 - 00;15;08;27

Joe Reitzug

And that's a weird place to be because in years past in my career, it was always the further you go up the price point, the slower they sold. And now it's inverse and it's just really odd.

00;15;08;28 - 00;15;12;23

Makayla Mast

It is odd. So it'll be interesting to see how it plays out the rest of the year.

00;15;12;24 - 00;15;19;18

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. Really. Well, so tell me about the demographic who is moving to Portland.

00;15;19;20 - 00;15;25;08

Makayla Mast

We see so many young professionals that are seeking vibrant neighborhoods.

00;15;25;10 - 00;15;29;22

Joe Reitzug

Yeah, the neighborhood scene is really cool. And there's some really cool spots.

00;15;29;24 - 00;15;54;04

Makayla Mast

We get a lot of, we have if you don't know, we have the Nike World headquarters here in Beaverton, Oregon, which is about 20 minutes west of downtown Portland. We get a lot of people moving here to work for Nike, and they always want to live close to the headquarters, but still in a cool, neighborhood. And so there's a lot of great pockets downtown that, people have found fun.

00;15;54;09 - 00;16;19;05

Joe Reitzug

Right? Yeah. We also have the Adidas North American headquarters and under armor's West Coast. Right. Columbia is here. So a lot of garment, a lot of footwear, a lot of all that. But it's it's an interesting demographic. And first time home buyers here in Portland are steadily getting older like they are around the nation. You know, 35, 36, 37 years old.

00;16;19;07 - 00;16;51;12

Joe Reitzug

And then, you know, we have a relocation buyers that are working through a company, for the most part are mid 40s to 50s. And that can be a tough segment to work with because they're coming from something that they were comfortable with and liked. And now finding that in Portland is sometimes tough, right? So $1 million to 1,000,005, like we said, extremely competitive and not a lot to choose from.

00;16;51;14 - 00;16;53;20

Joe Reitzug

So it can be a tough situation.

00;16;53;22 - 00;17;07;07

Makayla Mast

The other group moving here is families who are drawn to the schools and parks. And I think the outdoor outfits atmosphere that Portland has to offer, like we said, the mountains, the wine country and the beach all being within an hour and a half.

00;17;07;09 - 00;17;25;21

Joe Reitzug

Yeah, yeah. So that's kind of the demographic. Obviously it's all over the place. There's people of all ages, races, ethnicity, all of it coming to Portland. But that's kind of what we see. I want to move to where to look for different price ranges and amenities.

00;17;25;26 - 00;17;27;12

Makayla Mast

I love this section.

00;17;27;12 - 00;17;44;29

Joe Reitzug

I know, I was shocked. Yeah. Thank you. Let's start with affordable. If if you had someone moving into town either a first time homebuyer or a limited budget, what would be the areas that you would say, hey, check this part of Portland out first.

00;17;45;01 - 00;17;56;17

Makayla Mast

North Portland kind of by University of Portland. There's some beautiful streets and great pockets in there that are affordable. Southeast Portland a lot of fun neighborhood vibes there.

00;17;56;17 - 00;17;58;03

Joe Reitzug

Some great restaurants.

00;17;58;03 - 00;18;11;18

Makayla Mast

Yes. I could do a whole episode on that. And we should. And then the Tigard area, which is a little bit south, but still pretty central and convenient. And then we were just talking about Beaverton by, like you world headquarters.

00;18;11;21 - 00;18;23;21

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. Hillsboro and Forest Grove and Cornelius are also good choices. You know, the further you go out, the a little bit more affordable, it's going to get maybe a little bit more choices.

00;18;23;21 - 00;18;25;21

Makayla Mast

Right? So it just depends what you're looking for.

00;18;25;27 - 00;18;28;23

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. But there is something to find for everyone.

00;18;28;25 - 00;18;30;16

Makayla Mast

What about luxurious.

00;18;30;16 - 00;18;31;22

Joe Reitzug

Oh yeah.

00;18;31;24 - 00;18;33;05

Makayla Mast

Favorite.

00;18;33;07 - 00;19;02;17

Joe Reitzug

And buy luxury. We're talking probably 12515 and above. I think Lake Oswego obviously is absolutely fantastic on the lake around the lake, on the river there just some spectacular homes. We're in the process of, we have a sale pending on one that's 1.75. It's on the Willamette River. It's almost an acre, you know, so and it's a absolutely gorgeous home, but it's competitive, right?

00;19;02;18 - 00;19;10;08

Makayla Mast

You know? Yeah. Lake Oswego just has so much to offer. I personally love the little downtown area the most.

00;19;10;11 - 00;19;42;12

Joe Reitzug

There's, like Oswego, there's southwest Portland. Southwest Hills is just a really cool spot up in the hills just west of downtown. You know, there's the Kings Heights, there's Northwest Portland, some places in northeast. If you're looking for some of the older homes in town, there's Laurelhurst, there's Alamo to, those neighborhoods have some spectacular older homes that have either been cared for meticulously or revitalized and then down South West Linn and Stafford.

00;19;42;14 - 00;19;43;25

Makayla Mast

I want to go home shopping now.

00;19;43;29 - 00;19;50;15

Joe Reitzug

Yeah, I know if you're a horse person, Stafford is the spot to be.

00;19;50;17 - 00;19;51;23

Makayla Mast

A dream come true.

00;19;51;24 - 00;20;04;16

Joe Reitzug

I know I drove through there last weekend. And just the arenas and the really cool cross fencing and everything, and the horses running around out there. It's like you're in Kentucky. It's pretty cool.

00;20;04;19 - 00;20;07;02

Makayla Mast

So impressive to drive by those places.

00;20;07;08 - 00;20;11;08

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. What about schools? Where do you go for the top schools, Mac schools?

00;20;11;08 - 00;20;30;26

Makayla Mast

Well, Lake Oswego, they have they tend to have ten out of ten ranked schools across the whole board. They have two high schools, I think two middle schools until, for elementary schools, I don't know the exact number. I know they have two high schools and they're all nine out of 10 or 10 out of ten. Southwest Portland as well.

00;20;30;26 - 00;20;37;01

Makayla Mast

A lot of great private and public school options there. And then Beaverton, same thing, private and public.

00;20;37;03 - 00;20;37;22

Joe Reitzug

Yeah.

00;20;37;25 - 00;20;39;14

Makayla Mast

Yeah. Rank really high.

00;20;39;16 - 00;20;42;26

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. Out in Clackamas, there's some really highly ranked schools now too.

00;20;42;28 - 00;20;45;03

Makayla Mast

So that new high school Nelson I think.

00;20;45;04 - 00;20;53;21

Joe Reitzug

Nelson. Yeah, yeah. Very nice school. And then, there's a lot of really cool private schools. Did you know that I went to a Jesuit high school?

00;20;53;23 - 00;20;55;24

Makayla Mast

I don't think I did. Oh, yeah.

00;20;55;26 - 00;20;57;16

Joe Reitzug

My parents. Oh, the Jesuit.

00;20;57;16 - 00;20;58;28

Makayla Mast

Prep school boy.

00;20;59;01 - 00;21;04;14

Joe Reitzug

No, it wasn't preppy. It was the Jesuits who were like, okay. Oh, yeah, we're going to get your stuff in order.

00;21;04;14 - 00;21;05;19

Makayla Mast

Oh, scary.

00;21;05;19 - 00;21;08;02

Joe Reitzug

I know I was a bad boy in.

00;21;08;04 - 00;21;08;26

Makayla Mast

Like, a too now.

00;21;08;26 - 00;21;22;15

Joe Reitzug

You mean, I know, and they whip me into shape. But there is a Jesuit high school in Southwest Portland, and then there's also Central Catholic in Northeast. That's a great school. There's some really amazing private schools in Portland.

00;21;22;18 - 00;21;28;06

Makayla Mast

Unable to West Hills, pretty competitive to get into, but oh yeah, it's impressive.

00;21;28;08 - 00;21;29;07

Joe Reitzug

Yeah.

00;21;29;09 - 00;21;32;22

Makayla Mast

Who knew homes. Where are their new homes, Joe?

00;21;32;24 - 00;21;48;08

Joe Reitzug

So like we said, Portland is a very planned metro area. And so it's, you know, when a new development comes out, it's a big thing. And probably the biggest going on right now is in South Hillsboro. How many homes is it?

00;21;48;15 - 00;21;49;25

Makayla Mast

Oh, I have no idea.

00;21;49;28 - 00;21;53;21

Joe Reitzug

Hundreds and thousands. Thousands. Yeah. Tons.

00;21;53;21 - 00;21;55;29

Makayla Mast

I don't even recognize that part of Hillsboro anymore.

00;21;56;01 - 00;21;57;01

Joe Reitzug

I now feel like.

00;21;57;01 - 00;21;58;04

Makayla Mast

An old timer saying that.

00;21;58;09 - 00;22;21;16

Joe Reitzug

Right. But, South Hillsboro is a great spot to look for, to look at and all the infrastructure, you know, the market, the grocery stores, all the different shops and parks and trails and everything are just beautiful. And it's it's kind of crazy when they start coming out of the ground with the homes and this and that, and the infrastructure starts to come in.

00;22;21;17 - 00;22;42;22

Joe Reitzug

Then you start to see the bigger picture and it's absolutely gorgeous. But South Hillsboro is one I know Clackamas has some really cool stuff going on. And then Sherwood, south of town, has some, really good stuff that I know is happening right now. And then eventually things are going to move to urban growth boundary that you GB is a.

00;22;42;22 - 00;22;44;00

Makayla Mast

Big word for us.

00;22;44;00 - 00;22;57;19

Joe Reitzug

And is a big word for us, but eventually it will move more towards the west and Hillsboro and North Plains banks, all those type of areas. We'll see a lot of development right now.

00;22;57;22 - 00;23;00;26

Makayla Mast

Yes, well tears my heart apart, but we well.

00;23;00;29 - 00;23;03;23

Joe Reitzug

Your lifetime maybe not mine.

00;23;03;25 - 00;23;06;06

Makayla Mast

Not Taylor. Yeah, it's going to take a.

00;23;06;06 - 00;23;09;00

Joe Reitzug

While, but no man knows.

00;23;09;03 - 00;23;11;06

Makayla Mast

I'm only allowed to die.

00;23;11;08 - 00;23;27;26

Joe Reitzug

Where to look for different price ranges and amenities is what we're talking about. But the one thing that more and more people move to Oregon for is wine country. And the Oregon wine country is absolutely phenomenal.

00;23;27;27 - 00;23;49;15

Makayla Mast

It is. I love it so much. There's so much to see. You could spend a week here and not even scratch the surface on the wineries here. They're all really close together. They're you know, you're about an hour outside of Portland, but there's so many Airbnbs and hotels and amenities out there, it's more affordable than a trip to like Napa Valley.

00;23;49;15 - 00;23;50;27

Makayla Mast

And then I would say, right.

00;23;51;00 - 00;23;51;22

Joe Reitzug

Yeah, for sure.

00;23;51;26 - 00;23;59;18

Makayla Mast

And then, compared to Washington, Washington wine country is also amazing. But I think we have more down here. So it's that's kind of the advantage there.

00;23;59;21 - 00;24;19;23

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. And it's it's one of those things where, you know, the rolling hills, it's the Willamette Valley has this really cool shape where you'll get these long stretches of just kind of slowly rolling hills, and then all of a sudden they'll climb up a little bit. And so all these wineries have kind of picked out their spots up in the hills.

00;24;19;26 - 00;24;26;12

Joe Reitzug

So almost all of them have amazing views. And it's just it's just so cool.

00;24;26;12 - 00;24;27;09

Makayla Mast

It is.

00;24;27;11 - 00;24;57;23

Joe Reitzug

Yeah. If you're thinking about a trip, I highly recommend it. And a lot of people that take the trip end up thinking about Portland and, you know, hey, what would it mean for us to live out here and all of those areas from Hillsboro to Forest Grove to Carleton, Yamhill, McMinnville, Newberg, all of those area and areas in there, you know, you start to get an hour, you know, 45 minutes to an hour outside of Portland.

00;24;57;26 - 00;25;15;22

Joe Reitzug

But for a lot of people, that's not that far know, you know, especially if you're retired or if you're looking for a small town community feel while still having a lot of stuff going on your on around you. And the price points out there. Well, secret people, wine country in Oregon is very affordable.

00;25;15;22 - 00;25;36;25

Makayla Mast

It is. I mean, you're not going to get acreage with that, but you're going to find a nice, yeah, smaller home in town. And the towns are so adorable and it's likely walkable. Yeah. Every time I go wine tasting, I think, why do I do this every weekend? It's my favorite thing ever. Probably because I would become an alcohol ever.

00;25;36;27 - 00;25;39;13

Joe Reitzug

But would hate me.

00;25;39;16 - 00;25;43;21

Makayla Mast

It's just one of those things, like Joe said, like when you visit it, you'd never want to leave, right?

00;25;43;25 - 00;26;05;25

Joe Reitzug

So let's talk a little bit. You know, I think we've shared some of our experiences working with with people that are moving from out of state. And I'll share kind of my thought on that and then I'll let you share yours. But the thing that I notice when I work with people that have come in from out of town is that for the most part, they don't know what to expect when they get here.

00;26;05;27 - 00;26;37;04

Joe Reitzug

And a lot of them look at Zillow or at Redfin or some of those things, and that's great, you know, looking for the houses that you can afford and this and that and the other. But once you get here, all the neighborhoods are so different. All the areas are so different. And I people get overwhelmed very quickly. And so, you know, my advice is do your research on what do you want to get out of the neighborhood and the area that you're living in, not just your home, but the neighborhood and the area?

00;26;37;04 - 00;26;57;04

Joe Reitzug

Do you want to be walkable to restaurants? Do you want to be close to light rail? You know, those type of things. I, I think people show up and they're like, well, I know what I can afford and the areas that I can afford it in, well, maybe, maybe not. What do you really want, though? Right. And then they have to recalibrate to oh yeah.

00;26;57;06 - 00;27;21;21

Joe Reitzug

Well let's look around a little bit. And so my advice of, you know, research what you want, think about what you want and then know your goals. Walk the neighborhoods, drive the neighborhoods, ride the neighborhoods. If you're if you're a biker and get a feel for things that way. Because I've had so many people that start out coming into town and they're like, well, I know what I can afford, and I'm going to go look here and here.

00;27;21;24 - 00;27;35;23

Joe Reitzug

But they really don't know everything's available. And then they get a feel for the different neighborhoods and they're like, I really like the vibe of, like Multnomah Village, right in Southwest Portland. You would never know about that. No. If you're just like an on Zillow. Right. Or something like.

00;27;35;23 - 00;27;37;21

Makayla Mast

That, it's just a neighborhood you kind of happen upon.

00;27;37;21 - 00;27;51;03

Joe Reitzug

Right. And then from there it's like, is there anything affordable for me in here? Well, yeah, let's look around, see what what's there. So instead of being focused on the house, find what makes your heart feel good in an area.

00;27;51;08 - 00;28;08;25

Makayla Mast

Very well said. And then be hard to add something to that. But I think when we say when we're touring homes with buyers, we say to pick your top 3 to 5. So like you said, I think pick your top 3 to 5. What's important to you? Is it school district? Is it being close to work? Is it the neighborhood feel?

00;28;08;27 - 00;28;31;02

Makayla Mast

What is it? But give yourself time to explore and plan and really figure that out, because chances are it would be hard to figure out what neighborhood to live in on the first trip or even a short trip. Yeah. So the more preparation you can do beforehand, the better. If you're at the point where you are home shopping, I think a good way to see the neighborhoods is to go look at a couple homes.

00;28;31;04 - 00;28;38;19

Makayla Mast

Because home styles can vary throughout town as well. And I think that's, you know, part of the thing that makes Portland so unique.

00;28;38;22 - 00;29;03;12

Joe Reitzug

Yeah, for sure. There's a lot to offer. And, you can go to our website Livportland.com And we've got a ton of resources there on both, you know, buying a home and also neighborhoods and what to expect in different neighborhoods. The other side of it is don't be afraid to reach out to professionals like Makayla and I and just say, hey, my family's thinking about making a move.

00;29;03;15 - 00;29;18;07

Joe Reitzug

Can we schedule a quick call with you to talk about it and, you know, more than likely we're going to ask a lot of questions to try to just find out what is going to make you happy and what's going to speak to you about, you know, where you want to be and how you want to live.

00;29;18;09 - 00;29;27;12

Joe Reitzug

That way we can kind of send you some things that match, and then from there, you know, maybe make a visit and and see where it goes. We have that happen all the time.

00;29;27;12 - 00;29;28;00

Makayla Mast

We do.

00;29;28;05 - 00;29;29;00

Joe Reitzug

It's fun.

00;29;29;03 - 00;29;36;00

Makayla Mast

And if you are thinking about relocating to Portland, we would love to take you on our exclusive, city tour that we do.

00;29;36;07 - 00;29;43;16

Joe Reitzug

We do have a tour that it's pretty special. It's pretty amazing, you know, including food and lots of whatnot.

00;29;43;16 - 00;29;44;14

Makayla Mast

The views.

00;29;44;16 - 00;29;48;07

Joe Reitzug

Views and the good stuff, people, we've got the goods.

00;29;48;09 - 00;29;51;10

Makayla Mast

But it's exclusive.

00;29;51;12 - 00;29;54;14

Joe Reitzug

All right, folks. Well, Makayla, it's been a pleasure, as always.

00;29;54;16 - 00;29;55;28

Makayla Mast

Thank you. Yeah.

00;29;56;00 - 00;30;00;12

Joe Reitzug

And thank you all for joining. And, we'll talk to you next time. Take care. Bye.

00;30;00;15 - 00;36;20;23

Makayla Mast

Thanks for joining us today. If you're interested in finding out more about Joe, myself or the Livportland team, you can go to Livportland.com. Thanks for giving us a listen and see you next time on the Off the Record podcast.