Moving to Oregon from So. CA (Portland, Eugene: sale, apartment, houses)

[3suns]

I live in Orange County, CA and thinking of moving up to Oregon. The only problem is that my husband is worried that it is going to be rainy all the time and we will be too far away from any knid of city life. Where is a good place to live where there are good schools (we have 3 young children), near a city 30-40min away is ok, good weather, and where we can buy a house w/ maybe some land. Does that place exist??? I hope so b/c I am sick of living in so. cal!

[freedom]

Southern Oregon has the best weather, the largest city is Medford (has all the big box stores). Pop. 75,000 ?

What type of work, or activities are you looking for?

Great time to buy a house or property, the prices have dropped a lot in the last couple of years. There is plenty on the market to choose from.....

We are in Grants Pass, pop. 31,000. Tough work enviroment since construction has slowed, schools are pretty good and they seem to get plenty of $, really nice people, Its the Climate is the town motto....


best wishes

freedom

[DavePautsch]

3suns,
Take a look at Albany/Corvallis/Lebanon area in the mid-Willamette Valley.
Weather is pretty temperate (yep, it rains from November to March), but the rest of the year is wonderful...and at least it's not snow!
We moved here from San Diego via Hawaii so it DID take a little while to get used to, but we love it here now.
We (as parents) have been very happy with the schools here. Albany school district (Greater Albany Public Schools) did very well with the standards last year. My kids personally have thrived in them, parents tend to be very involved and the administration has been very responsive to our needs and questions.
Great access to I-5, so if there is some need you have that isn't met here, Salem is 20 minutes North; Eugene is 45 minutes south. We have CostCo, Red Robin, Applebees, Kohls, Gottshalks, Old Navy, Target, and a very quaint downtown.
Access to recreation is also pretty good...1 1/2 hours to the coast OR to the mountains.
Housing is still relatively affordable: Median sale price in Albany in October was about $190K. You can find homes with a little acreage here (check out North Albany) for the mid-250s. Lots of new construction, as well as historic homes...and plenty in between.

Good luck.

DavePautsch

[jm21]

Haha, with all these threads about moving up from OC, you wonder why everyone in the OR countryside bitches about Californians moving up.

There's a whole ****load more rain up here, pretty dreary in the winter. A lot of out-of-staters hate it. Just like I hated the pollution and concrete in OC. Portland is the only real city, if it's city stuff you like, I wouldn't go too far from it.

[.Ret3p^]

heh, i want to get out of orange county and move to Oregon so bad too.

[freedom]

Originally Posted by .Ret3p^

heh, i want to get out of orange county and move to Oregon so bad too.

Then you should, what are you waiting for?

[.Ret3p^]

Originally Posted by freedom

Then you should, what are you waiting for?

I'm 18 = No $$$

[elcapitan]

Everyone has their own definition of good weather. I personally can't stand the drought conditions of Southern California after living there for about 6 years. It felt like I was living on the moon (no vegetation) and it just killed my sinuses. Every time it rains down there, all the houses start sliding down the hills and people get in car wrecks. It isn't like that in Oregon.

[jjpop]

Originally Posted by elcapitan

Everyone has their own definition of good weather. I personally can't stand the drought conditions of Southern California after living there for about 6 years. It felt like I was living on the moon (no vegetation) and it just killed my sinuses. Every time it rains down there, all the houses start sliding down the hills and people get in car wrecks. It isn't like that in Oregon.

I'll echo you elcapitan. I lived in SoCal for 5 years. Everything was shades of brown and tan--the vegetation, the houses, even the sky. I lived in Glendora about a mile from the foothills and on most days couldn't see them from the balcony of my apartment. Also I had a lot of nosebleeds from the dryness.

[jm21]

Originally Posted by jjpop

I'll echo you elcapitan. I lived in SoCal for 5 years. Everything was shades of brown and tan--the vegetation, the houses, even the sky. I lived in Glendora about a mile from the foothills and on most days couldn't see them from the balcony of my apartment. Also I had a lot of nosebleeds from the dryness.

I'll third those sentiments. I lived in Fullerton and often woke up coughing in the morning (not sure whether it was the pollution or some allergies...I've never had a problem with allergies before, and never had the experience since moving), nosebleeds...and although it was great being able to leave the top down on my convertible year-round, I gotta say I missed the rain and winters...and especially the green-ness of OR. And you know...having the top down on your convertible seems taboo in SoCal anyways so you kinda stand out.