Oregon suburbs vs Washington suburbs in Portland metro

[pnwguy2]

The gas tax is one of the highest taxes in the US. California, Oregon and Washington are among the worst offenders. Subsequently these States have generally the highest gas prices in the country.

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by CamThomas

Thanks all. This is something I'm seriously considering. If, I'm able to wfh, is there any reason to live in an Oregon burb over, say Vancouver. Money wise, let's say someone makes 100k, 10% in taxes is 10k a year, that's maybe 3-4 months of a mortgage. So, why would one want to live in a Beaverton or Tigard over Vancouver? I think Vancouver has more affordable housing too, though flipside is the Portland burbs may have better appreciation?

Maybe this thread should be moved to Portland?

If you work in OR, live in OR. If you work in WA, live in WA. There is no good financial reason to cross the river every day, and lot of good reasons not to including keeping your sanity. If you are remote-working for a non-Portland employer or not working at all the calculations can be different.

And no, Portland burbs won't have better appreciation. Housing prices in the Portland metro region more or less move up and down in lockstep like they do in every metro region. Two apple to apple comparison suburbs such as say Camas WA and Happy Valley OR are going to have basically the same housing appreciation long-term because they are both subject to the same regional economy and regional housing demand.

[Gaylord_Focker]

Originally Posted by texasdiver

If you work in OR, live in OR. If you work in WA, live in WA. There is no good financial reason to cross the river every day, and lot of good reasons not to including keeping your sanity. If you are remote-working for a non-Portland employer or not working at all the calculations can be different.

And no, Portland burbs won't have better appreciation. Housing prices in the Portland metro region more or less move up and down in lockstep like they do in every metro region. Two apple to apple comparison suburbs such as say Camas WA and Happy Valley OR are going to have basically the same housing appreciation long-term because they are both subject to the same regional economy and regional housing demand.

Last ditch effort to add some separation for OP. Are Oregon burbs a bit more liberal? I think the WA side is moderatish.

[MtnSurfer]

Originally Posted by Gaylord_Focker

Last ditch effort to add some separation for OP. Are Oregon burbs a bit more liberal? I think the WA side is moderatish.

Once you get into the burbs, I think they are very similar which is more purple or mixed. Once in the country, its red for the most part throughout the PNW. Of course, there are a few exceptions. But that's the general rule regardless of WA or OR.

It really just boils down to personal preferences and proximity to the specific parts of the Portland metro you want to be nearest to. For example, if you want to live near a lake for water sports, Camas and Lake Oswego are good. If you want local hiking trails, anywhere near Washington Park, Forest Park and Camas have good trails. Portland probably has the edge there. If you're a road biker, Portland is better and more bike friendly. If you're really into the music scene, then living closer to the PDX venues may be nice. But normally after rush hour its a pretty easy drive from Vancouver.

If you want a killer view of Mt Hood from your home and can afford the price, parts Camas, Washougal and West Hills of Portland can have some amazing views.

Since I love the coast, living somewhere 'on the way' to the OR coast would be a benefit. It could save ~ 30-45 minutes like out in Beaverton.

What do you like to do in your free time? If all the local conveniences are relatively similar for you, then its probably not worth paying an extra 10% of your income. In our case, we drive across the bridge all the time without really thinking about it. In fact, we just got back from a nice new year's trip to the Oregon coast which is ~ a two hour drive from our home in Vancouver.





Derek

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by Gaylord_Focker

Last ditch effort to add some separation for OP. Are Oregon burbs a bit more liberal? I think the WA side is moderatish.

Here is the precinct-by-precinct map of the Portland metro area from the last election. You can find it here and zoom in/click on individual precincts anywhere in the country: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/...ction-map.html

As you can see, Camas is about like Happy Valley or Tigard or Aloha. Downtown Vancouver is more like some random Portland neighborhood outside of inner SE. And the rest of suburban Vancouver is more like Clackamas or Sherwood or some other outer-ring Portland suburb. The rural parts of Clark County beyond Vancouver are more or less like the rural parts of Clackamas or Washington Counties.

[pnwguy2]

Gas prices are currently high in OR and WA. Washington recently upped their gas tax. I think Oregon is is scheduled to do the same. This has little to to do with actual gas prices but is the states milking the price. Terrible taxation that is just extra revenue for the state. Shameful.

[Gaylord_Focker]

Originally Posted by texasdiver

Here is the precinct-by-precinct map of the Portland metro area from the last election. You can find it here and zoom in/click on individual precincts anywhere in the country: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/...ction-map.html

As you can see, Camas is about like Happy Valley or Tigard or Aloha. Downtown Vancouver is more like some random Portland neighborhood outside of inner SE. And the rest of suburban Vancouver is more like Clackamas or Sherwood or some other outer-ring Portland suburb. The rural parts of Clark County beyond Vancouver are more or less like the rural parts of Clackamas or Washington Counties.

Basically no discernible difference.

[Cloudy Dayz]

Originally Posted by pnwguy2

The gas tax is one of the highest taxes in the US. California, Oregon and Washington are among the worst offenders. Subsequently these States have generally the highest gas prices in the country.

Pennsylvania actually has the highest gas tax. There are at least a half dozen states that have a higher gas tax then Oregon.

Alaska has the lowest gas tax but higher gas prices then Oregon. For obvious reasons, not related to gas tax.

[pnwguy2]

Yes, understood. But gas taxes combined with what merchants pay for the product can vary widely. In general the gas tax plus the cost of product will set the price, allowing for some in store profits. But there are differentials that may disrupt this formula.