DC People who love nature and culture need help finding place to live in or around Portland (Washington: fit in)

[DCBurnout]

Hello everyone who reads this thread. I thank those of you who respond in advance for your help.

I am a clinical social worker (therapist) with Navy connections and my husband is in IT. We are tired of DC (type A personality, materialism, competitive parents, poor schools, overpriced homes, etc.) and we are thinking about moving to Portland in a year. We have a lab and plan to start a family. We do not know the town, neighborhoods and suburbs very well and would like some suggestions of places to look. We are going up in June to poke around and see what we like, too.

What we would like: great if on water, ok if not. Ok to be in a city or suburb, as long as things are walkable. Right now we live in DC proper and can walk to everything. We would go nuts in a pre-fab suburb where you have to drive a big gas-guzzling car to everything. We love culture and art, but we aren't super artsy ourselves. We could go for new houses, but we like old houses with charm and character (as long as they don't require as much money as you paid for them to fix them up!)

We are friendly, laid back (for DC) and want to make friends, but we also are used to be anonymous to a great deal in DC.

Any suggestions you may have about neighborhoods, housing, employers, etc. would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you again!

[Acadianlion]

In town Portland is a good choice. What I read from your remarks is that you want it to be just like Washington, D.C. without the things in Washington, D.C. that you don't like.

There is art and culture everywhere in Maine, but if you are really "into" art and culture, then you will need to travel around to see all that there is to see. You will find few "prefab" subdivision in Maine, although they do exist; you will find a LOT of really neat old houses that indeed will cost their purchase price again to fix up, and you will drive a lot to see what is here in Maine. Whether or not you chose to drive a gas guzzling SUV is totally up to you.

Plan on spending some time in Maine. If you concentrate in Portland, you are wasting your time and you might as well stay in D.C. If you want a CHANGE in LIFE and LIVING, then by all means come to Maine and explore.

It will be the trip of a lifetime if you come with your eyes and your hearts open. If you want it to be just like where you are now only different, you are wasting your time.

[flycessna]

Hi I used to live on Klingle road behind the zoo in DC. If your coming to Maine Portland is certainly the best choice. There are a few run down areas but nothing as cut and dry Like DC. Even Portland’s more higher crime neighborhoods will not compare. My suggestion to you is to come up for a weekend and take a map and then drive around the city. It.s not a very big city only around 15-20 square miles. Maybe you can find a realtor to take you around too. Good luck

[Sminthian]

Maine is nothing like DC. The people aren't rude, and are going to expect you not to be. It's mostly trees instead of concrete. And the biggest city is Portland, which is only like 60,000 people. Moving to Maine is like the extreme of going back to nature. You might fit in more in northern PA or central NJ, you'll probably get culture shock moving way up into the mountains up there.

[umograd83]

As a native Maine-iac who moved to DC after college then moved back to Maine five years later, I would say Portland is your best bet. However, you won't find it to be "walkable" like you did in DC - unless you live in downtown, the West End or Munjoy Hill. I loved Portland. It has a lot of the big city activities, yet is so close to "nature". I miss it. We job transferred to Memphis (lower cost of living).