Interested in Happy Valley (Portland, Salem: environment, luxury, high income)

[HVmom]

Hi- I am new to this. I am interested in getting info. on Happy Valley, Oregon. Considering a move up there from Orange County, CA. We are conservative and I realize OR is not known for being a conservative state. Actually, CA isn't either, but we have found a conservative pocket in OC. Any information from residents in Happy Valley would be helpful. Pros, cons, public school experiences, home buying, people, etc.
Thanks in advance for your info.
HVmom

[bobmulk]

Happy Valley is a rather new suburb, mostly white-collar professional with high incomes. Average home price is probably in excess of half a million dollars. Interestingly enough, Happy Valley is also one of the fastest growing communities in Oregon, too. They're building like crazy. Shopping and dining ar plentiful in the area and you're close to Portland, the airport and the countryside. You can also get to Mt. Hood quite easily. Interstate 205 cuts through just to the west of Happy Valley. You'll find the neighborhoods safe and lovely and the school district quite good--this is due to the high incomes in the area. Crime is not terribly bad--if there's any at all!

It is pretty lily white; as for conservative, that's hard to say. That area of Clackamas County is probably more conservative than the rest of the Portland area. I live in Salem, but I'm very familiar with the demographics of areas of Oregon. I lived in Orange County, too, (Huntington Beach) and I'm so glad to be here.

[awama]

What do you think of the Corvallis area....Willemette Valley area.....

[Hoeman Lew]

I moved from SF to Oregon with my family in 5/06. Although I'm probably labeled a liberal being born and raised in SF, I was despondent and frustrated having raised my 2 boys until the ages of 4 and 5 in liberal SF. I am extremely tolerant of diverse lifestyles, however the crime, filth and unfriendly family atmosphere was too much to bear. There is a reason why SF had the lowest % of families residing in the US metro areas and this negatively impacted infrastructure for families. Combine that with the cost of living and it became an easy decision to move. We looked at OC, most specifically Tustin and Irvine, but the traffic and similar cost of living made that impractical....we would not have gained much, as the cost of raising a family combined with having a spouse have the luxury of being a homemaker is not viable. Happy Valley has a similar demographic as OC. Sort of like the East Bay (LaMorinda) in the SF Bay Area. One of the niceties of the area is new home, shops and infrastructure. Damascus is now booming, but the areas still has a nice blend of urban and rural. Excellent school district, ethnic diversity (if your Caucasian or Asian, Portland itself in one of the whitest major cities in the US), and balance of Republicans (52%) and Democrats (48%). Overall the demographic in Portland is quite like SF, with a nice cultural scene and the benefits of urban life balanced with a provincial feeling. However for me, I didn't want to succumb to having to use the vast majority of my tax dollars to save the world or pay for a delipitated infrastructure...call me a cop out, but I do contribute to charities annually, try to be environmentally correct, preach empathy and equality to my children, all while simultaneously trying to provide my children a safe, clean and excellent home environment and the benefit of a excellent public school district and a highly educated and affluent (not conincidential in my opinion) population.

[andreairi]

Originally Posted by bobmulk

Happy Valley is a rather new suburb, mostly white-collar professional with high incomes. Average home price is probably in excess of half a million dollars. Interestingly enough, Happy Valley is also one of the fastest growing communities in Oregon, too. They're building like crazy. Shopping and dining ar plentiful in the area and you're close to Portland, the airport and the countryside. You can also get to Mt. Hood quite easily. Interstate 205 cuts through just to the west of Happy Valley. You'll find the neighborhoods safe and lovely and the school district quite good--this is due to the high incomes in the area. Crime is not terribly bad--if there's any at all!

It is pretty lily white; as for conservative, that's hard to say. That area of Clackamas County is probably more conservative than the rest of the Portland area. I live in Salem, but I'm very familiar with the demographics of areas of Oregon. I lived in Orange County, too, (Huntington Beach) and I'm so glad to be here.

Thank you for all this information. I am planning to move to Happy Valley from Florida, and I am Hispanic. Do you think this makes any difference?

[EnricoV]

Originally Posted by andreairi

Thank you for all this information. I am planning to move to Happy Valley from Florida, and I am Hispanic. Do you think this makes any difference?

Not at all.