Columbia Gorge Real Estate Blog

The fire burning near Mosier, Oregon in the Columbia River Gorge covers over 1,000 acres. The State Historic Columbia River Highway Trail and the Hatfield east and west trail heads remain closed. I took these pictures this afternoon, Aug.30, 2009, from the Washington side of the Columbia River looking across to east of Hood River and west of Mosier.

Here is the total number of homes sold in August 2009 for the Columbia Gorge Region: Hood River & Wasco Counties in Oregon, Klickitat & Skamania Counties in Washington.  These are the cities and towns reporting sales.  These sales are only LISTED sales not FSBO's or unlisted sales.  In August 2009 there were  44  homes sold gorge wide compared to 55 homes sold gorge wide last month- July 2009. 

WASHINGTON- Klickitat County- 6 sales     Skamania County-10 sales 

 OREGON- Hood River County-15 sales       Wasco County-13 sales

• Cougar-2
• Stevenson-5
• North Bonneville-1
• Carson-1
• Mill A-1    
• Goldendale-5
• Lyle-1      
• Hood River-12
• Westside HR-2
  
• Eastside HR-1  
• The Dalles-10
• Maupin-1
• Dufur-1
• Mosier-1

There are currently 77  homes sale pending in escrow in the gorge area.    Skamania County-13    Klickitat County-11  Hood River County-25  and Wasco County-28

Here is the latest sales data for  August 2009  in Wasco County from the RMLS. Included are only sales of homes that are listed on the RMLS.  Unlisted properties and fsbo homes are not included.  There were 13 total homes that sold in August 2009 in Wasco County.  10 homes were located in The Dalles and 1 in Dufur, 1 in Maupin and 1 in Mosier.   There are currently 28 homes sale pending in Wasco County.

If you want to buy a home in The Dalles, Oregon  I would be happy to help you find the home you're looking for.

The Dalles-   Listed for $97,500    Sold for $94,000   715  sq ft   2 bdrm 1  bath DOM-38

The Dalles- Listed for $98,500    Sold for $96,940    850 sq ft  2 bdrm 1 bath DOM-1

The Dalles- Listed for $109,500  Sold for $ 107,000    1234 sq ft   2 bdrm 1 bath  DOM-98

The Dalles-  Listed for $149,900    Sold for $107,000   1000 sq ft    2 bdrm  1 bath  DOM-104

The Dalles- Listed for $139,900   Sold for $125,000   1512 sq ft   3 bdrm 2 bath  DOM-125

 The Dalles- Listed for $163,000  Sold for $158,000   1014  sq ft   3 bd 1 bath DOM-6

 The Dalles Listed for $104,500  Sold for $97,000    790 sq ft  1 bdrm 1.5  bath DOM-45

 The Dalles - Listed for $275,000   Sold for $245,000  2906 sq ft.   4  bdrm  3 bath DOM-61

The Dalles-Listed $325,000   Sold for $310,000   2871 sq ft    4  bdrm 3.5 bath DOM-611

The Dalles- Listed for $595,000   Sold for $556,500   2813  sq ft   5 bdrm  2.5  bath    DOM-55

 Dufur - Listed for $199,500   Sold for $180,000   2836 sq ft   3  bdrm 1.5  bath DOM-27

Mosier - Listed for $525,000   Sold for $515,000   3182 sq ft   5 bdrm 3 baths DOM-7

Maupin- Listed for $133,875    Sold for $130,000   1718 sq ft   3 bdrm 2 bath DOM-330

I noticed quite a few of these homes have relatively short DOM (days on market). The one in Maupin with 330 days and 1 in The Dalles with 611 days being the exceptions.  Homes are selling in The Dalles. If you are a seller there are serious buyers out there looking and buying.

There were 10 home sales in August 2009 in Skamania County. This data reflects only properties that are listed on the RMLS. Sales of unlisted and FSBO properties are not included.  5 homes sold in Stevenson, 1 sold in North Bonneville, 1 sold in Carson, 1 sold in Mill A and 2 cabins on leased land sold in Cougar.

There are currently 13  homes sale pending in Skamania County. North Bonneville-3   Stevenson-3   Carson- 4  Underwood-1  Cougar-2    

If you want to move to  Stevenson, Washington in beautiful Skamania County I would be happy to help you find the home you're looking for. 

 Stevenson- Listed for $189,000  Sold for $175,000  1131 sq ft   3 bdrm 1 bath DOM-170

 Stevenson- Listed for $199,000  Sold for $195,000   1550 sq ft  Brand new home  3 bdrm 2bath  DOM 132

Stevenson- Listed for $284,500  Sold for $265,000   Located in Angel Heights  1723 sq ft  3 bdrm 2 bath  DOM-367

Stevenson- Listed for $295,000  Sold for $245,000   2432 sq ft   3 bdrm  3 bath   DOM-530

 Stevenson- Listed for $359,000  Sold for $331,500   2912 sq ft  3 bdrm 2.5 bath  DOM 392

Carson-Listed for $280,000   Reduced to $259,500  Sold for $259,000   1545 sq ft 3 bdrm 2.5 bath DOM-212

Mill A- Listed for $359,000   Sold for $352,000   3184 sq ft  4 bdrm  2.5 bath  DOM 32

Cougar- Listed for $60,000  Sold for $55,000   852 sq ft   2 bdrm 1 bath  cabin on leased land   DOM-532

Cougar- Listed for $80,000   Sold for $70,000  950 sq ft   2 bdrm 1 bath cabin on leased land   DOM-602

North Bonneville- Listed for $201,000 Sold for $160,000  3 Bdrm 2.5 bath  1578 sq ft   DOM-6

No Picture 

Here is the  latest sales data from the RMLS for Klickitat County.  These sales comps reflect only properties listed on the RMLS.  Unlisted or fsbo properties are not included.  There were 6 total residential sales in Klickitat County in August 2009. Here's the break down:    Lyle-1     Goldendale-5

Lyle- Listed for $276,000  Sold for $276,000   2538 sq ft   3 bdrm 3 bath   days on market (DOM)- 12 

Goldendale-  Listed for $119,000  Sold for $105,000    2257 sq ft   3 bdrm   2 bath   DOM-56

Goldendale-  Listed for $140,000  Sold for $136,500   1356  sq. ft.  3  bdrm 1.5 bath  DOM-69

Goldendale- Listed for $165,000   Sold for $147,000   3 bdrm 2 ba  1564  sq ft  DOM-371

Goldendale-  Listed for $159,500  Sold for $159,500   2740 sq ft  3 bdrm 2 bath  DOM-8 

Goldendale- Listed for $229,900  Sold for $239,544   1568 sq ft  3 bd 2 bath brand new home on .26 acre lot  Most likely the higher selling price reflects upgrades added onto basic construction price. DOM-12

             These are a couple pictures I took last week in Klickitat County near Husum, WA.

 This is Spring Creek in the Northwestern Lake/Husum area and a territorial Mt. Hood view.

Here's an event coming soon to The Dalles, Oregon. the HISTORIC THE DALLES DAYS celebration will be held Sept 18-20, 2009. During Historic The Dalles Days there will be a Vintage Vehicle Parade (Wheels 150) on Saturday Sept 19 starting at 10 a.m. This parade will start with the oldest wagons and horseless carriages of the 19th century and end with classic cars and trucks from the 1950's.  The parade will start with the Wasco County Sheriff's Mounted Posse Color Guard and horse drawn wagons, followed by the oldest autos, year by year until 1959. The parade will line up along First and Second streets in Historic downtown The Dalles. The Oregon Statehood Wagon Train will join in as well.

If you are moving to the gorge and like a smaller town you may want to check out White Salmon Washington . There are currently 20 homes listed for sale up to $250,000 in the White Salmon area. Several of the lower priced homes are actually located near Northwestern Lake which is about 6 miles north of White Salmon, near Husum, WA. Many of the cabins and cottages on Northwestern Lake are on land that is leased from the government. Although the homes are less expensive, the cost per year of the land is appr. $5000-6,000. There are 44 homes in White Salmon from $250,000 to $600,000 currently on the market. If you are looking for White Salmon lots or land to build on here's what's on the market currently.

Another nearby community is Underwood, WA where you will currently find 13 homes listed for sale. Underwood is actually in Skamania County. The White Salmon River divides Klickitat County from Skamania County near Hwy 14. Lower Underwood is about a mile up the hill. Underwood has a post office, community center and park, fire station and cemetery. It's a quick drive down the hill and across the bridge to Hood River, or stay on the Washington side and go up Dock Grade Rd into White Salmon to visit the grocery store, library or other shops. Upper Underwood has some amazingly beautiful views of the river and gorge. Upper Underwood is in what the locals call the "Snow Zone".  In the winter when there isn't snow at river level it will often be snowing and sticking on Underwood Mountain and in Upper Underwood, Mill A. Cook and Willard. Here are some of the lots and unimproved properties for sale in Underwood.   Another thing to remember is that all of Underwood is in the Columbia Gorge National Scenic Area and there is no Urban Area for Underwood.

I would be happy to help you find the home you're looking for in Klickitat or Skamania County. Just call me, email me or sign up on my website. Now is a great time to buy a home here. Prices have been coming down and sellers are motivated.

Pictured below are views from Upper Underwood and Northwestern Lake

White Salmon view from Pucker Huddle     Mt. Hood view from White Salmon

I have seen the very large sections of these wind turbines on trucks heading east on I 84 for the last several years. I didn't know there were so many being installed or where exactly some were going until I recently drove further east in the gorge.  Past The Dalles, towards Hwy 97, it is quite a site to see so many wind turbines dotting the hills and bluffs along the gorge. I learned that one of the largest wind farms in the world is located right in Klickitat County, near Goldendale, Washington. It is called Windy Point and it just recently sold. I was able to get fairly close to one of these massive wind machines. They are amazingly quiet and the turbines don't look like they even turn very rapidly. An entrance at the bottom of each wind tower allows access for workers to get in and climb inside up to the top for maintenance, etc.

Windy Point/Windy Flats will be one of the largest wind projects in the world - 26 contiguous miles of ridgeline along the Columbia River – covering over 90 square miles.  It is expected to be fully completed in 2010. A capacity of more than 500 MW of renewable energy is anticipated. This will generate enough clean electricity for more than 250,000 households per year and displace at least 800 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually.

They definately change the landscape along the ridges and hills as manmade objects, but I didn't find them to be terribly unsightly. I think they are rather interesting and just think of all the clean energy they are creating. They are also helping the economy of klickitat County, Washington with the additional jobs they create.