My partner and I are looking to buy a house in/near Portland Advice please [View all]

Planning to look at a few modest houses in Lake Oswego next month And some a little better than modest houses in West Linn and Arnold Creek area. Also a few houses near Cornell st in the NW

We are from out of state and unfamiliar with the tax structure there. Zillo and Trulia provide information of property taxes paid ( 2012 most recent ) It's become the key factor in our selection of houses to see. Why do the property taxes seem almost arbitrary --swinging wildly from house to house bearing no relation to quality or location sometimes ?

Anyway we need a buyers agent. If you want to drop some names PM me Thanks