Will Portland be the right move?? (how much, houses, job market)

[fam421]

We are looking to move out of the southwest. Too hot and the summers really wear on you especially if you have young children. My husband and I grew up in Northern California, then moved to Southwest after college.

Portland sounds great to us for the most part. We are use to the rain from living in No. Cal., but how much rain are we talking. 4 months of no sunshine or do you get rain a few rain days, then the sun comes out for a day then more rain. Just trying to get a good feel for the rain that everyone talks about.

Between my husband and I we are between the ages of 39 and 43. Are we too old for Portland?? I've heard several people say it is hard to find a job if you are over the age of 35. I can work in couple of field one being Heathcare, the other Sales. My husband Advertising on the Creative side (Creative Director) or Marketing.

We are eco-friendly, but I would not say too far to the left. We are more on the conservative side. I know Oregon is very Liberal, but we are really in the middle with alot of our politcal views. We do not impose our views on others and don't wish others to impose their views on us. I heard sometime this can be problem in Portland.

We are practicing Catholics. I have also heard Oregon is down on Religion. But I have notice there are a lot of Catholic schools and churches. So I thought was positive for us.

We have 2 children 7 and 5. They are very active in sports and love bike riding and playing with neighbor kids. Schools are important but we will probably send them to private schools.

We love the green outdoors. We love to bike, hike, and ski. We love the ocean. My husband loves to fish. We have two dogs which we like to include in our busy lives.

Do it sound like Portland would be the right move for us?? We will be visiting a few times over the next 6 months to see for ourselves, but I also like
to hear from those who live there what there thoughts are.......

Looking forward to hearing from you all

Thanks for your time

[BLAZER PROPHET]

Originally Posted by fam421

We are looking to move out of the southwest. Too hot and the summers really wear on you especially if you have young children. My husband and I grew up in Northern California, then moved to Southwest after college.

Portland sounds great to us for the most part. We are use to the rain from living in No. Cal., but how much rain are we talking. 4 months of no sunshine or do you get rain a few rain days, then the sun comes out for a day then more rain. Just trying to get a good feel for the rain that everyone talks about.

Between my husband and I we are between the ages of 39 and 43. Are we too old for Portland?? I've heard several people say it is hard to find a job if you are over the age of 35. I can work in couple of field one being Heathcare, the other Sales. My husband Advertising on the Creative side (Creative Director) or Marketing.

We are eco-friendly, but I would not say too far to the left. We are more on the conservative side. I know Oregon is very Liberal, but we are really in the middle with alot of our politcal views. We do not impose our views on others and don't wish others to impose their views on us. I heard sometime this can be problem in Portland.

We are practicing Catholics. I have also heard Oregon is down on Religion. But I have notice there are a lot of Catholic schools and churches. So I thought was positive for us.

We have 2 children 7 and 5. They are very active in sports and love bike riding and playing with neighbor kids. Schools are important but we will probably send them to private schools.

We love the green outdoors. We love to bike, hike, and ski. We love the ocean. My husband loves to fish. We have two dogs which we like to include in our busy lives.

Do it sound like Portland would be the right move for us?? We will be visiting a few times over the next 6 months to see for ourselves, but I also like
to hear from those who live there what there thoughts are.......

Looking forward to hearing from you all

Thanks for your time

Wow. In all honesty I'm not so sure Portland would be the most comfortable place for you. It is an aggressive elitist liberal town. And you are correct that any form of Christianity is a difficult place to be. Also, I can guarantee you northern California will not prepare you for our rain.

On the other hand, you may want to live in east Vancouver, WA (moderate political climate and Chirstianity is seen as a plus. The houses are cheaper, the schools better... and work in Portland. It will mean a commute, but probably 8-15 miles.

[fam421]

Blazer Prophet, thank you so much for your very honest reply.

Vancouver Wa is not a town we are interested. We are originally from the SF Bay area. We love culture, history and old homes. From what I've seen and read on Vancouver WA. It is very strip mallish with a lot of new track homes not sure that that part of it would appeal to us. But thanks for the suggestion and I will try to get more info. on it.

I'm hoping to get more replies from people who are religous in the Portland area possilbly get their take on it.

Thanks again. It's a good life.....and looking forward to hearing from everyone.

[Redrover]

I'm not sure that I am the best person to comment on your issues but I'm gonna anyway. I see two negative issues in your story: the amount of rain and the job market. Read some of the other threads on here about the preponderance of gray and gloomy days and be brutally honest with yourselves as to how you think you could adjust. The other issue is the availability of jobs. Portland has lots of low-paying service jobs but it will likely be a real challenge for you and your husband to find jobs paying what you are accustomed to. I have a friend that moved up from Houston late last summer and she still has not found a job in corporate recruiting - fortunately she is still able to keep working at home, servicing former and even new clients from her previous life.

As for some of your other concerns, with a family you are more likely to live in one of the suburbs of Portland and you will probably find the politics a bit more conservative than Portland proper. And if you find a Catholic church in your neighborhood, it will have other parishoners that share your beliefs and you can get involved in parish activities which will give you and your kids a more "birds of a feather" feeling, especially if you send them to parochial school. As for the outdoor activities that your family enjoys, you will again have multiple opportunities to engage in these activities with kindred spirits. Porland is known for its outdoor lifestyle.

So I would say to you, if you are really serious about Portland, then first see if you can find viable employment for one or both of you. If you are successful then all the rest will fall into place and you will love Portland.

[John Shaft]

Consider the west side of the metro area, too. Maybe it will feel too "suburby" but you can always head into town for cultural events and still have neighbors that will more likely be similarly to you from a socio-political standpoint.

As a "moderate" you will be right-leaning in Portland.

[picnicnoir]

Catholics are alive and living well in Portland. No worries about finding a job, and it is a great place to raise your family. Washington County has great parish life and you will feel so welcome. The Catholic Schools are great here and the kids love their friends and school.
Now, I hope i didn't find you too late to talk about the gray oppresive weather. As the autumn is beautiful, the crisp cool days and early winter is fun for a few years, but once you realize the dark gray that is coming, sometimes for months on end you (not so much the kids) will dread Jan through sometimes June. I am from Orange County so it was fun for 4 years but family moved here as well and we cannot figure out how to escape after 10 years. The summer will wear on you here as well. It goes from damp and cold to blast furnace heat that you are not ready for or escape from. Be sure you get air conditioning. It is a state of mind, but it is very different here, and I would suggest anyone moving here from So Cal, thank your lucky stars and never take California for granted as Oregon is wonderful for those who have never known, warmth, sun, light, being able to move about without a raincoat, mud. It is just not a life for those who have known day to day living in an environment of going to the beach for some lovely warm breezes, etc. there is a lot of poverty here and just dark negative energy.

Originally Posted by fam421

We are looking to move out of the southwest. Too hot and the summers really wear on you especially if you have young children. My husband and I grew up in Northern California, then moved to Southwest after college.

Portland sounds great to us for the most part. We are use to the rain from living in No. Cal., but how much rain are we talking. 4 months of no sunshine or do you get rain a few rain days, then the sun comes out for a day then more rain. Just trying to get a good feel for the rain that everyone talks about.

Between my husband and I we are between the ages of 39 and 43. Are we too old for Portland?? I've heard several people say it is hard to find a job if you are over the age of 35. I can work in couple of field one being Heathcare, the other Sales. My husband Advertising on the Creative side (Creative Director) or Marketing.

We are eco-friendly, but I would not say too far to the left. We are more on the conservative side. I know Oregon is very Liberal, but we are really in the middle with alot of our politcal views. We do not impose our views on others and don't wish others to impose their views on us. I heard sometime this can be problem in Portland.

We are practicing Catholics. I have also heard Oregon is down on Religion. But I have notice there are a lot of Catholic schools and churches. So I thought was positive for us.

We have 2 children 7 and 5. They are very active in sports and love bike riding and playing with neighbor kids. Schools are important but we will probably send them to private schools.

We love the green outdoors. We love to bike, hike, and ski. We love the ocean. My husband loves to fish. We have two dogs which we like to include in our busy lives.

Do it sound like Portland would be the right move for us?? We will be visiting a few times over the next 6 months to see for ourselves, but I also like
to hear from those who live there what there thoughts are.......

Looking forward to hearing from you all

Thanks for your time

[running-girl]

We absolutely love Portland, but after 8 years here we are moving to Seattle because of the job market. My husband also works in Advertising/Marketing but as an Advertising Director. Two companies he worked for in Portland (one client side, and the other agency side) had massive layoffs in the last five years that affected us. The job market has been extremely frustrating here--it is a small market, and they don't want to pay much, and due to layoffs with some large companies the market is saturated with marketing/advertising people. Once we cast our nets wider, and started looking in Seattle, we were shocked at how much more opportunity there was up there and how much more the jobs paid.

We were very resistant to moving from Portland because we LOVE LOVE LOVE Portland, but we have seen many of dh's former co-workers leave for larger cities, and now we are too.

[Leisesturm]

I think Portland's reputation for being particularly unwilling to provide jobs and pay a fair wage to workers is no more or less deserved than Seattle's. Seattle has just enough more job seekers to make the likelihood of finding work there an even bet with Portland. Seattle will also take just enough more from the 10% higher wage in cost of living increase to make that a neutralize any net gain. If I really loved NYC I would stay here no matter what the cost but even though I will probably take a 30% pay cut to move to Portland the Portland cost of living is 1/2 of NYC's. Its actually a net gain the way I look at it. I am not so daft as to tell someone that they should stay somewhere where they can't find a job but I really think that it comes down to the particular field of work and I wouldn't beieve that it is actually 'better' somewhere else until I actually have secured a job in that new place.

H

[running-girl]

Actually, what we found was that the employers in the advertising industry (which is the industry of the original poster's husband) would pay almost double what the companies in Portland were offering my husband. In less than two months of searching in Seattle he had two offers for almost twice the pay any Portland agency would pay, with all relocation costs covered. The increased pay and relocation costs more than offset the 10% cost of living increase.

We know a lot of people in marketing and advertising in Portland. Dh is heavily networked. And yet the Portland job search was incredibly discouraging for us, mostly because the Portland market is VERY saturated with Marketing and Advertising professionals. We know many very talented people in his industry who took huge pay cuts because they had to take ANY job, or they are still out of work in Portland. Other industries may be different, but this has been our experience with ad/mktg here.

[fam421]

Wow, Now I'm really depressed. Thanks for everyone's honest opinion.
Looks like it will probably be the S.F. Bay Area where the housing unaffordable. But I guess we will manage. Really is too bad. We always saw our family living in Portland. Bummer.
Thanks Again.