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Old 05-26-2014, 07:13 PM
 
Location: Dallas, Oregon & Sunsites Arizona
8,000 posts, read 17,293,324 times
Reputation: 2866

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How much synchronization can a mattress and five boxes require? Moving a mattress that distance is not wise. We have a ton of mattress stores here. The boxes will be no big deal. UPS them for maybe $100. Maybe a little more.
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Old 05-26-2014, 09:13 PM
 
Location: Portland, Oregon
10,988 posts, read 20,510,182 times
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I can understand a butterfly filled tummy when young, single, and moving to a community far-far away from what you have known. I had them when I moved from Portland to NY metro out of college many years ago. Like you I had a job offer in hand.

DH & I moved back to Portland 4 years ago after downsizing not enough of our stuff. Moving is stressful and expensive. Honest, if we haven't personally moved in the last couple years many of us have friends/relatives who have done that. We have recommendations based on our experience - take it or leave it.

We can't help you on where to look for housing unless we know the geographic vicinity of your job. I understand you don't want to go the roommate route and, reading between the lines, you have a modest budget for an apartment. Often you will find that a one bedroom isn't much more expensive than a studio, I recommend you look for a one bedroom.

So, how can we help you make Portland your new home?
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Old 05-26-2014, 11:37 PM
 
Location: Pacific NW
6,413 posts, read 12,114,326 times
Reputation: 5860
Quote:
Originally Posted by themostleastlikelyto View Post
A job isn't the issue i have a job and can transfer to anywhere. I need help because I've never hired cross country movers before, and I have never had to find an apartment with roommates cross country before.

What are the best areas to live if you plan on biking or taking the bus?
What are good areas to live if you are female (safety)?
Hiring movers, what is that like price wise? consider I don't have a lot of stuff....just a bed and some boxes.
How do I find an apartment with roommates who aren't going to screw me over? I've been screwed over in the past (room mate keeping rent and not paying landlord, screwing me on bills)

I just need some advice. The job thing is a non-issue it's the actual moving/planning that is scary.
I would suggest that you plan (and budget) to spend the about a month at somewhere like a hostel, or at somewhere you find on Airbnb.com - and meet any roommates before committing yourself. And even then, you don't really know what you're getting (nor do they).

Depending on where exactly your job is will factor in to where you'll want to look for housing. You said NE, but that's a big area. Locate the location of your job, and check within a reasonable radius. The further you are from the center of town, the less convenient public transportation is going to be.

As far as safety goes, I'd probably want to avoid anything right around 82nd Avenue, or towards the east of that. It's got higher crime rates (but cheaper housing), and is much more suburban, and less "car-free" friendly. But overall, Portland is a pretty safe city. Less of the personal crime, but more of the property crime.
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Old 05-27-2014, 10:40 AM
 
4,059 posts, read 5,601,995 times
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I'd say it depends on the mattress - yes you can buy all sorts of crap at IKEA cheap, but a good mattress is expensive.

As for movers, the national carriers will have local agents who can give you a free estimate. The agent is who you would actually be signing the contract with, so you want to evaluate what you think they'd be like to work with. If they're flaky on doing an estimate, they'll probably be flaky on doing the job.

If your mattress is worth $1500 and it costs $1000 to move your stuff, then there's a strong argument for paying them to move your stuff. There is some risk of dmg/loss, but the major carriers will all provide insurance as part of the contract.

If you have a $200 run of the mill futon mattress then the crowd here is right. It would cost you more to ship than to just buy new. If you aren't moving the mattress, spend $100-200 shipping your boxes by UPS/USPS and buy a new mattress when you get here. If you don't have a mailing address lined up in advance, you can rent a PO Box and ship to the PO Box.

The train really isn't cheap, but depending on the route it can be fun. The bus is relatively cheap, but it's not so fun. Either way, it doesn't sound like you have a lot of stuff, so I wouldn't sweat the move too much. It's big, especially as a first timer, but it'll fall together with just a little effort.

If you're looking for a roommate situation in Pdx, you won't be able to really line anything up until you're here. They will want to evaluate your 'fit' in the shared space, and likewise, you will want to evaluate them.
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Old 05-27-2014, 12:37 PM
 
4,380 posts, read 4,441,169 times
Reputation: 4437
Quote:
Originally Posted by themostleastlikelyto View Post
Didn't realize people get so butthurt about the job thing...LOL I would never in my life move somewhere unless I had the means to.
It's not so much "butthurt" but a fair amount of the posts on this forum are "I'm young, I've never been to Portland but it's my dream to move there, I don't have a job lined up but I know I will land one the minute I step foot into town, and I only have a couple thousand dollars. Where should I live?"

Quote:
Originally Posted by Nell Plotts View Post
Keep in mind the fact that many landlords will not rent to someone without an offer of employment. When you hunt for housing have a letter in hand that says as much.
I won't. I'm also getting leery of renting to people who are new to town, don't know the area-and specifically the traffic patterns-and insist they won't mind the commute, only to find out that 12 mile commute can consistently take up to 45 minutes.
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Old 05-27-2014, 01:36 PM
 
Location: Dallas, Oregon & Sunsites Arizona
8,000 posts, read 17,293,324 times
Reputation: 2866
Quote:
Originally Posted by NWGirl74 View Post
... ...

a fair amount of the posts on this forum are "I'm young, I've never been to Portland but it's my dream to move there, I don't have a job lined up but I know I will land one the minute I step foot into town, and I only have a couple thousand dollars. Where should I live?"

... ...

new to town, don't know the area-and specifically the traffic patterns-and insist they won't mind the commute, only to find out that 12 mile commute can consistently take up to 45 minutes.
You couldn't have stated it better. It does get old after awhile.
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Old 05-27-2014, 02:00 PM
 
Location: Pacific NW
6,413 posts, read 12,114,326 times
Reputation: 5860
Quote:
Originally Posted by NWGirl74 View Post
It's not so much "butthurt" but a fair amount of the posts on this forum are "I'm young, I've never been to Portland but it's my dream to move there, I don't have a job lined up but I know I will land one the minute I step foot into town, and I only have a couple thousand dollars. Where should I live?"
But to be fair, it's much less often than the answer to any conceivable question asked is ... "You know it's hard to get a job."

Q: Is PSU a good school? A: "You know it's hard to get a job."

Q: I'm moving to Portland, what's a good neighborhood? A: "You know it's hard to get a job."

Q: Should I live in the Pearl? A: "You know it's hard to get a job."

Q: Does it really rain as much in Portland as they say? A: "You know it's hard to get a job."
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Old 05-27-2014, 02:25 PM
 
Location: Portland, Oregon
10,988 posts, read 20,510,182 times
Reputation: 8261
With a job many things are possible, without a job and with no local network to help you find one few things are possible.

Basically there is a high demand for rental housing from people who have jobs or have a written offer of employment in hand. Landlords do not need to rent to the unemployed and few will.

There is no value in discussing neighborhoods when the poster doesn't have a job.
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Old 05-27-2014, 03:51 PM
 
4,380 posts, read 4,441,169 times
Reputation: 4437
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nell Plotts View Post
With a job many things are possible, without a job and with no local network to help you find one few things are possible.

Basically there is a high demand for rental housing from people who have jobs or have a written offer of employment in hand. Landlords do not need to rent to the unemployed and few will.

There is no value in discussing neighborhoods when the poster doesn't have a job.
And it sounds like in this case, the OP can transfer with her company to an office/store in the NE, which does help narrow things down somewhat, though that is still a huge area.
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Old 05-27-2014, 04:46 PM
 
Location: Syracuse, New York
3,121 posts, read 3,086,577 times
Reputation: 2311
Quote:
Originally Posted by themostleastlikelyto View Post
Where would I live while "looking for a job". Even though like I said I don't really need to worry about that. Would I stay in a motel? Won't that be really expensive? Is it better to stay in a motel and look for a place or have one set up for when I arrive?

Sorry if I sound stupid for asking these questions, I have never done this before.

You can stay at a weekly rate motel. Some of them are almost reasonable and if you stay longer than four weeks, you're considered a resident and can get your "hotel tax" rebated on your fifth week.
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