The condo life

A townhome project in Metzger offers first-time homebuyers and downsizing baby boomers an affordable option

By Mikel Kelly

The Beaverton Valley Times, Nov 2, 2006, Updated Oct 30, 2009

Jaime Valdez / Community Newspapers

NEW IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD — Broker Chris Suarez looks off the balcony of one of the smaller units at Ashbrook Townhome Condominiums at Southwest 90th and Oak in Metzger.

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It’s a quandary that’s been facing first-time would-be homeowners for a number of years now: How can I afford a home? And here on the eastern edge of Washington County – that especially desirable chunk of real estate between the wine country and Portland’s west hills – affordable starter homes are even tougher to find.

There is still one viable alternative to moving many miles out into the boondocks or to one of those neighborhoods where every house has steel bars on the windows.

The condominum.

As land gets more scarce and the market leads to more infill building and higher-density living choices, condos are being perceived as a significant step up from apartment renting. You do, after all, own your home.

And, for those looking for a way to get into the heady world of home ownership, this may be one of the most affordable options available.

Ironically, though, there don’t seem to be scads of condo choices out there in the Tigard, Tualatin, Sherwood and Beaverton areas. Sure, they’re putting up high-rises in the Pearl District and along the Willamette River faster than we can memorize the names of the upscale projects. And the small condo buildings we see going up in John’s Landing, Sellwood and Mountain Park are selling like hotcakes.

But those aren’t here.

A recent scan of the RMLS Web site for this whole end of the county produced a measly 11 listings under the heading of condos.

That’s probably why the Ashbrook Townhome Condominiums, built in the heart of Metzger by RCM Homes, are not likely to go unsold for long.

There are 19 units in the complex at Southwest 90th and Oak Street, near Metzger Elementary School and the United Methodist church, and, according to Mara Woloshin, who handles public relations for the blocklong complex, “We have six either sold or waiting to close.”

The townhomes (technically a little different than condos, since they sit on their own land) are about as affordable as housing gets in this neck of the woods – ranging from $221,900 to $250,860 – making them ideal for first-time buyers and not unattractive to local baby boomers looking to downsize.

An important factor to any potential home-buyer, of course, is the character of the neighborhood, and Metzger – encroached upon through the 1970s and ’80s first by Highway 217, then by Washington Square and finally the skyscraping Lincoln Towers business development – has a strong identity. At the same time those other big changes were taking place, the community completely rebuilt Metzger Park, and two autumns ago, a totally rebuilt Metzger Elementary School opened for business.

“We’ve done a lot of outreach in this community – the schools, the religious community,” says Woloshin, who owns Woloshin Communications Inc. “People live here for a long time.”

Getting to know the community you’re dealing with is important, says Woloshin.

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