Diana Erickson outside a home she's selling on Jericho Lane

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Diana Erickson, Realtor

When Diana Erickson was a little girl, she would hang out with her father at his C & E Realty office on 185th Ave., back when 185th was a two-lane country road. She would, “sit in on open houses with him, ride in his big Cadillac and go on appointments with him. He loved having me with him and for me it was the best, I was with my dad. We used to put Polaroid photos of his listings in the office window, and I would talk to the people passing by. I learned how to sell Real Estate from my dad. I married Dana Erickson, a Washington County home builder, almost 30 years ago and that was it. I have lived and breathed homes all my life.

Diana works with both sellers and buyers, and she also has experience with development land. She particularly enjoys working with homeowners. “Sellers love their homes, and are so proud of them that they are almost like a family member, ” she says.

Diana is at the Sunset Corridor Office of John L. Scott Real Estate, located on Cornell Road. She chose to hang her Brokers License with John L Scott because of the size of the company and the advanced, cutting edge resources they offer to their brokers. Diana says, “they are the leader in innovation in the real estate industry and have a very large in-house Internet Technology department.”

Most of Diana’s clients are referrals from past clients and friends. “I represent sellers about 80% of the time and I sell my own listings about 85% of the time. When someone is happy with their selling or buying experience, they tell their friends. This is a very small community and word travels fast.

Erickson says the unique character of the homes she sells don't require that the homeowner paint everything white

Diana’s confidence in her professionalism and ability as a broker is reflected in the way she works with clients. She will make suggestions to sellers how they can make their home more saleable, but she understands how important it is for the character of a home to show through. It is important for sellers to be able to live in their home normally while it is listed. Because Diana lives in Cedar Mill and loves it, she especially enjoys working with homes in Cedar Mill. Larger lot sizes, mature trees and gardens are very appealing. “If a home is vacant, I like to stage’ it by bringing in furniture and accessories. It helps people get a feel for what it would be like to live there, she says.

Diana believes the key to being a successful broker is to spend a lot of time looking at individual homes as well as the real estate market. “I am in several houses each day. A good agent must know the inventory out there. She also has extensive knowledge about new construction. “I know about the crawl space, how a house should sit on a lot, the pitch of the roof, etc. You have to know your product, she insists.

When someone calls Diana to list their home, she says, “the very first thing I do is really study their home. Every home is unique and has something special to offer. And then I make a list of those unique features and I get to know the house. And then I get excited about marketing the home. I focus on the positive things about the home and then I market it aggressively. I also do very detailed market research. I give the seller a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) that shows what comparable homes in the area have sold for and how much comparable homes in the area are currently listed for.

Diana’s best advice for home sellers is to take care of your home, keep it updated and do necessary maintenance. She says, If you do these things, a person who buys your home will be just as proud of it as you are.

Diana says the real estate market in Cedar Mill and more generally the west side is quite good. Positive job growth, quality of life and proximity to downtown Portland are the main reasons for the healthy Cedar Mill real estate market. Diana currently has 14 homes on the market, ranging in price $900,000 to $350,000.

Diana and her husband Dana have one daughter who graduated from Sunset High School, then attended University of Nebraska on a swimming scholarship and later transferred to University of Arizona, where she graduated. She is engaged to be married, and her dream is to move back to the Cedar Mill area with her new husband and become a third generation realtor working under Diana.

Diana is an enthusiastic first-year member of the Cedar Mill Business Association. She has lived in the area all her life, and loves Cedar Mill for its beauty and rich sense of community.

You can call Diana at (503) 319-5544, email her at dianae@johnlscott.com or visit her website: DianaErickson.com

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