Hey guys!
My boyfriend and I are looking to move out of state, and Oregon is one of our top choices. We'd like to start our real estate investing career with by house hacking a duplex or triplex.
Any advice on the neighborhoods/cities we should be looking at?
Our budget is $250K and we'd be looking to cashflow or break even. (Or at the very least very low in the negatives -- the goal is to save up to buy more properties!)
Thanks!
Haley,
I happen to be that BP member that @Ian burg helped buy a house for! I have a duplex in Redmond with a tenant who pays over half my mortgage, and a friend in my second bedroom that reimburses me for utilities and food. My total payment is about $100, although I could easily rent my spare room for more and pay nothing. I just wanted to help out a friend and offered it to them instead.
Redmond is a good area and prices aren't too bad here yet. I am obviously bias because I live here, but it is certainly worth looking into. The weather is normally quite nice as well. A lot of sunshine, and endless amounts of activities to do outside. Also, Ian is great to work with, which made everything I had to do, really easy!
Haley.
Good luck.
Oregon is a great place to live.
@Antoine Martel Thanks! I've heard good things
Hi Haley,
I've lived in Oregon my whole life and it is a great place to live. So, to buy a duplex for $250k you'll probably have to stay away from Portland and Bend areas. I live in Lane County just outside of Eugene and there are some opportunities here. I guess it depends a lot on what you are looking for...country or city, colder vs. warmer. I'd be happy to talk to you guys and answer your questions. Just let me know.
Hey Haley,
Oregon is a pretty diverse area so that is a complicated question but i would look outside one of the more popular cities. Maybe a suburb of Portland if you want to live near a bigger city. If you are looking more in a in the Central Oregon area Redmond is a good place to start only 20/25 min from Bend which has some of the best outdoor activities Oregon has to offer. Not that there are not deals to be found in those more popular cities. They just seem to be harder to find and seem to be higher priced for the most part. Have you guys decided on what you are looking for (type of place you want to live in, big city, outdoor activities, mixture of both, things like that?). Oregon has a lot of choices for different styles of living :) I have lived in several different parts of Oregon i could give you guys pointers on that side but i am new to real estate investing so maybe someone else might be able to help more on that end. Good luck with your search and I'd be glad to help if i can!
what city (s) are you considering in Oregon? It's a big state with vastly different rental markets amongst cities. Is 250k the cash you have or max purchase price? If purchase price, what is the limiting factor for that (cash for down pmt, personal preference, DTI ratio?)
250k is a low purchase price target in most major OR markets, especially for 2-4 unit.
Hi Haley,
Oregon is wonderful, and others have already stated, quite diverse in real estate. Once you figure out what area you want to be in, it becomes easier to point you in the right direction.
Do you want to be close to the coast, do you want to wake up staring at snow capped mountains or maybe you like both in which case the Willamette valley would be a perfect fit. I'm in Eugene, so about an hour in either direction I can be on the coast or at a ski resort.
I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have.
Haley-
@Darren McGillvrey is right. $250k for multifamily is going to be almost impossible to find near Portland or Bend. But you may have an easier time looking in other areas like Salem/Keizer or Eugene/Springfield. I live in Newberg which is about 35 miles sw from downtown Portland and duplexes here have been $300k+. Places like Beaverton, Tigard, and Milwaukie would be good places to have alerts set for in the Portland area.
If you have your heart set on the Bend area then you might have an easier time finding something in Redmond which is about 20 min north of Bend.
I wish you success in your hunt! I'm a 5th generation Oregonian and absolutely love it here!
I live in Suinriver, which is a resort area, south of Bend and about a 20 minute drive. I live here because when I was moving up, it was the only place I could find a house, and it's a seasonal rental. There's a huge VR (short term rental) market in Sunriver, and in Bend. However; I think everyone is moving here, and prices are going up, so you need to get in as quickly as possible. Finding a house under 300k is very hard. My nephew and his wife have been looking and there's nothing. You may be able to find a condo in Bend. If I can help you, let me know. I'm in the process right now of finding subs, etc. studying for my principal brokers license (they don't have reciprocal agreement with CA) and my sons getting his contractors license. Good luck
I can't really add much value to the discussion above. Your preferences for where you live is going to determine which market you look in. I have been in Oregon for 20 years both Eastern (way East) and now the Willamette Valley for the last 17. Just thought I would throw another name to contact onto your list. You are welcome to message me anytime for more info. I house hacked my SFR for 6 years here in the Eugene/Springfield area. In the college areas that is pretty easy to do if you are willing to share public spaces and rent out your extra bedrooms....not so easy if you have kids.
Hi Haley,
Oregon is a pretty diverse place. You'll need to decide what part of the state you want to be in be in. For a $250k duplex budget you'll be looking at Willamette Valley (Eugene/Springfield or Salem), southern Oregon (Medford to Grants Pass) or Central Oregon (Bend / Redmond) or basically anywhere on the coast. Portland is probably outside the budget. I'm a residential broker and property manager in Bend so obviously i'm partial to Central Oregon. East of the cascade mountains is considered the dry side of the state (12" annual rainfall in Bend / Redmond vs. 50" in Eugene & 70" at the coast) Southern Oregon is somewhere in between. Economic factors make the Willamette valley and Central Oregon more attractive to me as an investor vs. the more limited economy in Southern Oregon or the coast. Bend is outside the $250k budget but Redmond could work for you. I helped another BP member find a duplex house hack in Redmond last year that is very close to break even.
Haley -
You'll love Oregon when you make your way out here. Its a beautiful place to live!
I have a real estate brokerage in Portland and invest in real estate. As others have mentioned its challenging finding a multifamily property in the Portland metro area under $250k. Not impossible, but just know the market for multifamily is really hot resulting in high prices and low inventory. I would certainly consider fringe metro towns such as: McMinnville, Fairview, Troutdale, Newberg, Hillsboro or look into the Salem, Eugene, or coastal towns.
Another options, as mentioned by someone else, is the vacation rental market. My clients do really well buying homes and converting basements, building ADUs or renting rooms in their home (AirBnb). You can pick up a home and go that route as well.
Feel free to reach out if you have questions about the Portland Metro area.
Hey Haley,
Oregon is a pretty diverse area so that is a complicated question but i would look outside one of the more popular cities. Maybe a suburb of Portland if you want to live near a bigger city. If you are looking more in a in the Central Oregon area Redmond is a good place to start only 20/25 min from Bend which has some of the best outdoor activities Oregon has to offer. Not that there are not deals to be found in those more popular cities. They just seem to be harder to find and seem to be higher priced for the most part. Have you guys decided on what you are looking for (type of place you want to live in, big city, outdoor activities, mixture of both, things like that?). Oregon has a lot of choices for different styles of living :) I have lived in several different parts of Oregon i could give you guys pointers on that side but i am new to real estate investing so maybe someone else might be able to help more on that end. Good luck with your search and I'd be glad to help if i can!
Been trying to do this myself...I’m having a hard time finding anything that makes sense near Portland. I️ am not sure about outside of a 20 mile radius of Portland but from what it seems (spent the summer there) the neighborhoods are hit and miss. I️ think the rents have yet to catch up to the home values so it’s been hard to find something that would cash flow after moving. I’m sure there are deals, so good luck!
what city (s) are you considering in Oregon? It's a big state with vastly different rental markets amongst cities. Is 250k the cash you have or max purchase price? If purchase price, what is the limiting factor for that (cash for down pmt, personal preference, DTI ratio?)
250k is a low purchase price target in most major OR markets, especially for 2-4 unit.
Hi Haley,
Oregon is wonderful, and others have already stated, quite diverse in real estate. Once you figure out what area you want to be in, it becomes easier to point you in the right direction.
Do you want to be close to the coast, do you want to wake up staring at snow capped mountains or maybe you like both in which case the Willamette valley would be a perfect fit. I'm in Eugene, so about an hour in either direction I can be on the coast or at a ski resort.
I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have.
Haley-
@Darren McGillvrey is right. $250k for multifamily is going to be almost impossible to find near Portland or Bend. But you may have an easier time looking in other areas like Salem/Keizer or Eugene/Springfield. I live in Newberg which is about 35 miles sw from downtown Portland and duplexes here have been $300k+. Places like Beaverton, Tigard, and Milwaukie would be good places to have alerts set for in the Portland area.
If you have your heart set on the Bend area then you might have an easier time finding something in Redmond which is about 20 min north of Bend.
I wish you success in your hunt! I'm a 5th generation Oregonian and absolutely love it here!
I live in Suinriver, which is a resort area, south of Bend and about a 20 minute drive. I live here because when I was moving up, it was the only place I could find a house, and it's a seasonal rental. There's a huge VR (short term rental) market in Sunriver, and in Bend. However; I think everyone is moving here, and prices are going up, so you need to get in as quickly as possible. Finding a house under 300k is very hard. My nephew and his wife have been looking and there's nothing. You may be able to find a condo in Bend. If I can help you, let me know. I'm in the process right now of finding subs, etc. studying for my principal brokers license (they don't have reciprocal agreement with CA) and my sons getting his contractors license. Good luck
I can't really add much value to the discussion above. Your preferences for where you live is going to determine which market you look in. I have been in Oregon for 20 years both Eastern (way East) and now the Willamette Valley for the last 17. Just thought I would throw another name to contact onto your list. You are welcome to message me anytime for more info. I house hacked my SFR for 6 years here in the Eugene/Springfield area. In the college areas that is pretty easy to do if you are willing to share public spaces and rent out your extra bedrooms....not so easy if you have kids.
Hi Haley,
Oregon is a pretty diverse place. You'll need to decide what part of the state you want to be in be in. For a $250k duplex budget you'll be looking at Willamette Valley (Eugene/Springfield or Salem), southern Oregon (Medford to Grants Pass) or Central Oregon (Bend / Redmond) or basically anywhere on the coast. Portland is probably outside the budget. I'm a residential broker and property manager in Bend so obviously i'm partial to Central Oregon. East of the cascade mountains is considered the dry side of the state (12" annual rainfall in Bend / Redmond vs. 50" in Eugene & 70" at the coast) Southern Oregon is somewhere in between. Economic factors make the Willamette valley and Central Oregon more attractive to me as an investor vs. the more limited economy in Southern Oregon or the coast. Bend is outside the $250k budget but Redmond could work for you. I helped another BP member find a duplex house hack in Redmond last year that is very close to break even.
Haley -
You'll love Oregon when you make your way out here. Its a beautiful place to live!
I have a real estate brokerage in Portland and invest in real estate. As others have mentioned its challenging finding a multifamily property in the Portland metro area under $250k. Not impossible, but just know the market for multifamily is really hot resulting in high prices and low inventory. I would certainly consider fringe metro towns such as: McMinnville, Fairview, Troutdale, Newberg, Hillsboro or look into the Salem, Eugene, or coastal towns.
Another options, as mentioned by someone else, is the vacation rental market. My clients do really well buying homes and converting basements, building ADUs or renting rooms in their home (AirBnb). You can pick up a home and go that route as well.
Feel free to reach out if you have questions about the Portland Metro area.
I'd add Gresham to the list. I'm not too sure about Multi-family residences though. It seems like once someone owns one over here, they're never letting go of it. I hope you can find what you're looking for at that price point. When I was looking in Portland last fall, it seemed like everything at that price was either in a very undesirable location (gun range, violent community, freeway) or an REO that needed major work.
Well if you're in the tech field, Oregon is a great place to land. I recommend checking out https://www.facebook.com/techoregonswv/
@Haley B. Oregon is a great place for tech jobs as @Jay Fox said. Ever since Intel moved here back in 1974 other tech companies have followed suit. Intel has four main campuses in Oregon and several other scattered sites. These are all in Washington County. If you are looking for places near Intel you should consider Beaverton, Hillsboro, Cornelius, and Forest Grove. There are other microchip/semiconductor companies (mainly located in Hillsboro) as well as software and services based companies.
@Nick Paxton mentioned Gresham. He is right. There are tech companies in Gresham too, though not as many. Fujitsu used to have a campus in Gresham, but it is closed now and there just isn't the growth in that sector that there once was. I do believe that Boeing still has a plant in Troutdale. If you are looking in this area you'll mainly be looking in Multnomah county and parts of Clackamas County.
If you go south, Wilsonville has some tech too. Mentor Graphics is the big employer there along with Xerox, Convergys, and FLIR as the more notable names. Close places to Wilsonville include Tualatin, Sherwood (expensive, but very desirable), West Linn, and Oregon City. If you don't mind being a little further out you've also got Canby and Newberg (my home town).
If the job you are looking for is more software tech, then Portland is going to have the largest number of employers for that kind of work. As already stated Portland is gonna be near impossible at $250k. But you could also look into Vancouver, WA. Just across the river and about 13 minutes (no traffic) north of Portland is Vancouver. A decent sized city with businesses and some tech all its own. I would caution you to not purchase here if you plan on working in Oregon, however, as the commute between Portland and Vancouver is perhaps the worst commute you can possibly deal with on a day to day basis. To make matters worse, Washington State has a sales tax, but no income tax. Oregon has an income tax but no sales tax. If you live in Washington and work in Washington it's pretty common practice to buy some of your items in Oregon to avoid sales tax. But if you live in Washington and work in Oregon, Oregon forces you (through your employer) to pay income tax of up to 9.9%... ouch!
Feel free to ping me with more specific questions if you have them and I'll be happy to answer!
@Haley B. Oregon is a great place for tech jobs as @Jay Fox said. Ever since Intel moved here back in 1974 other tech companies have followed suit. Intel has four main campuses in Oregon and several other scattered sites. These are all in Washington County. If you are looking for places near Intel you should consider Beaverton, Hillsboro, Cornelius, and Forest Grove. There are other microchip/semiconductor companies (mainly located in Hillsboro) as well as software and services based companies.
@Nick Paxton mentioned Gresham. He is right. There are tech companies in Gresham too, though not as many. Fujitsu used to have a campus in Gresham, but it is closed now and there just isn't the growth in that sector that there once was. I do believe that Boeing still has a plant in Troutdale. If you are looking in this area you'll mainly be looking in Multnomah county and parts of Clackamas County.
If you go south, Wilsonville has some tech too. Mentor Graphics is the big employer there along with Xerox, Convergys, and FLIR as the more notable names. Close places to Wilsonville include Tualatin, Sherwood (expensive, but very desirable), West Linn, and Oregon City. If you don't mind being a little further out you've also got Canby and Newberg (my home town).
If the job you are looking for is more software tech, then Portland is going to have the largest number of employers for that kind of work. As already stated Portland is gonna be near impossible at $250k. But you could also look into Vancouver, WA. Just across the river and about 13 minutes (no traffic) north of Portland is Vancouver. A decent sized city with businesses and some tech all its own. I would caution you to not purchase here if you plan on working in Oregon, however, as the commute between Portland and Vancouver is perhaps the worst commute you can possibly deal with on a day to day basis. To make matters worse, Washington State has a sales tax, but no income tax. Oregon has an income tax but no sales tax. If you live in Washington and work in Washington it's pretty common practice to buy some of your items in Oregon to avoid sales tax. But if you live in Washington and work in Oregon, Oregon forces you (through your employer) to pay income tax of up to 9.9%... ouch!
Feel free to ping me with more specific questions if you have them and I'll be happy to answer!