Ladd's Addition Old Portland

This Ladd’s Addition stunner was featured on October 11, 2009 on HGTV’s National Open House.  It is located in one of SE Portland’s premier neighborhood in Ladd’s Addition.  Close to Blitz, Kettlemen’s, Genie’s, New Seasons, and a host of restaurants on Division and Hawthorne!  Easy commutes to downtown by bike, bus, or car!

Some of the ammenities of this property include wood floors on the upper and main levels with newly refinished floors on the main level, a new electric heat pump for AC and heat, stainless steel appliances, period built-ins throughout the home, rounded arches, picture rail, tons of natural light, a newer roof and a newer sewer connection.  This property also has wonderful landscaping and new interior and exterior paint.  Wow!

Early this December I had the opportunity to host the filming of an HGTV program called “National Open House“.  Several months ago I was contacted by the producer of the show, Julia Huffman, to interview as the Realtor host for two episodes that would be filmed in Portland.  She told me that they had found my website and had been impressed enough to contact me for the interview.  At first I thought it was a joke, becuase I enjoy watching the show time and again, and had always wondered how they found their Realtors.  Now I know.  Well, the story ends up with me being selected to host two episodes of the show and my work began.

The premise of the show is that homes in four price ranges (250K, 500K, 750K, 1Million) in three different cities are examined to see what you can buy for your buck.  These three Real Estate Markets are examined as well, with commentary by Real Estate experts interspersed to add information about what you can expect to buy in these areas.  I located 8 Portland homeowners in all parts of the city for these episodes and the production crew arrived in the first week of December to film.

Filming is really an interesting experience.  The production team consisted of the producer Brad Hall, the sound specialist and the cameraman.  Brad is from Hollywood, and the sound and camera guys were from Portland.  The first morning I got all wired up and walked down the block in my neighborhood and answered questions relating to the current market.  It was a chilly morning, but the process was fun.  I felt like I was answering a lot of the same questions, but Brad assured me that they would edit what they needed, and I was actually doing several takes.  The most interesting part was that the sound equipment was so sensitive that they often stopped and started based upon a car door slamming blocks away or a bird chirping nearby.  Sounds that I never heard were audible for them and distorted the whole shot.  I once had to ask the mailman, Sal, to move his car for the shot.  I asked really nicely, and he was happy to do it!

Later that morning we hopped over to the riverfront to shoot in front of the Hawthorne Bridge.  This was a much more interesting view, and Brad seemed to indicate that this is where most of the material would be used.  We were quick on the dock, and the coast guard even floated over to see that we weren’t doing anything wrong and weren’t going to fall into the river.

On day two the crew interviewed a few more of the homeowners that I had recommended and we started our interviews around 3pm down at the Tom McCall Waterfront Park.  This interview was surprisingly quick, and we were done by 6pm.  The view from the North side of the Hawthorne Bridge was beautiful, and the weather was crisp but mostly clear.  It was a quick experience once all of the preparation was done, and I am looking forward to the finished product when it airs this summer.  Tune in to see the results!

  I have been selected to be the host for two Portland episodes of “National Open House” which airs on the Home and Garden Network (HGTV).  The purpose of the show is to identify homes and homeowners whosehomes fit the price tiers that the producers are looking to profile-ultimately giving more than 120 million HGTV viewers the opportunity to see why more and more people are calling Portland their home.Do you or a friend want to be on the show?  The film crew will interview homeowners (and their families when appropriate) and tour their homes.  The filming process only takes a few hours and these professionals really know how to make your home look great.  Remember, the producers of the show are looking for people that love their neighborhood and are not in the process of selling their home.

Here’s what to do if you are interested:

1.  Email me at mricker@kw.com with some brief details about your home including address, a brief description of the  home (bedrooms, baths, etc.) and some contact information. 

2.  Sit back and relax as I forward all submissions onto the producer in Hollywood so she can make her final selections in the next few weeks.

There is no deadline, but the sooner the better!

Thanks,

Matt Ricker

www.portland-listings.com