To Those Considering Moving to Portland (job, home, community)

[argo69]

Originally Posted by PDXBADGER

I've lived in a number of locations and regions. Portland OR is by far the best. Mountains, oceans, year-round "green" and the livability of a large city. Further, I have had job offers in other cities, but my heart is in the "rose city."

Once here [PDX], you won't leave.

I agree with this sentiment although I'm not living in PDX...yet.

[gypsydoc]

Originally Posted by Patricia42

Portland, OR...
If you like rain ...rain...rain...and dark days...so to Portland.
You get to stay in a lot. The traffic is nasty....driving in the rain is not fun.
I was born and grew up in OR. I love the coast and the green, but not Portland. Yes, there are plenty of things to do, when it stops raining. Now to get anywhere you must get on a freeway...that is not urban....Housing costs,,,awful. Who can afford to buy there anyway? I love Oregon, but if I had to choose a place to live, it would not be Portland. High costs and gobs of people and growing everyday.....Like snow? It does that too. Portand is a long drive from San Francisco. Won't get there in the winter either. Have to go over the Siskiyous and they are frequently closed in winter. They are not little hills like some states have, they are real mountains and can be dangerous.
I suppose if you make BIG money and your partner works also, and you are extremely liberal then Portland may be the place for you....

I just gotta say that I notice that people who have lived in many other places and who move to Portland, absolutely love it, for the most part. The people who have lived here all or most of their lives seem to be less appreciative and aware of what they've got in their own back yard. I suppose one's perception IS one's reality...

The third group are people who live here for awhile, then move away.. then come back because there isn't any place like it. Yes.. it rains in the winter; sometimes too much... But, I'm not out shoveling snow out of my driveway or scraping ice off my windshields as a "normal winter routine". My car doesn't drop in value because of the salt damage underneath and eating through the lower body.

In the summer, I'm not trapped inside or in my car with my air conditioning because it's in it's normal, June - August 90 to 100+ most days and only cooling to the mid 80's or so at night. Guess I just like it here. A lot.

For many years my perception of Portland was nasty, cloudy and rainy... Well.. did you know that Cleveland, OH actually has more cloudy days than us?? I was born in Cleveland... Portland's rain levels are around 35 inches for the year... not that extreme at all. Hmmm. After I moved here, I realized I like rain more than I think... which works well. Summers with almost no rain are just one sunny day after another... Makes planning your hikes and picnics really easy. Sort of digressed..

Guess it just comes down to having some other experience in other places to better compare with here.

Check out [Mod cut[/url] as a great site to compare all sorts of information between cities.

[roneb]

Originally Posted by gypsydoc

I just gotta say that I notice that people who have lived in many other places and who move to Portland, absolutely love it, for the most part. The people who have lived here all or most of their lives seem to be less appreciative and aware of what they've got in their own back yard. I suppose one's perception IS one's reality...

The third group are people who live here for awhile, then move away.. then come back because there isn't any place like it. Yes.. it rains in the winter; sometimes too much... But, I'm not out shoveling snow out of my driveway or scraping ice off my windshields as a "normal winter routine". My car doesn't drop in value because of the salt damage underneath and eating through the lower body.

In the summer, I'm not trapped inside or in my car with my air conditioning because it's in it's normal, June - August 90 to 100+ most days and only cooling to the mid 80's or so at night. Guess I just like it here. A lot.

For many years my perception of Portland was nasty, cloudy and rainy... Well.. did you know that Cleveland, OH actually has more cloudy days than us?? I was born in Cleveland... Portland's rain levels are around 35 inches for the year... not that extreme at all. Hmmm. After I moved here, I realized I like rain more than I think... which works well. Summers with almost no rain are just one sunny day after another... Makes planning your hikes and picnics really easy. Sort of digressed..

Guess it just comes down to having some other experience in other places to better compare with here.

Check out [mod cut[/url] as a great site to compare all sorts of information between cities.

I'll start by saying how much I appreciate that you're being up front about being a real estate agent. It makes it easier to put the slightly rosey view off Portland into perspective. Believe it or not, there are people (like myself) who have lived in a variety of locations (Montana, Alaska, Washington, Minnesota) and aren't as enamored of Portland. I have actually found more lifelong Portlanders with limited experience elsewhere that refuse to even consider that there might be more attractive places to live.

Yes, Portland is amazing for a city of it size, and probably my first choice among larger cities, but that still does make it ideal.

Yes, Portland's annual rainfall is modest and there are many places that are cloudier. But Portland's rain comes in dribs and drabs throughout the fall/winter/spring with few breaks. For some of us a gourgeous summer is not enough to make up for it. And many of the places that are cloudier overall(like parts of the upper midwest) are characterized by HIGHER cloud cover with snow on the ground, rather than low dark gloominess that predominates in Portland's winter. The former is MUCH brighter and easier to take for some of us. Winter is SUPPOSED TO have snow!

Lastly, Portland's job market continues to be stagnant compared to the majority of cities it's size.

Thought sharing a different perspective was in order.

[nancy thereader]

Winter is SUPPOSED TO have snow!

Tell that to the Floridians & the Hawaiians , among many others.

[expgc]

Originally Posted by nancy thereader

Winter is SUPPOSED TO have snow!

Tell that to the Floridians & the Hawaiians , among many others.

The Big Island of Hawaii does get snow in the Winter.

[argo69]

Portland is absolutely one of the best cities in the U.S...however, I think it is misleading to try to sell people on the weather not being as rainy, damp and cloudy as it really is. The lists of most cloudy U.S. cities I've seen list the following cities with the number of annual cloudy days.

1. 239 Anchorage, AK
2. 230 Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA
3. 229 Olympia, WA
4. 228 Bremerton-Silverdale, WA
5. 227 Bellingham, WA
6. 226 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA
7. 222 Portland, OR

Yes, many southern cities get more annual rainfall than Portland, the difference is that those cities get heavy rainfall over a relatively few number of days while the entire Pacific Northwest is blanketed by clouds and drizzle for over half of the year. I don't mind it personally, all the big Canadian cities (Vancouver, Montreal, Toronto) are just as cloudy and all rate highly for quality of life. But...it's not for everyone and there are certainly many, many Californians who have moved to Oregon only to flee back after a few years, not having anticipated the effect the weather would have on them.

[karnovaran]

Originally Posted by argo69

But...it's not for everyone and there are certainly many, many Californians who have moved to Oregon only to flee back after a few years, not having anticipated the effect the weather would have on them.

I'm constantly amazed by how much people in this forum complain about a lack of sunshine in Portland because where I am (East coast) it's been cloudy for a month at least and I didn't even notice. In fact, this happens every year and never once has a lack of sunshine ever occurred to me. But then it struck me that perhaps most of those who are affected by Portland's weather come from overly sunny areas like southern California. Are there any East coasters that have trouble adjusting to the overcast skies? I can't imagine it would be that much of a shock considering the weather we get here from October to May..

[roneb]

As I stated before, it's not simply the number of cloudy days, but the characteristics of that cloud cover and the amount of ambient light that results from it. Low clouds with rain, mist, or drizzle creates a dark and gloomy environment with little light. Higher clouds and below freezing temps creates a drier environment with more light - especially if there is snow on the ground. I'm not from So. Cal. and would NEVER want to live there for a variety of reasons, despite the sunshine. I have always lived in northern states, and have lived in Portland for many years now. But other places I have lived had fewer rainy days and always had snow on the ground in the winter. It makes a big difference to me personally; and I suspect it would make a difference to some others as well. Whenever we get a decent snowfall in Portland and the city shuts down and everyone starts to complain... That's when I'm in heaven. It's brighter, quieter, things slow down... That's why my ideal is a town offering similar recreation opportunities to Portland, but in a smaller size and an actual winter. They REALLY do exist!

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by roneb

As I stated before, it's not simply the number of cloudy days, but the characteristics of that cloud cover and the amount of ambient light that results from it. Low clouds with rain, mist, or drizzle creates a dark and gloomy environment with little light. Higher clouds and below freezing temps creates a drier environment with more light - especially if there is snow on the ground. I'm not from So. Cal. and would NEVER want to live there for a variety of reasons, despite the sunshine. I have always lived in northern states, and have lived in Portland for many years now. But other places I have lived had fewer rainy days and always had snow on the ground in the winter. It makes a big difference to me personally; and I suspect it would make a difference to some others as well. Whenever we get a decent snowfall in Portland and the city shuts down and everyone starts to complain... That's when I'm in heaven. It's brighter, quieter, things slow down... That's why my ideal is a town offering similar recreation opportunities to Portland, but in a smaller size and an actual winter. They REALLY do exist!

Maybe you should look into Colorado Springs. Though I'll warn you, there isn't snow on the ground all winter there, either. But it does snow.

[nancy thereader]

The Big Island of Hawaii does get snow in the Winter.

Can that be true????