Another CA transplant: Lake Oswego or SE Portland? (Redwood, Burns: rent, house)

[oldtintype]

What area do you live in now in the Bay Area? What areas would you like to live in? SE Portland and Lake Oswego are totally different places so it's kind of hard to give you advice. It's like saying Walnut Creek or Berkeley. SE Portland is also really different neighborhood by neighborhood. What are you looking for in a neighborhood? What is your budget?

[christiner81]

Originally Posted by oldtintype

What area do you live in now in the Bay Area? What areas would you like to live in? SE Portland and Lake Oswego are totally different places so it's kind of hard to give you advice. It's like saying Walnut Creek or Berkeley. SE Portland is also really different neighborhood by neighborhood. What are you looking for in a neighborhood? What is your budget?

This

[Yankeemama]

Yes, OP, I, like OldinType am from S.F. originally and I find her comparison of L.O. and S.E. Portland to Berkeley and Walnut Creek pretty accurate. I think you could replace W.C. with Lafayette or Black Hawk but you get the point. I do want to say that worrying about being from CA in Oregon is a waste of time. I am a San Franciscan and Californian who has been a transplant in other cities, states, countries and I never apologize for being born in one of the most beautiful, wonderful places in the world. If someone I meet here on Oregon, usually another transplant BTW, has some hatred for all Californians then, ok, whatever. Most born and raised Oregonians that I have met haven't been obsessed over my home state. You will meet a ton of idiots that will try to portray Portland as some utopian paradise that meets a narrow set of criteria and curiously, these people tend to be transplants in my experience. Good luck!

[Nell Plotts]

Actually there are many areas in NW Portland that are great for families, west of NW 25th is almost exclusively single family dwellings. Friendly House has great activities for young children and provides after school care; Chapman, West Sylvan and Lincoln High School are hard to beat. The housing inventory is 'mature', almost all predating WWII, but well loved. Similarly, look at the Ainsworth enrollment area.

I prefer West Linn over Lake Oswego if you are looking for a suburban community.

None of the neighborhoods I mentioned are inexpensive by Portland standards. If you are currently a home owner in the Bay Area you should be able to find more for less here. Like anywhere else you can spend as much as you like. Heck, I was shocked when my DD spent 1.5 for a fixer in your area 10 years ago.

[oldtintype]

If you can afford it--I agree--the area Nell mentioned in NW is great.

[pandaundercover]

I've been in Lake Oswego for almost a year now and I love it. It does have the feel of an older generation community. The people here LOVE this town, are politically active, and I've found at least 95% of the homes in the entire city are well kept (at least externally). I don't think it really matters if it's a new home or older home, they don't look cookie cutter like you'd find in a lot of suburbs in CA (if that matters to ya). LO is undergoing some sewer replacements in Mtn Park area, but so far, it hasn't been a big deal, and ends in a few mths. While people do say, "live here if you can afford it," it's not that much more pricier than any of the other cities south or west of Portland (Beaverton, Tualatin, Hillsboro). I've seen a decent amount of homes in the mid 200ks around here; of course, they go fast though. But if you're looking in the 300-400-500ks, lots of great options out here. Def recommend the Mtn Park area of the city; you can score some great views of St Helens and Mt Hood up here; really makes it worth it. As well as a membership to the recreation center (gym, pool, tennis, kids center, etc), that is part of the HoA.

That's my input!

[UrbanAdventurer]

SE Portland and Lake Oswego pretty much two entirely different worlds. Odd for someone to be considering one or the other unless it was strictly for proximity to work.

[dperry9]

Originally Posted by UrbanAdventurer

SE Portland and Lake Oswego pretty much two entirely different worlds. Odd for someone to be considering one or the other unless it was strictly for proximity to work.

Yea, I was a little puzzled by this lumping too.

As Nell pointed out, there are many, many options for a couple in their 40's with kids. I would suggest SW well before suggesting SE (West Slope, Bridlemile, West Haven-Sylvan, and the area around Gabriel Park are all very nice areas with lots of trees and a sense of isolation from the city if you want that).

Lake Oswego is a nice mixture of upper-middle income housing and, to the extent that Oregon has anything like the Hamptons, you could call it Oregon's Hamptons (mostly around the lake which is strangely called Oswego Lake, not Lake Oswego).

If you want a suburb and can afford it, for your stated situation I think you would be very happy in Lake Oswego.

Have a qualified inspector look at any house you are considering buying, old or new. And yea, I agree you should be wary of newer houses but that's just my gut instinct based on how cheap they look. I'm not technically qualified to say for sure.

[fuzzstell]

Hello to everyone above! Thank you all so much for the feedback. I've been away from the forum because of my infant sucking up all my time and because I did take a quick trip up to tour around some of the areas. Didn't see a ton of area but saw a bit: Eastmoreland, Lake O and West Linn. Someone wondered why this grouping of areas. The reason is simply because I have acquaintances who live in each so they've told me to check them out. I have since also been told to check out St. John's area.

Someone else above asked where we're coming from in the Bay Area -- San Mateo. We're in need of a larger home and we're just priced out of the area. Sad but true. It's booming down here and the prices for a tiny 3 bedroom are well over a million now. That's not reasonable if you don't have the salary to match it.

I liked the look and feel of Eastmoreland but fear the old homes won't be in our price range once factoring in updates which seems would be closer to the 800K mark and up.

Lake O seemed a lot like Marin to me in landscape (for those of you familiar with CA). I was told Westlake is a good started spot in Lake O. Live there for a few years and then get a feel for where we'd really like to be. We might take that a step further and rent for 6 months or so. This could give us a the luxury of just trolling different towns and really getting a first hand feel for the areas.

Looks like there's a pretty strong medical facility up in Portland. Someone told me they are the next Mayo clinic. ?

Also told that the economy isn't as bad a typically reported. There are jobs to be had up there. A lot of start ups are up there looking for talent. Hopefully this is true.

Traffic was a nightmare getting back to the airport...

I was also informed of the high amounts of radon in the area. That's a topic for another thread but it does freak me out!

[Nell Plotts]

I was not aware that there are high amounts of radon in the area. Here is a link from an article in the Oregonian on that subject New radon numbers highlight Portland-area health risks | OregonLive.com

You can make radon testing and mitigation a part of any offer on a home. For all I know you can carry a testing device in your purse when looking at a house.

Yes, we have several highly regarded health care facilities in Portland metro.

The best way to get to the airport is on the MAX (our light rail). If your husband will likely be flying out regularly you may want to take that into consideration.