Where to Live in Portland If I Do Not Want to Drive a Car? (Sunnyside: apartments)

[Beaucamp]

We are two active retired people interested in finding the right area of Portland or close surrounding area to live. We hate to drive so we are hoping to find a neighborhood on the light metrol line or close to it so that we can enjoy all that Portland has to offer without needing to drive a car. We will certainly have a car available but would like to live our lives without it as much as possible.We also want a pedestrian-friendly area so that we can walk to shops and restaurants. We would prefer to buy a house or townhouse with some backyard rather than an apartment. Our range is between 300-500K although we would prefer the lower number range. I know about the Pearl District but I think that area is more of an apartment area. Is that correct? I saw some info on the internet about Orenco Station. Does anyone have any advice on these areas? Is there another area we should consider? I would greatly appreciate any help from those who know Portland well. Thanks very much.
Beaucamp

[bobmulk]

The Pearl District is solely condos and apartments. It's a magnificent area, but if you're looking for something with some type of yard, it's probably not good for you.

I would suggest the Hollywood District. It's east of downtown Portland and the Max line runs right through there. It's an established neighborhood with local bars, shops, restaurants, etc. Housing stock is going to be older, but they're magnificent. You'll find Victorians, Cape Cods, Craftsman, just about everything. Some have been updated and upgraded and some haven't. It's right south of the Alameda/Fremont area which is quite affluent and expensive. For that I think Hollywood will remain a good area. Also I think it would be poised to provide a good return on your investment. And, even though you don't want to use your car a lot, I-84 is right there for when you do need to and it will get you to I-5 and I-205 very easily.

You also might want to check out North Portland. Now that Max is up there, you can easily get around the metro area and housing would be cheaper than Hollywood. North Portland also has some major employers like Adidas in the area. It's also starting to bloom with shops, restaurants, etc.

Good luck.

[hymalaia]

yea I was thinking Hollywood, more specifically the areas around it, ie Alameda, Grant Park, maybe Irvington and Laurelhurst though that can get pricey. Some parts of Rose City Park and Beaumont Wilshire, though careful as this far out can get relatively sprawly and car dependent. Try to be near Beaumont Village (on Fremont from 45th-50th ave) and/or the 60th ave MAX stop.

Southeast Portland has some options. Sunnyside/Richmond near Hawthorne Blvd would be great. No MAX though but good bus service and a lot in the immediate vicinity. I think the streetcar is planned to be built through here though this is a ways away. Mt Tabor might be ok in places but also can get somewhat sprawly. If you can handle some "urban pioneering" or just need to get more for your $$$ try Montavilla. It's fairly far out, but seems like it could be next in line to gentrify. The Stark St. strip off 82nd Ave has tons of potential. Bad news, it's off 82nd Ave. The MAX stop here has been controversial for safety reasons, but it sure is a quick ride downtown.
Go south along the Willamette and you hit Hosford Abernathy, Brooklyn and Sellwood in that order. All are more established. It gets nicer as you go south but less non-car accessable. I think a MAX is proposed to be built here within the next couple of years.

There is a very active section of North Mississippi I think in the Overlook neighborhood.

Every neighborhood mentioned has an abundance of nice, older homes. Some modest, some larger. Mostly beautiful. Good luck.

[Kathleenh54]

Hmmm, this information helps us too as we are also active retirees looking to relocate to a less car-dependent area. We are even in a similar price range. So, Hollywood is worth checking out? What is so special about the Pearl District? It looks very nice but I know nothing about it.

[EnricoV]

The Pearl, being the most recent area of planned gentrification, has lots of housing -- lofts and apartments, with good services -- great restaurants, shops, etc.

This website: Susan's Online Guide to Portland Oregon - The City of Roses has what I think are good statistics, etc., on various neighborhoods. And great links. Even though it's a realtor's site.

I think the Irvington/Lloyd Center area would be another area worth considering.

[Beaucamp]

Hi to bobmulk, hymalaia and Enrico V,
Thank you very much for all that great advice. You have certainly pointed me in the right direction and I can concentrate my efforts more effectively during my upcoming visit to Portland to check things out. Thank you again for all your help. Beaucamp

[oldtintype]

The Pearl does have some townhouse type places, but mostly buildings. One other thing to consider is the NW area above the Pearl--14th and up to pretty much 29th or so (particularly around the 29th and Raleigh area I've seen several buildings recently converted to garden condo type things) as there are many (large and small) buildings that have been turned into condos, townhomes, etc. There are also old Victorians turned into duplexes, etc. A friend of mine was looking and found some really nice things available in that area in the 300,000 range (though he was looking for one bedrooms). It seems like older buildings converted into a few condos are cheaper than the newer larger buildings as well. Most come with one parking space. The NW area has a lot of beautiful old homes that make really nice duplexes. I don't think the yards are large, more like a patio/small garden area but....

Lair hill is also close but I don't know that much about it, other than it's walking distance to downtown and close to OHSU.

There's also the SE edge of Goose Hollow that still has a number of small victorian homes--you'd be right by the MAX, blocks from downtown and about 10 buses on the corner. There was a small 2 bedroom victorian with a postage stamp sized yard down the block from us that went for about $400,000 last month.

Then, as other people have said, there are areas in NE and SE too, though I don't see how the Hollywood area is a good place for walking unless you're just hanging out in the neighborhood. Sandy Blvd. is huge and loud and as someone without a car who has walked over there a lot, it's not pleasant. I feel like I'm going to be run down and it's not a real walking area in comparison to places like the Pearl and NW/downtown. You do have access to Max, but only on one edge and otherwise there are just a few buses. It's a nice neighborhood though.

You'd also like Sellwood, but, only if you stayed in the neighborhood, as while it has great shops and is really nice to walk around the public transport OUT of Sellwood sucks.

I think it really depends if you want to be car free most of the time, or just occasionally. The NE areas would be fine if you'd just like to be in your area and walk around and then drive your car to go specific out of the neighborhood places. If you want to go out and about all over the city by public transport, the other areas (closer to downtown) are more what you're looking for. I say that as a person who doesn't own a car and goes all over the place by public transport. I do use Zip car (which used to be Flexcar) for when I go places that aren't easy to get to, but 90% of the time I walk or take Max, the bus or streetcar and it's very easy to do, almost effortless where I live (Goose Hollow), but when I go out to places like Hollywood etc. on the bus it's an effort in comparison. Just my experience and keep in mind that compared to many cities public transport here is amazing no matter WHERE you live in the city. So it's all relative I guess depending on where you're coming from. You can get around by public transport where ever you live, it just depends on how important it is to you to not have to drive regularly and what is an acceptable time frame to wait for buses, etc.

[Minervah]

I have lived in the Hawthorne district for years and can say the bus service is excellent. I have the Hawthorne bus two blocks away and the Belmont five blocks. I do not have a car nor do I find I need one.
I like the Hollywood district but the bus service there is not as frequent as Hawthorne and you have to be near Sandy Blvd the main street which does not have a lot of houses but new condos and larger rental buildings are being built rapidly.
One thing you need to know is that just about all Portland buses lead to downtown. There are only a few crosstown buses. Sometimes you have to go downtown to get to a different part of your own area just because there is no bus that goes from one side of the area to another.
The Pearl Dist is pretty expensive but you can walk to a lot of things, it has a streetcar and is near many buslines. But you do have to have money to live there.

You can live without a car in Sellwood but it is difficult. Bus service has been cut back due to lack of ridership and the way the routes go it takes quite awhile to get downtown unless you take an express bus. I can't speak from experience about the NE but it appears that there are some good buslines there.

[Beaucamp]

Hi Oldtintype and Minervah,
Thank you very much for your advice. I will check out the areas you recommend. Beaucamp