Camas info please (Vancouver, Battle Ground, Hockinson: rent, homes, neighborhood)

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by USDefault

Mostly laid back, and mostly quiet. Camas, and really Vancouver, is quite beautiful, especially if you have views of the Columbia River, or the Gorge, or Mt. Hood, and you can have all three if you want. On clear days if you are further north and situated right, you can even see Mt. St. Helens.

You will like it here. The schools are excellent. The parents are involved. Southern Washington has a lot going for it, including still-sane housing prices (but going up), no income tax (huge), some of the lowest electricity rates in the United States, relatively cheap gas prices, property taxes much less than most East Coast enclaves.

Another thing I like about Camas (and really anywhere in Vancouver): proximity to Portland, OR. I consider this a huge plus. Arguably the greatest food and restaurant scene in the United States (and I've been to them all, coast to coast and places in-between). No sales tax in Oregon, it's really fantastic if you are buying expensive things like computers, large clothes shopping trips, even furniture and appliances if you can swing delivery. And medical care, if you need it, is excellent in Portland, though there is good care available in Vancouver as well.

If you avoid rush hour, from Camas you can be in downtown Portland in fifteen minutes, and you can be at the Portland airport in around twelve minutes (I've done it) depending on how close you are to the 14 and the 205. Once again, I've been to all the major U.S. airports in the U.S. many times. JFK and LAX are the worst. PDX, one of the best. Tons of flights anywhere you want to go, the prices are reasonable, and the flights generally are on time.

So I really like Vancouver, and I like Camas quite a bit. You will too. And having Portland so close is an enormous benefit. It's becoming more and more the case that Southern Washington and the greater Portland area is seen as an economic and residential metropolitan area. The TV news covers both, many Oregon and Portland radio stations purposefully broadcast into Southern Washington (just yesterday OPB, the NPR public radio affiliate, was mentioning how they are seeking donations from Vancouver residents and consider Southern Washington part of their listening audience). Because of available land, water, cheap electricity, the natural resources the mighty Columbia River provides, this area is going to continue to grow. Right now you have all sorts of energy, business, and entertainment enterprises seeking to set up shop on both sides of the Columbia, including energy transpo and storage, property developments, restaurant and other buildouts, etc. etc. The major stumbling block is rush-hour traffic; it's a huge problem on the 5 with so damn many trucks, SUVs and cars. There needs to be a serious buildout to accommodate all the people and business flowing up and down the corridors.

I think you are exaggerating the travel times just a bit. Starting from say the Deer Creek neighborhood which is about as close to the corner of 14 and 192nd as one can be in Camas (most neighborhoods are farther away) one gets the following distances and drive times according to Google on a a Sunday morning at 9 am with no traffic:

To downtown (Pioneer Courthouse Square): 18.6 miles and 25 minutes
To PDX: 10.7 miles and 14 minutes.

I would agree that PDX is the nicest airport in the US that I have been to, and I've been to pretty much every major airport in the US. PDX is especially nice for picking up people because most the restaurants and coffee shops are in the main lobby area outside the secure area so you can sit down and have coffee and read using their free WiFi while you wait for arrivals.

[Jane917]

Originally Posted by texasdiver

I think you are exaggerating the travel times just a bit. Starting from say the Deer Creek neighborhood which is about as close to the corner of 14 and 192nd as one can be in Camas (most neighborhoods are farther away) one gets the following distances and drive times according to Google on a a Sunday morning at 9 am with no traffic:

To downtown (Pioneer Courthouse Square): 18.6 miles and 25 minutes
To PDX: 10.7 miles and 14 minutes.

I have discovered that driving time to "being there" and actual time of driving plus finding parking are two different estimates. I have no trouble getting downtown from Ridgefield in non-commute times, but actually finding a parking place adds quite a bit of time. As I do this more often and get familiar with where my destination is versus where the nearest parking lot is, I expect it will be smoother. Travel time to the PDX and parking is a much simpler matter.

[StealthRabbit]

Parking in downtown area of any city is problematic if you go mid-week and mid-day.

I typically go to Portland for concerts and events that are neither mid-day or mid week. I do venture to the 'Park Blocks' and Farmers Market on weds at noon, but I have my favorite streets that typically have a spot for me.

Within a few months you can learn best routes in and out of the city to save you time. i usually do a counter clockwise loop, so I can get quickly to area near Art Museum / Mult Library / Powell Books by one ez exit off I-405, Then exit the city to the NW of PSU back onto I-405 South, turning to I-5 northbound, (best view of lighted bridges) then take I-84 out of city. (Or I-5 if it is after 9 PM / no traffic northbound).

I am east of Camas on SR 14 by 8 miles, and my travel times are 20min to PDX and 30 min to Dwtn Portland.

When living near Ross BPA (I-5 / north Vancouver) it was 20 min to PDX and 10 min to Dwtn (barring traffic burdens / accidents).

I fly several times / month for the last 20 yrs, so I tend to squeeze my airport arrivals to be the last person on the plane before they shut the door. Vancouver / Camas Traffic is seldolm an issue, tho is significantly worse since Cascade Station opened. Now I book my flights so I can get a $0.99 hot breakfast at IKEA before departure. (That takes me 22 min, unless I get behind grandparents taking their tribe to breakfast...they are in no hurry...)

[ritamiller9]

Thank you all so much. I have yet to hear anything super negative about Camas. We can't wait to visit in August! Hoping we love it in person! I really want to start enjoying the wonderful outdoor recreation that the Pacific Northwest has to offer!

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by ritamiller9

Thank you all so much. I have yet to hear anything super negative about Camas. ...!

OK... Super negative.... (Just for your record)
Don't choose Camas to own income property... Taxes, utility rates, ... city liens your million dollar property if ONE of your renters are late on a $10 trash payment.

Don't build a new home or commercial in Camas. They have the highest impact fees in SWWA. Really high if you need to do a traffic study...$100,000+ BEFORE permits...

Permits.... Better get one for everything.

Chinese food.... Hope you can substitute Thai.

Owning a small business... Not adequate parking to support needed traffic (in downtown area). City has biffed several great parking offers from the mill and other major businesses.

Swimming.... If you are a lap swimmer, you must join an expensive private club, or drive to Portland, Beaverton, or Hood River for a public indoor 50m pool.

Swimming deprived...for 33 yrs

[USDefault]

Originally Posted by texasdiver

I think you are exaggerating the travel times just a bit.

Nope. Just drove them both last weekend, after my post. My times were very accurate. In fact we got to both downtown and PDX even quicker. The online mapping services are always slower, in part because people drive faster than any of the online mapping services calculate. No one is doing sixty on Oregon or Washington freeways. Anyway, my last response on the matter, a difference of a couple minutes isn't worth the electrons.

[ritamiller9]

Thank you StealthRabbit! The only one of those negatives that could possibly apply to us is the building a new house thing. We are thinking we may rent for a year when we first get out there and figure out if we want to buy an existing home and maybe do some remodeling, or buy some land and build new. We have never built, so I'm not familiar with all the details. Can you or anyone else elaborate on that? Thanks!

[texasdiver]

Originally Posted by ritamiller9

Thank you StealthRabbit! The only one of those negatives that could possibly apply to us is the building a new house thing. We are thinking we may rent for a year when we first get out there and figure out if we want to buy an existing home and maybe do some remodeling, or buy some land and build new. We have never built, so I'm not familiar with all the details. Can you or anyone else elaborate on that? Thanks!

Lots in Camas are getting smaller and smaller as developers keep trying to squeeze more and more houses into each acre. The newest subdivisions seem to have postage stamp lots. Older established subdivisions have much larger and nicer lots for the most part. Here is an aerial view of the newest Lennar subdivision called Hills at Round Lake so you can see what I mean about tiny lots and this is the kind of thing you are mostly going to find if you want new construction unless you go way out in the country and find a new house on acreage. After going through the home shopping process ourselves recently we found we liked the existing established neighborhoods much more than any of the new stuff, even if it meant remodeling.

[hml1976]

Texasdiver and I feel the same about most of the new developments in Camas. I'd much rather have a yard and remodel than a brand new house with no lot. And Stealth is also right, your taxes will be significantly lower.

That said if you have a large budget check out The Parklands development near Camas Meadows, they are supposed to have a 15000 ft lot minimum, no pricing yet but I'd guess 800-1mil. Pricey but should be nicer than most.

[ritamiller9]

I think when we look we are looking for 2-5 acres. We are currently in a neighborhood with a strict HOA and postage stamp size lots. I'm over it and want some space and privacy between us and neighbors. And I want plenty of space to garden and have chickens. I believe we would like the Fern Prairie area? I saw lots there that were 5 acres? Again, I won't know for sure until I see it all in person but I think we want to be slightly more rural.