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Old 06-27-2011, 01:44 AM
 
68 posts, read 678,019 times
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I will be moving next year.

I have my choices narrowed down to far Northern California, or Southern Oregon. I'll either be going to the Eureka area in Humboldt County CA, or the Eugene area of OR. Those are my two top choices.

I've been doing a lot of research on cost of living. And it looks to me like this part of CA is not much more expensive than Oregon.

Here's what i've found.

CA has sales tax and Oregon doesn't, that's definitely an extra expense to Californians.

Rent, land prices and property taxes look similar in both areas. Looks like there isn't really a big savings in OR.

Income taxes look MORE expensive in Oregon. To me, this seems like it's the great equalizer that makes the financial deal in OR less attractive.

Food, gas and other goods? I'd guess that they are a bit cheaper in OR probably?

Basically, I always hear hype about how Oregon is cheaper than CA. But I think that when this comparison is made, they are usually comparing the cities in each state. When you consider a rural area in California, it seems that the cost of living evens out a lot.

Am I wrong on this? Is Eugene OR really cheaper than Eureka and Humboldt County in CA. For someone who does not consume a lot and shop a lot it appears to be about the same to me.

I know all about the social issues in each town. I'm just trying to get a feel for the living costs.
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Old 06-27-2011, 05:23 AM
 
Location: Houston
1,257 posts, read 2,639,627 times
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Green,

I noted some of the differences as well between far northern California and southern Oregon. The lower property taxes in California look like a lower fixed cost base. I would want to see "the big picture" combined costs of utilities and other basic "gotta have" items.

I hated the idea of sales taxes while I lived in Oregon (of course) now I see them in another light. A consumptive tax. The effect on a lower income retired person would be lower as we would make less purchases.


My retirement strategy is simple. Get the lowest fixed monthly costs in an area I actually want to be in. Low costs mean nothing if you are stuck somewhere staring at 4 walls.

Squidlo
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Old 06-27-2011, 09:24 AM
 
68 posts, read 678,019 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Squidlo View Post
Green,

I noted some of the differences as well between far northern California and southern Oregon. The lower property taxes in California look like a lower fixed cost base. I would want to see "the big picture" combined costs of utilities and other basic "gotta have" items.

I hated the idea of sales taxes while I lived in Oregon (of course) now I see them in another light. A consumptive tax. The effect on a lower income retired person would be lower as we would make less purchases.


My retirement strategy is simple. Get the lowest fixed monthly costs in an area I actually want to be in. Low costs mean nothing if you are stuck somewhere staring at 4 walls.

Squidlo
I agree.

I am very frugal, i'm not a big spender or big shopper at all. So the lack of sales tax wouldn't be an enormous help to me I don't think.

And in Oregon they jack the income tax way up to compensate. Looks like the property taxes or pretty high too. So is it really a good deal?

I would MUCH rather live in a place with high sales tax and no income tax. Than a place like Oregon with no sales tax and very high income tax on working class people.

And of course if I want to buy something big like a computer or furniture or whatever, I could just travel to Oregon to buy it to avoid paying sales tax on it if I live in Northern Cal.

I love Oregon, but the tax laws there look pretty brutal.

Everyone knows California is a very heavily taxed state, and I figured Oregon would be much less taxed and more affordable. I figured Oregon would be a good escape from California's high cost of living. But now that i've really researched it, it looks like the savings isn't that much. Seems like it's evened out a lot.
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Old 06-27-2011, 09:35 AM
 
5,273 posts, read 14,482,422 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GreenGardener555 View Post
I love Oregon, but the tax laws there look pretty brutal.

I think this is the key. Oregon is a deeply liberal state and it has equally deeply serious budget issues. My concern is that we will try to dig out of this hole with increased taxes & fees as the state government is not very creative about such things. As such, Oregon is a gamble for those retiring on anything less than a decent income.
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Old 06-27-2011, 10:42 AM
 
Location: Portland, Oregon
10,987 posts, read 20,454,482 times
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I notice that the OP picked Eugene as her target community. That town can be as expensive as Portland's COL because of the UofO's presence. There are smaller towns nearby (Cottage Grove comes to mind) where housing would be cheaper.
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Old 06-27-2011, 02:51 PM
 
Location: State of Jefferson coast
963 posts, read 3,020,994 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Nell Plotts View Post
I notice that the OP picked Eugene as her target community. That town can be as expensive as Portland's COL because of the UofO's presence.
It's also a long way from southern Oregon, one of the OP's two target regions.
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Old 06-27-2011, 02:59 PM
 
Location: Lakewood OH
21,695 posts, read 28,307,258 times
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Quote:
I would MUCH rather live in a place with high sales tax and no income tax. Than a place like Oregon with no sales tax and very high income tax on working class people.
So would I. Or a combination of sales tax and a lower income tax. That is why I will be moving from Portland one day. Also you have to bring salaries into the equation. They are lower here than in California so what you see as less expensive housing really isn't if you are earning less salary.

Also, it seems that something people sometimes overlook when they talk about housing on this board is if they are renting they don't believe that the high property taxes do not apply to them. But rents go up along with property taxe hikes. I have gotten a rent increase every year (I live in Portland) which is pretty common.

I don't know about Eureka and Humboldt County but Eugene is not a cheap place to live.
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Old 06-27-2011, 05:35 PM
 
Location: Pluto's Home Town
9,982 posts, read 13,697,930 times
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I have not been following Eureka lately, but I do know the area was exceptionally bubbled out by the housing bubble. I suspect property prices are probably still high, but perhaps there are some more affordable pockets.
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Old 06-27-2011, 06:47 PM
 
68 posts, read 678,019 times
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Yeah I guess Eugene isn't really Southern Oregon, more like right in a the middle of the state.

And when I say "Eugene" and "Eureka" i'm not talking about moving into the town itself, but living in it's vicinity, within about a 30 mile drive to town.

I'm not retired, i'm young and still working, and i'll rent for a while when I move.

I plan on buying raw land and building my own homestead eventually. I'm just looking for the best place to do it. I'm definitely not going to buy a residential lot in a town. I'm looking to buy rural property with minimal building codes and regulations.

I've got a college degree. But I plan on shifting into a skilled trade or agri-business for work.

A few months ago I had my mind set on moving to the mountain states to live cheaper. I was considering the Dakotas, Montana, Wyoming etc. But i'm a west coast guy and I gotta go where I fit in and where i'm happy.

I'm basically looking for the cheapest areas on the west coast. A liberal area. A place far from any major city. I'm also considering the Olympic Penninsula of Washington State but it's a lot lower on my list than OR and CA.
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Old 06-27-2011, 08:07 PM
 
5,273 posts, read 14,482,422 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GreenGardener555 View Post
Yeah I guess Eugene isn't really Southern Oregon, more like right in a the middle of the state.

And when I say "Eugene" and "Eureka" i'm not talking about moving into the town itself, but living in it's vicinity, within about a 30 mile drive to town.

I'm not retired, i'm young and still working, and i'll rent for a while when I move.

I plan on buying raw land and building my own homestead eventually. I'm just looking for the best place to do it. I'm definitely not going to buy a residential lot in a town. I'm looking to buy rural property with minimal building codes and regulations.

I've got a college degree. But I plan on shifting into a skilled trade or agri-business for work.

A few months ago I had my mind set on moving to the mountain states to live cheaper. I was considering the Dakotas, Montana, Wyoming etc. But i'm a west coast guy and I gotta go where I fit in and where i'm happy.

I'm basically looking for the cheapest areas on the west coast. A liberal area. A place far from any major city. I'm also considering the Olympic Penninsula of Washington State but it's a lot lower on my list than OR and CA.
Interesting post. You state you want to, essentially, leave society behind and build on a homestead in a deeply rural area that's also liberal. That's a contradictory statement. As someone who's lived outside Pendleton and Klamath Falls I can say that areas like that in Eastern Oregon are deeply conservative (family values, honesty, less government intrusion, less taxes, self reliant...). However, may I suggest Joseph to you. It's way out in the brush, artsy-fartsy (more liberal than almost any other east Oregon area, but still fairly conservative- the left & right seem to live at peace with each other) and I think you can find homesteading land. Beyond that, some area around the coast may work if you can stand the rain.
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