Austin vs Portland (Nash: transplants, real estate, apartment complexes)

[velouria1085]

Sorry if there are already a lot of questions like this, but any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I currently live in Nashville and I would like to relocate to either Austin or Portland. I'm 23, single, and about to graduate college with a Journalism degree.

My main interests are music and art. I'd like to lives somewhere with a good bar/nightlife scene as well, and I'd love to live in a neighborhood that is full of young and creative people. Portland's climate seems better for me since I hate the heat, but at the same time I'm kind of worried because I've heard that many Portland natives are not very receptive to transplants. What is the general attitude towards newcomers to Austin? I want to be able to make friends since I don't know anyone who lives there.

What areas would you suggest? I've never been to Austin but I plan on visiting in January.

[centralaustinite]

How much do you hate the heat?

It is HOT here from May to the end of September, and April and October can both be pretty warm (high 80s, low 90s). December and January can have amazing weather, blue skies, dry air, bright sun. But summers are long and brutal!

Portland? How much do you like rain? Gray and rainy.

Friendly? Texas friendly is real. But some can be grumpy to newcomers, at least you are coming from Nashville not CA!

I'd guess that cost of living is a bit better in Austin than Portland but you might want to scope out a job before making the move.

good luck

[juggler]

Hello Velouria,
I lived in Austin from 1994-2003, and have lived in Portland the last 5 years.

There are a lot of similarities between the two cities: both are havens for the young "creative class", both are fairly liberal, both have lots of high tech industry, both have terrible traffic problems, both have LOTS of great restaurants and bars and both hate California transplants. Being from Nashville, you're safe.

I think Austin excels in the club scene (although I'm not into that myself), while Portland has more microbreweries. I would say in general, Austinites are a bit friendlier than Portlanders, although I have had no problem meeting lots of people up here over the last 5 years. It seems most people up here are from somewhere else, so if you are a transplant, you're in good company.
Portland has a significantly higher cost of living than Austin (about 20% higher), although Portland is still the cheapest big city on the west coast. The biggest difference is in housing costs.

Regarding climate - you get used to it. I HATED the summer humidity when I first moved to Austin; it was like swimming in water vapor. But after a year or so, it didn't bother me (or maybe I just learned to stay inside ). In Portland, you get used to the gray skies in winter. With all the evergreen trees, plus all the grass up here stays green in winter, it actually looks nice during the rainy season. We had solid gray skies and off-and-on rain for the first 13 days of November, but now are enjoying blue skies - forecast for at least the next week. Portland has awesome summers - no arguing that.

[velouria1085]

Thanks for all of the advice so far. From what I've heard, Austin seems like the best option for me. What neighborhoods are best for young people? I'd like to be within walking distance of "hip" (I hate that word but I can't think of any other way to describe it) bars and venues. I'm really into indie music so anywhere near that whole scene would be great!

[WillysB]

Originally Posted by velouria1085

Thanks for all of the advice so far. From what I've heard, Austin seems like the best option for me. What neighborhoods are best for young people? I'd like to be within walking distance of "hip" (I hate that word but I can't think of any other way to describe it) bars and venues. I'm really into indie music so anywhere near that whole scene would be great!

Study the 6thStreet scene. Study the Small Planet Guide for neighborhoods...

[centralaustinite]

Look at Hyde Park, South Congress, South Lamar, and central East Austin, as well as downtown.

[velouria1085]

I've looked at housing for all of those places on Craigslist, but so far all I've really found is new, cooker-cutter apartment complexes. I'd really like to find something with more of a quaint, vintage look. So far I've seen a few in the South Central area, and it said there's a lot of thrift stores, records stores, etc close by.

Sorry for asking so many questions but in general what type of people live in South Central and is it close to a lot of bars and venues?

[AustinGuy]

One of the big advantages Portland has over Austin is it's walkability and public transportation. If that is a concern to you, Portland might be a better option.

[twange]

Originally Posted by velouria1085

I've looked at housing for all of those places on Craigslist, but so far all I've really found is new, cooker-cutter apartment complexes. I'd really like to find something with more of a quaint, vintage look. So far I've seen a few in the South Central area, and it said there's a lot of thrift stores, records stores, etc close by.

Sorry for asking so many questions but in general what type of people live in South Central and is it close to a lot of bars and venues?

I live in the South Central area(S 1st in Bouldin Creek area). The place is full of funky, local shops, bars, eateries, vintage clothing, coffee houses etc...It's close to downtown, greenbelts and parks, bus lines, the SoCo area, and beautiful neighborhoods with a great mixture of vintage boutique houses and modern architecture. There is a mix of folks that live here: older and younger so things are interesting without being too self-consciously hip (although you might like that, I don't know). The cool thing about Austin is that people don't seem as separated because of "age". We have friends older and younger than us and everyone hangs out and enjoys each other.

Get used to the generic apartment complexes. Unless you can afford to rent an old house, or score a great garage apartment, that's what you're going to get. Austin's not an old city per say, so the older buildings are prime real estate. There are a lot of buildings that are too new to be cool but not old enough to be cool: i.e. 60s-80s...sort of a low point for multi-family housing and apartments

Also don't assume that everything new here is cookie-cutter: there is some great newer architecture that is quality built and very attractive, but these will probably be VERY expensive for you unless you are making great money. One thing I would recommend: get a place with a good pool and a quality outdoor space(deck/porch etc...). Pools are good places to meet folks and are essential during the summers...and outdoor spaces are just part of living here.

Good luck!

[jread]

Austin and Portland have very similar vibes. Portland is more dense and has better public transportation, while Austin is more spread out. Portland's cost of living is a lot higher and the housing costs are quite a bit more expensive. I think Portland has more "funky" neighborhoods than Austin does. The weather is drastically different, with Austin being more hot and dry, while Portland is rainy and green. I do not consider Austin to be a "humid" place, and it will actually feel very dry to you coming from TN as our humidity is MUCH lower than anywhere in the Southeast. I found the people to be extremely nice in Portland, just like they are in Austin. The difference is that people in Austin are more outgoing and "in your face", so it may seem like they are friendlier. People in Portland are more reserved, but they will talk to you if you talk to them first and they are very pleasant to be around. As for the job market, there is no comparison: Austin has a MUCH stronger job market than Portland and has for a long time.

We visited Portland recently and fell in love with the cool climate and gorgeous landscape, so we want to move there if we can ever find jobs. My wife and I HATE the summer heat in Austin and we're actually happier in overcast weather. The interesting thing is that Austin's winters are much colder than Portland's (more freezes), while Portland is very mild and has fewer extremes. If you are a sun-lover, though, Austin will be a much better fit with 300+ days of sunshine throughout the year.