Why Are American Homes So Big?

“America is a place defined by bigness. It is infamous, both within its borders and abroad, for the size of its cars, its portions, its defense budget—and its houses.

Rightly so: U.S. houses are among the biggest—if not the biggest—in the world. According to the real-estate firms Zillow and Redfin, the median size of an American single-family home is in the neighborhood of 1,600 or 1,650 square feet. About five years ago, Sonia A. Hirt, a professor of landscape architecture and planning at the University of Georgia, was working on a book about land-use patterns in the U.S., and when she tracked down the average size of dwellings for about two dozen countries, the U.S. came out on top. Her comparisons were rough because she’d cobbled together her data from various sources, but she found that American living spaces had a good 600 to 800 square feet on most of the competition…”

Read More at The Atlantic.com

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Support Black-Owned Restaurants Week is Coming!

Aug 26th - Sept 1st

Check out this link for more information about the 6th annual “Support Black-Owned Restaurants Week!”

The iloveblackfood website is an excellent resource listing black-owned eateries in Portland. You’ll find everything from food trucks to coffee shops to brick and mortar restaurants, representing cuisine from the American South, Somalia, Ethiopia, Jamaica, and much more. Visit the iloveblackfood restaurant directory for a complete list of eateries.

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‘Nesika Illahee’

A historic affordable housing project for urban Natives

is underway in Portland

“Confederated Tribe of Siletz Indians partners with local Indigenous organizations to build a 59-unit affordable housing complex with units for Portland's urban Native population”

“The project goals are to address disparities in access to affordable housing for Native Americans; provide culturally specific services to residents; provide medical, dental and behavioral health care for all residents.”

New building offers low rents, cultural programming, and culturally specific medical care

Read More about this project here…

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Portland City Council OKs a Per Unit Landlord Fee

On Wednesday, Portland mayor Ted Wheeler and the City Council adopted an annual $60 per unit fee for landlords, saying “the charge is necessary to collect better data about the city’s rental market” but many fear the cost could be passed down to tenants.

According to The Oregonian, The fee is to help fund the city’s renter services office, according to a government analysis. The office, stationed within the Portland Housing Bureau, enforces fair-housing laws, mediates landlord-tenant disputes and maintains a registry of rental units.

Click here to read more…

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Equifax Breach Settlement Q's & A's

Equifax Breach Settlement Questions & Answers

Like so many of us, When I heard about the Equifax breach settlement and looked at my choices of 10 years of free credit monitoring (a service I already have elsewhere) and hard, cold cash, I veered towards the compensation. Well, on further investigation, it’s obvious that this is not the smart choice here.

This article breaks down the landmark settlement and what you can do about it if your data was breached.

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New Listing + Open House!

Remodeled in Montavilla!

3 bedroom home in Montavilla with remodeled kitchen and a ton of light & charm. 10 minute walk to The Observatory, Academy Theater, brew pubs, antiques, Bipartisan Cafe, food carts and Sunday Farmers Market. Summer concerts down the street at Berrydale Park. Short bike ride/walk to Mt. Tabor. New roof! Up/down blinds. Fenced yard.

MLS# 19001582

Open House this Weekend (7/27-7/28) from 1-3 pm.

Hope to see you there!

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