Cheap Places to Live in Oregon (Portland, Salem: mortgage, property taxes, maintenance)

[Waterlily]

Good day everyone. Once in while someone will come on to the forum looking for somewhere inexpensive to live in Oregon. I thought we might as well make a list of some cheap places to live.

Now some expenses might be the same but the big difference would be for the price of homes and rent.

I'm going to start out the list with..........La Grande, Oregon. What are some other cheap places to live in Oregon?

[Larry Caldwell]

Originally Posted by Waterlily

Good day everyone. Once in while someone will come on to the forum looking for somewhere inexpensive to live in Oregon. I thought we might as well make a list of some cheap places to live.

Now some expenses might be the same but the big difference would be for the price of homes and rent.

I'm going to start out the list with..........La Grande, Oregon. What are some other cheap places to live in Oregon?

I'm not sure that rent is the only measure of how expensive it is to live somewhere. Certainly commuting costs are a big factor nowadays. You can live pretty cheaply in Christmas Valley, but it's 150 miles from nowhere! My gasoline costs about $120 a month, unless I decide to take a long trip.

Another factor is utility costs. I'm a homeowner, and have substantially upgraded the energy efficiency of my home. I heat with a heat pump. Last winter, my highest electric bill was $119, and that is my only utility bill. I know people in town who pay over $300 a month, by the time you add up heat, power, water and sewer. My pro-rated water system and septic maintenance is only about $100 a year.

Also, my property taxes are less than $100 a month, on a home that is worth about $500k. A combination of property tax limitations, timber deferral and a rural community with an aversion to bond measures results in local taxes that are almost trivial. My inlaws in Portland pay over $5000 a year on a house that isn't as nice, on a dinky little 0.16 acre lot.

If you figure in the $200 a month I save in gasoline, the $200 a month I save in utilities, and the $300 a month I save in property taxes, take $700 a month off the mortgage and do the math. It's cheap to live right here in Douglas County, even though housing prices are above average.

[borger96]

Vernonia, Mist and Jewell are still fairly inexpensive. They're remote, but they're within an hour and half of Portland (without traffic) and not too far from the Oregon Coast, either.

Forest Grove and Banks, just west and southwest of Hillsboro (a 'burb of Portland) are surprisingly expensive and getting pricier by the day!

Originally Posted by Waterlily

Good day everyone. Once in while someone will come on to the forum looking for somewhere inexpensive to live in Oregon. I thought we might as well make a list of some cheap places to live.

Now some expenses might be the same but the big difference would be for the price of homes and rent.

I'm going to start out the list with..........La Grande, Oregon. What are some other cheap places to live in Oregon?

[Waterlily]

Vernonia, Mist, and Jewell all have nice names. I am not sure I know exactly where they are. I'm going to take a look online at some info on them. They all sound rather nice;I can just imagine saying that I live in Mist.

Another place that is inexpensive is Baker City. Both Baker City and La Grande have some elevation so they have trees. They are not dusty dry places. If you like 4 seasons it may be an idea to check them out.

[avantgarden]

I don't see why anyone would honestly want to live in Woodburn, but it IS cheap. It's a dump though. It's also a pretty big commute up to Portland (like 35 miles), and a decent commute to Salem (20 miles). It is beautiful country, and there is quite a bit of outdoorsy stuff to do in the general area, but it doesn't make up for the place being such a dump.

[Imperial1904]

I think Klamath Falls is a cheap place to live. I had a very small studio for $210/month a few years ago. It's actually more like a bedroom with its own bathroom and kitchen. There was a reason why it was $210/month though.

[Atalanta]

Originally Posted by Imperial1904

I think Klamath Falls is a cheap place to live. I had a very small studio for $210/month a few years ago. It's actually more like a bedroom with its own bathroom and kitchen. There was a reason why it was $210/month though.

And that would be ...............

You got me curious

[Imperial1904]

Originally Posted by Atalanta

And that would be ...............

You got me curious

It's $210 because of 1.) The size of the apartment. The kitchen I think was bigger than the sleeping area/living room/dining room. 2.) It was kind of run down. 3.) Weird neighbors. 4.) Drugs (you can smell someone cooking it from the hallway).

[patrickogrady]

I'm planning on coming to Oregon to continue in psychiatric nursing. Salem has the State hospital which I understand will be rebuilt for 2009. I'm looking for affordable or best value housing options for that area. I hate being in a city, love being in the boonies, up to a point. Any suggestions anyone?

[Waterlily]

Salem prices are not that high when compared to other places in western Oregon.If you want to be in a small er town there is Indepence,Stayton,Jefferson and several other small towns. I don't know all the prices for these.