Susan Marthens

Principal
Real Estate Broker
CRS  GRI

Phone
(503) 497-2984

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Custom "Oregon Trail" plate - the last "Trail" plate was issued in 2001.

Oregon standard "tree" plate that has been issued since 1989.

This blue-on-yellow baseplate was introduced in 1975 and was issued through 1987 - you still see the plate on a few Oregon vehicles today.

Custom salmon plate.  The extra proceeds from sales are used for the following: Litter Patrol Fund, Governors' Watershed Enhancement Board, and State parks.

1947 Oregon plate.

Custom Crater Lake National Park Centennial plate - released in 2002.  The extra proceeds are distiributed to the Litter Patrol Fund and National Park Foundation.


Susan's Online Guide to Portland

Let me Help You Find a Home and a Neighborhood

Welcome to my Web site about the Portland, Oregon, metropolitan area.  It's my way of helping you become acquainted with the neighborhoods and communities of the Portland metro area and to inform you about the Portland area housing market. Your comments and suggestions about my Web site are always welcome.

If you have questions or if you are interested in buying or selling a home in the Portland area, contact me online or call me at (503) 497-2984.

Susan Marthens
Principal Real Estate Broker/CRS GRI


Community News

BRUCE ELY/THE OREGONIANOregon's economy in slow recovery, state economist Tom Potiowsky tells lawmakers   February 9 − Oregon's economy is on the mend but still wheezing and not close to replacing the tens of thousands of jobs lost in the recession, the state's chief economist reported Monday. "We're in recovery," said Tom Potiowsky of the state Office of Economic Analysis. "But it's going to be a slow, long recovery." Potiowsky, who laid out his diagnosis to a joint meeting of House and Senate revenue committees, said he doesn't expect to see much growth until 2011. By then, he said, hiring could start to pick up, particularly in the high-tech and solar energy sectors. Many businesses are operating with skeletal crews or have ordered workers to take unpaid furlough days to save money. Any recovery has to work through those factors first, he said.  Read more...

Bull Run land swap stirs environmentalists’ ire   February 9 − Environmentalists are raising questions about a Portland proposal to swap land with the federal government within the Bull Run Watershed. The City Council will consider the proposal from the Water Bureau on Thursday. It would swap approximately 2,500 acres of city-owned land within the watershed for approximately 2,800 acres of federally owned land. The swap is intended to improvement management of the parcels, which are scattered randomly within the 107-square-mile watershed.  Read more...

Public bathrooms   February 9 − In the first video of a two-part series, New York–based firm Smart Design examines the intersection between Universal Design principles and the limitations of public bathrooms. Smart Design opened its first office almost three decades ago in a small apartment on West 21st Street in New York. Over the years, they opened offices in San Francisco and Barcelona, and moved the New York office to the famed Starrett-Lehigh building on the west side of Manhattan.  Read more...

University of Portland among top producers of Peace Corps volunteers    February 9 − The University of Portland ranks among the top five small universities in the nation in producing Peace Corps volunteers. Many other Pacific Northwest colleges and universities are also doing their part to keep the Peace Corps supplied with volunteers. The Peace Corps reported last week that 20 University of Portland graduates are serving in its programs abroad. That puts the university in a tie with the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Wash., and Williams College in Williamstown, Mass., as the fourth largest producer of Peace Corps volunteers among colleges and universities with less than 5,000 undergraduate students. St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn., was the top producer with 26 of its alumni in the field.  Read more...

'Leverage' holds 'thug camp' casting workshop to help unemployed construction workers in Portland   February 8 − Douglas Hines is feeling, in his words, like "a fish out of water." "I've never done this before," he says, as he looks at a script. Hines, a burly 42-year-old, is attending "thug camp," part of a weekend "Leverage"; seminar. Hines has never acted before. Now the Vancouver resident, who's unemployed, is trying to figure out how to convincingly portray the prosperous owner of a sports team on TV. It is, Hines says, kind of a stretch. The "Leverage" event, which ended Sunday at the University of Oregon's Portland campus, was designed as a combination showbiz/work-force development effort, according to organizer Lana Veenker. Classes for experienced local actors provided behind-the-scenes insights about "Leverage," which stars Oscar-winner Timothy Hutton.  Read more...


House, Home, & Health

Oregon home insurance costs among lowest in nation   February 9 − Oregon homeowner insurance is among the least costly in the nation, averaging $496 a year, according to a nationwide survey. That compares to an average $822 nationwide and is lower than all states except Idaho and Wisconsin. The 2007 data, the most recent available, was released recently by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. “Oregon’s competitive insurance market helps keep premiums low, as does the lack of hurricanes and tornadoes in the state,” Teresa Miller, administrator of the Oregon Department of Consumer and Business Services’ Insurance Division, said in a statement. Flooding, earthquakes, and wildfire are more common concerns in the West. “Homeowner policies typically don’t cover floods or earthquakes but coverage can be purchased separately for both,” Miller said.  Read more...

Stumptown rock   February 7 − Even before construction was complete, the Stump House was turning heads. When its green-minded future owners learned of its shining environmental résumé, they knew they’d found a place to call home.  Perhaps it was Jess and Jered Bogli’s colossal-but-cordial rottweiler, Oliver, who spearheaded their move to a highly sustainable home in Portland, Oregon’s Alameda neighborhood. While walking Oliver one day, the couple spotted a contemporary-looking house under construction and got to talking with the builder, Darryl Erlandson, about its green features. They passed by the house frequently after that. “It was on my running route,” Jess recalls, “and eventually one of the builders yelled to me, ‘Come in!’ Another day one of them even said, ‘Throw out an offer.’ And we did.’”  Read more...


Living Green

Metro and 3 Portland counties approve urban expansion, farm protections   February 9 − Metro and the three Portland-area counties rolled the dice on a collaborative future Monday, approving a long-range planning map that designates which areas will be developed and which will be reserved for farms and forests for the next 40 to 50 years. The unprecedented agreement to designate urban and rural reserves capped two years of meetings and public hearings, stacks of maps and reports and tense exchanges among the "Core Four" -- representatives of Metro, the regional government, and Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington counties. The agreement isn't a done deal. It could still unravel by the end of the month if rival counties object to each other's handling of a few contentious areas.  Read more...

Cornelius center of reserves dispute   February 9 − On a map, an agreement that could prevent major land-use fights for a half century seems tantalizingly close. On the ground near Cornelius, however, it feels like the fight of a century. A group representing Washington, Multnomah and Clackamas counties and regional government Metro faces a deadline Monday to identify land where cities can grow over the next 40 to 50 years. They’ve come to an agreement on nearly the entire 240,000-acre area, identifying which areas may be developed and which will be preserved. The battleground has now narrowed to a couple hundred acres north of Cornelius, in Washington County. And Cornelius officials say they’re in a bind: accept a deal that cuts off the city’s job base for the foreseeable future, or risk derailing a unique planning process that promises to benefit the entire Portland-metro area.  Read more...


Sports and Outdoors

Northwest Outdoors calendar, Feb. 6-21 − Saturday, February 6, 1 p.m. Learn how you can join other outdoor enthusiasts to raise funds for breast cancer research at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Peaks include Mount Adams and Mount Kilimanjaro. To register for the meeting, call 206-667-6252 or send e-mail to dkirsner@fhcrc.org; to register for Climb to Fight Breast Cancer, go to www.fhcrc.org/climb. REI Portland, 1405 N.W. Johnson St.  Read more...

THOMAS BOYD/THE OREGONIANColumbia River salmon runs plentiful now, but don't count on the trend continuing   February 8 − In some Northwest streams, it seems like a return to the storied days when it was said salmon ran so thick you could walk across their backs. Record numbers of coho have returned to the Columbia River in recent years, and this year forecasters predict the same for spring chinook. But it's not time to pop the champagne corks and declare victory in the nation's most expensive wildlife restoration venture. The reason: Most scientists agree much of the thanks for the recent runs, in addition to improved river conditions and more hatchery fish, goes to favorable circumstances in the ocean where the salmon mature after being born in fresh water. "It looks like the abundance of adult salmon that we see come back to the rivers appears to be set or at least strongly regulated by their early ocean experience," said Nate Mantua, a climate scientist and fisheries researcher at the University of Washington.  Read more...


Portland Blogs and Web Sites

  • Bright Neighbor  A social networking web site that helps Portland communities thrive.

  • Burnsider  Stories and pictures from the Burnside Bridge, Portland, Oregon.  The e bloggers live near the bridge and walk across it as part of their commute every day.

  • Documented Lifee  Planet Earth as seen from Portland Oregon.

  • Community & Parents for Public Schools in Portland  They seek to redefine parent and community involvement in Portland Public Schools.

  • Discovering Portland  Two women flee California for Oregon to ask if Portland is the city they've dreamed of.

  • Ever Day is a Miracle  A blog about families, kids, politics and current events, travel, books, and living in Portland.

  • Good Stuff Northwest  Kab is a  writer and designer who loves living in Oregon with its combination of urban style and down-home friendliness. Lots of recipes on Kab's blog.

  • Home Ownership  A blog about the "Neighborhood Housing Program" sponsored by the Portland Development Commission.

  • Kids in Portland   This site provides a resource for parents to come together and find out all of the attractions, restaurants, activities, ideas, issues, art, music, for kids in the area.

  • Oregon Fly Fishing  Fishing reports, conservation news, fishing advice, and hot fly patterns.

  • The Oregonian Neighborhoods  Covers Portland metro area neighborhoods and communities.

  • Pat's Blog  Whatever ticks Pat off or tickles his fancy: politics, news and society, music, movies, books, cooking, autism, and anything else bright and shiny in the world of ideas. And Pat does it with humor.

  • Portland Architecture  If you're interested in buildings, this is the site to visit.  RSS feed and newsletter.

  • Portland Blogs  A complete list of all the bloggers who call Portland home.

  • Portland Dog Blog  For people who exercise their dog at Portland parks.

  • Portland Housing Blog  Real estate and economic discussions.

  • Portland Metblogs  Written from the perspective of people who live, work, and play here every day.

  • SheSue Experience  Shelley blogs about events, restaurants, attractions, outdoor activities, curiosities and more.

  • Upper Left Coast  Thoughts on politics, faith, sports and other random topics from a red state sympathizer in indigo-blue Portland, Oregon.

  • Walking in Portland  This blogger walks around Portland with his wife and dogs taking photos and making notes about living in Portland.

  • inPortland  A magazine, published every Thursday, has stories about neighborhoods and communities.

  • Portland Tribune  Published on Thursday, one of the Tribune's strength is their neighborhood news.

  • Oregon Newspapers  Links to over 100 newspapers in Oregon. This includes community weekly papers check out the stories in smaller towns like Astoria and Pendleton.



(866) 368-7878

Susan Marthens
Principal Real Estate Broker
CRS, GRI

(503) 497-2984
Fax (503) 220-1131


6443 SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway
Suite 100, Portland, Oregon 97221
(503) 297-1033


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