CNN Money is predicting a price bump of nearly 8% for the Portland-Metro Area in 2012. If this should prove true, it will be helpful for potential home sellers and those looking to refinance.

I’m excited to give you a little sneak peek at my newest listing, going on the market this afternoon…

Here are the official specs:

Price: $209,900
Size: 2031 ft/sq
Bedrooms: 3
Bathrooms: 1
Neighborhood: FoPo (edge between Foster-Powell and Mt. Scott/Arleta)
Listed by: Me!

This home is nestled at the cusp of the Foster-Powell and Mt. Scott-Arleta neighborhoods. The homes are affordable and well kept, with excellent proximity to transit and the rest of the city. New businesses are popping up all the time, and the neighborhood associations are actively working to make the area even better. Check out the links at the bottom of this post to learn even more.

I’ll be holding an open house this Sunday, the 28th, from 1:00-3:00 pm, so please stop by and see it for yourself! If you have questions, or would like to schedule a private showing, contact me here.

Entering the house into the living room, you’ll find nice oak floors and an archway into the dining room.

French doors off the living room lead to the den, which could also function as a third bedroom or office. Only a closet keeps it from being an official third bedroom.

The big kitchen has tons of cabinet and counter space, plus room for a big island (!) and a breakfast table.

There’s a double garage, with an opener and door that leads across the patio to the back door of the home.

Here’s the private back patio for lounging in the sun and growing veggies. Low maintenance landscaping ensures you have time for lounging.

The owners are still organizing in the basement and garage, so no pics of the inside yet. Sorry!

Here are the bedrooms:

The master bedroom (above) is large enough to accomodate a king bed & bureau and has a large closet. The second bedroom (below) is also a good size, though not as large as the master.

Curious about the neighborhood? Here are a few links to get you up to speed on one of the most up-and-coming neighborhoods in town.

Foster Area Business Association

Foster-Powell Neighborhood Blog (this is an awesome resource!)

Mt Scott-Arleta Neighborhood Association

Foster Powell Neighborhood Association

Mt. Scott Community Center

And finally, here are a few more exterior pics. The cherry blossoms in the Spring are to die for!

I kind of love the word “Ranchalow”. The working definition seems to be a one level ranch with some bungalow characteristics. This house was built in 1947, which is a little early to be a true ranch, and it’s missing the deep eaves of a classic bungalow. Whatever the definition, this house is a cutie pie with a lot to offer a first time buyer.

Here are the official specs:

Price: $219,000 Update: Sold!
Size: 1380 ft/sq + bonus room
Bedrooms: 2
Bathrooms: 1
Neighborhood: Cusp of Cully & Concordia
Listed by: Me!

The main thing I noticed the first time I stepped inside was the fabulous floor plan. A very spacious living room (with fireplace!) flows into a formal dining room flows into a spacious open kitchen. Two decent sized bedrooms flank the bathroom. The original attached garage was converted to a finished bonus room. Don’t worry! There’s a large detached garage to cover your shop & storage needs. The original hardwoods that run throughout most of the house are in good condition, and the seller installed easy care marmoleum in the kitchen. The bonus room has wool carpet.

All the hard work has been done in the yard. There’s a great fence and the garden beds have been planted with low maintenance plants. There’s still plenty of grass for a dog to run and a gravel patio for your grill.

The seller has already taken care of several expensive updates: the roof was replaced in October 2010, the plumbing, sewer and water service have been replaced, and a tankless hot water heater has been installed. Hello, water pressure!

This is an up and coming location on the cusp of Concordia and Cully, just two blocks from fabulous Fernhill Park. Fernhill Park boasts a huge (and hugely popular) off leash dog area, and one of the best public running/walking tracks on the Eastside. This area has a wonderful community feel with it’s own farmers market and very active neighborhood association. While 42nd is a bit busier street, it’s pretty calm by this point, and a direct path into Beaumont Village (42nd and Fremont) and Hollywood, where the Trader Joe’s is (42nd and Sandy). It’s a pretty short trip to Alberta too.

Here are a few more pictures.

To top it off, the seller is including the washer and dryer and the fridge, which means more money in your pocket to make this house your own. If you’re already working with a buyer’s agent, put this house on your list to see ASAP. If not, give me a call or email and I’d be delighted to show it you.

Last month, my dutiful partner in crime swapped out the last of the crappy light fixtures that came with the house. Light fixtures are an easy update and have the ability to make a big statement, even in small spaces. Here are a few that are on my radar right now.

This one’s a pretty cheap date at $29.99. It takes a 75w bulb so it should be fairly bright, too.

Available here.

And two of these just took up residence in our kitchen after I painted the ceiling a fresh, bright white. The difference is astounding. I found the quality to be quite good, and the metal is available in a few different finishes.

Available on Amazon for around $50.

If you’re feeling like making a statement, you can’t go wrong with this lovely:

Available here for $299.

I can’t help but swoon over these Amy Ruppel fixtures at Schoolhouse Electric.

Available here for a very reasonable $159.

The dates for the 2011 Sunday Parkways have been announced!

If you don’t know, Sunday Parkways is a super fun, annual event, devoted to enjoying Portland, sans cars. Miles and miles of prime roads are closed to cars, making them open to pedestrians, cyclists, skateboarders, roller skaters… you get the idea.

Here are the dates for 2011:
May 22 – East Portland

June 26 – North Portland

July 24 – NW/Downtown Portland

August 28 – Southeast Portland

September 25 – Northeast Portland

Here’s a link to the website and Facebook page so you can keep up with the details.

Come the day of the event, literally all you have to do is show up. Hope to see you out there!

I just realized I’d posted this on Twitter and FB, but not here. For the last few months, my friend Sara Gray and I have been working on putting together this project, a kind of love letter from two native Portlanders to the city we’ve chosen to make our lives in. We’d love it if you’d check it out, and maybe even participate. XO

I’m not making any resolutions for 2011. There are a couple of reasons for this: 1. I take failure sort of hard, and I almost always “fail” at resolutions, and 2. I started working on all of the things I really want to do in 2010 or before. And resolving to keep on keepin’ on is just kind of anti-climactic.

Like most people, I can’t help but turn (more) introspective at the cusp of a new year, and thanks to my participation in Reverb10, I had a lot of fodder to consider. And so, in lieu of the ubiquitous top ten list of resolutions, I’m christening 2011 with a theme: FOCUS.

I struggle with focus. I have lots of big ideas and enthusiasm to spare, but when it gets down to it, I often find myself yakking on Twitter instead of taking important steps to move my plans forward. I love Twitter. Twitter is awesome. I learn tons of important stuff, get the majority of my daily news, and make critical connections with people. But being really good at Twitter is not the goal. Twitter is a tool. And focus is the goal, at least for 2011.

Subconsciously, I think I’ve been taking steps towards making this happen for a while, clearing my plate, purging unnecessary items, deleting blog feeds and unsubscribing from newsletters. And now, I’m setting my intentions towards making a habit of deep focus. First action towards making this the theme of my new year?  The purchase of this book. Aptly named, non?

Do you like cupcakes? More importantly, what are you doing on Sunday?

Start Halloween early with a kitchen demonstration/open house. Learn how to bake, frost and eat the perfect chocolate cupcakes in the perfect baker’s kitchen with Peach Cheesecake. And, while you’re at it, check out this super sweet house I have listed for sale.

We’ll be hanging out, baking, frosting, and eating cupcakes from 1-4 pm. Come on by!

Brrrrr! It’s getting cold out, which for me means the thrilling return of: wool sweaters, fingerless gloves, bourbon, and…casseroles. I stopped by my friend LeLo’s radio show again to talk casseroles, which then turned into a two-part conversation about vintage cookbooks, hot dish vs. casserole, potato chip topping, and…well, you’ll just have to listen.

Part one is here: Lelo Homemade – Episode 23

and part two is here: Lelo Homemade – Episode 24

Have a favorite casserole? I’d love to hear about it!

“The beautiful is everywhere; perhaps more in the arrangement of your saucepans on the white walls of your kitchen than in your eighteenth-century living room or in the official museums.”
-Fernand Leger