Where do we move in Oregon? (Portland, Salem: jobs, new home, college)

[klou]

My husband is an electrician and we live in Oklahoma. And I am a college student. We have visited Oregon only once and we really would like to move. We have 4 children ages 10 and under. We would need somewhere that my husband could have steady work, good schools, affordable housing (200,000). Can someone help us?

[roguecoast]

Hello,

Check out Gold Beach..located on the Southern Oregon Coast......it's the last place in Oregon on the coast you can find a home in the 200K range.



Good luck in your search!
Angela

[freedom]

Southern Oregon has the best climate -IMO. A true 4 seasons.

I'm in Grants Pass, and the town is perfect for us. We have 5 kids. I'm a builder/developer. There are some pretty good electrical companys here.
New homes in town are mid 250's to 300's. There are plenty of fixers in the 200's right now. Great time to buy, as of 2 yrs ago, there was hardly anything available in the 2's.

best wishes,

freedom

[klou]

Thanks for the reply but my husband does commercial electrical work and I'm not sure how much work he could get there. What are the good town that are outside of the larger ones?

[mdvaden]

Originally Posted by freedom

Southern Oregon has the best climate -IMO. A true 4 seasons.

I'm in Grants Pass, and the town is perfect for us. We have 5 kids. I'm a builder/developer. There are some pretty good electrical companys here.
New homes in town are mid 250's to 300's. There are plenty of fixers in the 200's right now. Great time to buy, as of 2 yrs ago, there was hardly anything available in the 2's.

best wishes,

freedom

I'd pick Grants Pass if we moved here again - no second guessing. But I don't agree with the distinct 4 seasons thing that everybody mentions down here. I'm in Applegate Valley next door right now. If someone blindfolded me and brought be down here, I wouldn't be able to tell you whether I just went through a Portland winter or a southern Oregon winter.

Portland's seasons are much more clear-cut than the rise and fall from 30's to 80's I've seen near Grants Pass and Medford the past Februaries and Marches.

Grants Pass and Williams have 31" to 33" of rain, almost on par with Portland's 36" of rain.

Either way, I think Grants Pass is my favorite small town down here.

For the opening post question - I'd suggest either Grants Pass, the west suburbs of Portland, or Salem.

One frequently overlooked small town, is McMinnville, Oregon. I think the home are 10% less, the beach is barely an hour west, and Portland shopping is available in the big suburbs about 1/2 hour to the east. McMinnville has jobs, contractors, and, is close enough to work in the west suburbs of Portland.

McMinnville is where the Spruce Goose is located in the Evergreen air museum.

[tkrbl]

I agree with the post above - McMinnville is a good place but Newberg is better. Newberg is a up and coming town with houses still in the 200's and is even closer to Portland. I commute each day. Newberg is in the "wine country" so the views are great. Its right on the river and boating is a regular summer activity. We've got parks everywhere, kids sports, annual kid oriented events and scouting is big. Many of the church youth groups even have busses that pick kids up at thier doors for outings. -- good luck.