Phoenix to Gresham Culture Shock? (Portland, Troutdale: sales, home, buying)

[Osokop]

Howdy All:

I am contemplating taking a job in Gresham, OR and moving from Phoenix, AZ where I have been all my 50 years of life. I have finally tired of the 110 degree temps in May and wish for a cooler climate. Albeit, I may suffer from sun deprivation maybe?

Anyway, I have been reading that Portland area is about 9.1% above Phoenix for cost of living expenses and from a trip up there gas was at least 40 cents more a gallon than Phoenix, and housing looks a bit higher than here, but generally about the same. Property taxes of course are higher, but no sales tax, and what is the Oregon state taxes like? High, or pretty much normal?

How stable is Gresham's city budget as I would be working for the city itself? Any funding issues for the city you have heard? I have not seen anything in local papers.

What are the best places to live in or around Gresham and where should I stay away from? Seems like the NE and SE portions of Gresham and toward the Sandy area are very nice and about my speed and price range, but how are they generally? No need to worry about school for the kiddies as all mine are grown and married themselves. I would be interested in what Universities are nearby or close.

I already read about the availability of the Max line which sounds inviting, but Gresham has been having issues and heavy enforcement around the MAX lines I read?

All advice is appreciated, especially concerning areas to avoid for home buying!

Thanks!!!

[skypros]

Well you are going to love this...
Oregon State Income tax is 9%

I lived in AZ for a short period (show low az).... and AZ TAXES EVERYTHING! and the cost to register a car is very expensive! Gas was lower there as were utilities.... The state does not smog check and burns coal for electricity.

I did not like AZ one bit (except Flagstaff)

[Osokop]

Thanks Skypros....actually I love Arizona, but have lived here all my life and don't know the difference. I did have a very short time of living in Germany and Oklahoma, but was young and didn't care much about the cost of living.

Thanks again for the information and sharing your opinions!

[bobmulk]

One thing to remember about the income taxes--they won't be as bad as 9% if you own a home. Factor in all your deductions and the 9% doesn't happen. My income taxes aren't that bad with all my deductions. I would imagine that's the case anywhere.

You might opt to live in Sandy or Troutdale or Fairview. All nice, smaller communities. That are does get quite cold in the winter because the winds blow down the Columbia Gorge.

[LewisMel]

Wow, that will be quite a culture shock for you as far as weather. I am from Australia originally and i have friends in Phoenix. But all and all I think you will love it in Gresham. mod cut: Housing prices are fantastic right now if you are looking to buy, so that is definitely in your favor. The better parts of Gresham are SW Gresham and East Gresham, towards Sandy. mod cut:

[scirocco16v]

Working in Gresham should be pretty decent as far as traffic goes. If you commute anywhere near Portland though, you'll learn about poor city planning. As far as property tax goes, it's pretty much on par with Portland. 20 years ago, if you told a Portlander that you lived in Gresham; images of barns and cow pastures would be brought to mind. Though not so much anymore. Gresham is a good sized suburb with a lot of recent growth. I think weather will be the make or break it item for you. It is gray and rainy here ALL THE TIME. Charts can be misleading. Our rainfall numbers might not look as bad as many other cities but they don't take into account that the gray doesn't let up. It'll rain for a day...probably all day. Then, it'll stay gray and cold for the next week. Even without rain, it's still wet everywhere and the sun NEVER comes through. In fact, much of winter is 40 degrees with rain and it will always feel like dusk because you never see the sun. Lastly, the Willamette valley; which incorporates pretty much all of the cities in NW oregon, is one of the worst places in the WORLD for allergy sufferers due to the obscene grass pollen count. And as you can probably guess, with all the rain, it's fairly humid here at all times.

So, this stuff aside, Portland and vicinity have great restaurants everywhere. There's a lot of outdoorsy stuff to do...hiking everywhere, mountains to ski nearby, the ocean just over an hour away. Inner Portland has a lot of art to offer and a decent nightlife. Not to mention some of the best microbrews in the country. It is very green here. Just look at a google map and you can see that. In general the people are fairly friendly. You'll make eye contact with folks on the street and probably won't feel like you're putting someone out by asking for directions.
A few quirks that you should know are: 1) You can't pump your own gas here. 2) Last time I checked we have more strip clubs and porn shops per capita than anywhere else in the US. 3) There is no smoking anywhere (basically). 4) Marijuana is our #1 cash crop.