Need help finding the perfect(!) place to live in oregon. (Salem: low crime, lawyers)

[threedognight]

A tall order, I know, but we're considering relocating to Oregon and don't know where to begin looking for a city that has:

- As little rain as possible;

- Older homes (1940 or older) and nice-size lots;

- A medium-size city with a small town feel;

- Job opportunities(!) . . . (two of us are currently government lawyers and one works for a municipal animal control agency . . . we'd all like to continue in these professions);

- Friendly folks and low crime.

We'd prefer not to spend more than $400,000-$450,000 on a house.

Any and all suggestions will be greatly appreciated and welcome!

[Silverfall]

Bend would fit most of those, except most of the government jobs are here in Salem. Otherwise Salem would fit all, but the little rain.

Most of Oregon towns rate higher than national averages on petty crimes like car break-ins, but we all rank lower on violent crimes than comparable national cities.

What is a nice sized lot?

[freedom]

You two have Ashland written all over....


freedom

[ConeyIsBabe]

ASHLAND !!!

However, it would be a challenge to find a home in your price range.... but NOT impossible in today's r/e market!!

[threedognight]

Thanks to you all for your responses. A "nice size lot" is a minimum of 7,000 square feet. We all prefer a larger yard over a big house (we're speaking for the dogs here, too ).

[Silverfall]

You could get that in Salem or Silverton. Not sure about the older parts of Bend.

I guess the next question is what do you consider a mid-sized town?

[threedognight]

Sorry about parsing out information in piecemeal fashion . . . .

Our definition of "mid-sized" is pretty generous: from 50,000-300,000.

We actually visited Salem in August and two out of the three of us liked it (I was one of the two in favor). We haven't been to Bend but if you think it's a good candidate, we'll plan on going there.

[Bendite]

The problem with Bend will be jobs. Not a lot of government lawyering here unless you want to be a prosecutor or defense counsel. Nearby Redmond could sure use some good management for its animal shelter, though.

[Silverfall]

You may want to consider Silverton which is only 9,000 people, but it's very close to Salem. It's a great little community that has festivals going on every month. Very Mayberryish.

In Salem you would want Bush Park neighborhood, or Fairmount Hills.

Before you head to some of the other cities, you may want to see where the government jobs are located. Employment, Arbitration, Labor law, etc are all centrally located here in Salem. You may eliminate many cities but just the job situation. Department of Justice, State of Oregon - Homepage is the DOJ's website. Looks like there are 13 cities with branches, Ashland is not one of them.

[Dean Trails]

Originally Posted by freedom

You two have Ashland written all over....


freedom

Is Ashland all it is said to be? Does it have any negatives you know of?
It sounds too perfect to be true.
I am still looking for more info on Jacksonville. It looks like an old Western town. All it needs is dirt streets.
It even has the wood side walks in places. Although, I wonder where folks go to get their vittles?