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Hello! My husband and I currently live in the Bay Area, CA, and we are looking to move within the next year to another state. We just can't put down roots here, the housing is beyond too expensive, and we want our kids (ages 1 & 4) to be able to go to a good school and live in a nice home in a safe neighborhood. We make a decent combined income and we both work from home permanently (a very recent development). My husband's company has limited us to certain states for weird tax reasons, and of those states, we have picked OR, WA, NY and MA to investigate. My husband has family in both the Northeast and PNW, and I have family in LA, but you couldn't pay me to move back to LA.
We are looking for a place that is near a major city, but has nice safe suburbs and good school districts. My concern for both areas is the weather. I actually hate California weather. It never rains and it's summer for six months a year, even in the bay area. Every year there are massive explosive fires and we literally never know when our house will burn down. I would love "seasons", I think, but...I've actually never experienced a real winter. I'm afraid of what it will be like. I also really enjoy the sun (but not the heat) and don't know how I would fare in a predominantly "gloomy" environment like the PNW. Additionally, the drug/homelessness issues of the PNW are a concern of mine, since we have kids. We are taking trips to all these locations this year (already went to OR and headed to WA next month, then NE in the fall), and hope to make a decision by spring '22. Has anyone lived in either of these regions and can shed any light on what your experience has been like? Or good neighborhoods we should look at? Bonus points if you have also lived in CA and can speak to the transition itself.
Greater Boston, Greater New York both seem to fit the bill.
Housing is a bit more expensive in Greater Boston but taxes are quite a bit higher in Greater New York. Schools are equally top notch in both, but MA ranks higher than NY. The Greater Boston area has better summers, Greater New York has better winters. Both have four seasons. Both have access to beaches, mountains and good day trips; Boston has more access to these amenities. New York area is more cosmopolitan and far more lively with a much wider array of theatres, amusement and things to do/restaurants. Boston is better for families, New York is far better for singles/young people. New York has a better transit system, Bostons is subpar and old. Boston is easier to access via car, granted its smaller. The Greater Boston Area has better/more parks and greenery while The City of New York has far better city parks. Both have nearby hiking and both are relatively sunny for what its worth. I went to college in the snowiest city in the contiguous 48 in Upstate NY… so I find both of their winters to be fine (lol). Finally, New York has more interesting architecture but Boston is building way more per capita and cool stuff is starting to come.
To give you a better assessment, whats most important to you? Any numbers we could have (budgeting, ideal expenses, limit on commute times)?
Take a trip to both and spend 4 days around each.
To me, Ive loved in both. I would raise a family in Boston, but im young and single so i like NYC area better right now. I think its easier to meet people in NYC if thats important to you.
Oh, and neither city is rude. Thats a gross over exaggeration. The people in both ny and ma are awesome.
Last edited by masssachoicetts; 06-18-2021 at 05:44 PM..
What kind of neighborhood are you looking for and what is your budget?
Also, when you say a "major city", are you looking for something similar to the Bay Area or an area of a decent size? I ask this because you may be able to get quite a bit in terms of housing, depending on what parts of these states you are open to.
Just to throw an area out there, the Albany-Schenectady-Troy area is a more affordable, but sizable area(about 1.2 million in the CSA) that allows you to get to NYC and Boston in about 2 and a half hours by car. There is train access into NYC from there as well. Let alone the access to mountains, lakes and other amenities nearby. Some of these things can be accessed via train/bus & transit as well(i.e.-Lake George). Good school districts in the area that come to mind are Niskayuna, North Colonie, Shenendehowa in Clifton Park, Guilderland, Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake and Bethlehem, among others. Some of this may come down to other factors that you are looking for though.
I just recently moved to Portland and am really enjoying it. I find that Oregon and just the Pacific Northwest in general has so much to offer. You have some of the most stunning scenery in the lower 48, moderate weather, generally low crime communities, and nice cities with lots of amenities. Oregon, in particular, is quite affordable, for the West Coast.
Homelessness is probably the biggest problem facing this region, but it is very location dependent. I'm just speaking for Portland here, but there are some areas where homelessness is really bad (downtown, Chinatown, Laurelhurst Park, etc...) and some areas where it is practically non-existent. If you live in suburbs like Beaverton, Happy Valley, Hillsboro, and Lake Oswego, rarely will you have to deal with the drug/homeless problem in your neighborhood. In city limits, there are very clean and safe areas like the West Hills, a lot of Inner Southeast (Ladd's Addition, Buckwood), and the Pearl District.
Wildfires can definitely be a concern here but from what I understand, the awful out-of-control fires last year were unusual (though not unprecedented).
Gloomy weather is definitely a thing here and it varies individually how people will react to it. So far, I don't mind it so much. I think the fact that Oregon is really beautiful even when it's grey out makes it mentally easier to handle. Winters in the eastern United States suck because everything dies and it just looks kind of ugly. The PNW is stunning year round.
I've lived in NYC for over a dozen years and have now been in western Washington for over 5. I prefer it out here personally as it's cheaper (rent, utilities, car insurance all cheaper) and I prefer the weather (I don't miss the hot humid summers of the east coast nor shoveling snow) and scenery. If you like Outdoorsy stuff like hiking and such you will miss the scenery of the west coast I imagine. Also, I find the vibe and people to be way more chill out here compared to NYC and Mass (I'm originally from New England so I'm familiar with it). I think the gloom is somewhat overrated out here. Summers are very much dry and sunny like the rest of the coast. The only really gloomy part of year is winter tbh. Also places like Eugene, OR have similar sunshine hours as NYC and Mass (~1500 hrs per year) so somewhere in southern Oregon would work if Wa has too little.
I prefer it out here personally as it's cheaper (rent, utilities, car insurance all cheaper
The big difference is taxes. You’ll save ~4% on income tax in WA, plus another 1% + on property tax. Of course, land will be more expensive than in NE, but that becomes an asset.
Thank you for this super detailed response! I think we are considering the Boston suburbs strongly, since MA has such great schools. I don't mind it being smaller and old. I did my time in a big city and it doesn't do much for me anymore. Being near a city is more for exposing the kids to culture, diversity, education, museums, etc. I did visit Boston once very briefly but I really enjoyed it. I enjoy NYC as well though. I am happy to learn folks in the NE aren't as rude as rumor has it! My hubby is from PA and he's so nice and polite, almost annoyingly so!
Quote:
Originally Posted by masssachoicetts
To give you a better assessment, whats most important to you? Any numbers we could have (budgeting, ideal expenses, limit on commute times)
I think what's most important to me is that we have a comfortable property, and live in a community that we are all happy and thriving in. Also an area where my husband and I can relate to folks, not too rednecky or too glamorous. We will rent first, where ever we go, but eventually we want a SFH with about .5-1 acre, in a decent school district. We can spend around 750k max. Commute times not important since we work from home, but within an hour from a major city is ideal. Currently we're about 40 minutes from San Francisco and that's been a lot of fun for us.
What kind of neighborhood are you looking for and what is your budget?
Also, when you say a "major city", are you looking for something similar to the Bay Area or an area of a decent size?
I think around the size of Portland or Seattle would be totally fine. Just a hub that is diverse and provides some cultural and educational opportunities, plus shopping and maybe an airport. We actually visited Albany once and it was very quaint and cute but we wouldn't move there. Plus I think we're trying to look in more central NY around the Hudson river area, although we did hear good things about Saratoga Springs. I will check out the districts you mentioned, thank you for that!!!
We actually just came back from visiting Eugene and Portland a couple weeks ago and we really enjoyed ourselves there, especially in Eugene. We did check out all the suburbs you mentioned except for Happy Valley. We really liked Lake Oswego but it was so posh and a little too white bread for us. Honestly if it werent for the constant rain/gloom, moving to the PNW would be a no brainer. I actually love rain but I've never experienced it for more than a few days a time so I just don't know what I can tolerate. Also my MIL lives in Bellingham and my husband hates the weather there..
PS: Sorry if I'm replying to these wrong, this is my first time on this forum!
The big difference is taxes. You’ll save ~4% on income tax in WA, plus another 1% + on property tax. Of course, land will be more expensive than in NE, but that becomes an asset.
Yes we're aware of the tax benefits of the PNW, and the drawback about the land...it's one of the things we do like about the NE is the abundance of land. It was so weird when I went to Oregon and didn't pay tax though! And gas was over $1 cheaper than in CA, it was awesome!
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My hubby is from PA and he's so nice and polite, almost annoyingly so!
