West Linn or Ridgefield, WA (Portland: home, neighborhood, private school)

[mathgeek]

We are considering moving to Oregon or Washington soon. We are considering Ridgefield, WA or West Linn, OR. We have narrowed it to those 2 areas based on the research we have done on schools. We are hoping those 2 have great schools. We want a very family oriented, somewhat conservative neighborhood along with good schools. Any opinions on these and which might be better?? Thanks for any feedback!

[PNW-type-gal]

While West Linn and Ridgefield are technically suburbs of Portland, West Linn is a relatively close-in suburb. Ridgefield is much more isolated and much further out - a 40 min drive from downtown Portland, and that's not during commute times. Either one can suit your needs, depending on what you are looking for.

[mathgeek]

Thank you. Luckily I am a stay at home mom and my husband will be working from home, so commute is not an issue for us.

[StealthRabbit]

we can not discuss any positive points of a WA destination on the OR forum (advertising), but you can get objective advice by cross posting this on WA Vancouver forum.

Basically, it is best to live on the state you earn your income for tax and commute benefit. It is especially pertinent to review your proposed destinations and try the trip to all activities during actual commute hours. There is significant family benefit to minimize unnecessary time on the road. If you use the airport much you might want to add Camas, WA to your evaluation list.

Investigate facilities for your interests including your kids future activities. An example would be swimming of which one of these states is woefully deficient. School funding is quite different, so decide if you are willing to use a private school or home school. I've known of lots of Home school families from each side of the river, and there is significant support for that in the area. If you have any potential of utilizing College instead of High School for Jr and Senior yr, there are differences in how the states enable that process.

Are you interested in Rural or urban housing? Your stated destinations vary significantly in their town centers and services. But both are close to additional services.