Cost of living in Denver?

[Count David]

Originally Posted by BBurn

Seattle is 90 minutes away.

How fast are you driving?


I've always found people in Portland to be great, if not a little off. I'm still mostly trying to crack the people here.....

[Teckeeee]

The decade I spent in Denver taught me that jobs don't pay comparable to COL. A comparable 1 bedroom to where you are at now in Denver Metro about $1200. Having done sw, like you, we both know it's low pay, and you should Google search how bad social services agencies are in CO, horrible. The Rocky Mountain News did a piece in 2012? search it.

Portland would be a better fit IMO.

[ktqtp]

Originally Posted by BBurn

PDX traffic can be bad, especially if you're coming in on Hwy 26 (I think; it's the one that comes in from Beaverton, goes through a tunnel before entering PDX). That highway is a nightmare. 405 can also suck badly. Traffic here in Denver is terrible any time between 7-9am and 4-6pm.

Hwy 26 is correct, and leading up to the tunnel to downtown Portland is where it starts getting really bad. Immediately after you pass through the tunnel you have the option to stay on 26 (go downtown) or exit onto 405 - the merge onto 405 is hands down the worst traffic spot in Portland, with the Interstate going across the river (to/from Vancouver) being a close 2nd (or who knows, Interstate might be worse).

Luckily the MAX parallels hwy 26.

[BBurn]

Originally Posted by David Aguilar

How fast are you driving?


I've always found people in Portland to be great, if not a little off. I'm still mostly trying to crack the people here.....

Just fast enough

It's not that people are better in one place than the other. It's just...different. I was single for most of my time in PDX and knew nobody when I moved there. I found it easier to go up to people and chat at bars, events, whatever, than I did once I moved back to Denver. In general, I found PDX people to be more outgoing and willing to chat it up with people they didn't know. To me, Denver falls somewhere in the middle of the friendliness scale (opinions will differ wildly on this).

Summary: I would prefer Portland to Denver if not for the weather and the fact that most of my friends and family are here.

[Jimrob1]

Originally Posted by BBurn

Just fast enough

It's not that people are better in one place than the other. It's just...different. I was single for most of my time in PDX and knew nobody when I moved there. I found it easier to go up to people and chat at bars, events, whatever, than I did once I moved back to Denver. In general, I found PDX people to be more outgoing and willing to chat it up with people they didn't know. To me, Denver falls somewhere in the middle of the friendliness scale (opinions will differ wildly on this).

Summary: I would prefer Portland to Denver if not for the weather and the fact that most of my friends and family are here.

I agree people can appear to be different from place to place. In many instances I suppose they are for whatever reasons I'm not sure. As far as Portland goes. I found nice people and not so nice like anywhere. The same as one could find in Denver. I did find many in Portland to come across as being depressed, and as having had a hard life. Certainly not everyone, but enough of the population for it to really show. The amount of drugs in that small big city alarmed me, and the amount of people using them in public definitely turned me off. I worked at the airport and became increasingly nervous about riding the Max train late at night, from the airport to the Union Station, and then walking to my apt in the Pearl District. Luckily I was able to change to a day shift.

Just today I saw on the news that the Oregon Governor saved a person's life. Someone drugged out on the street in downtown Portland. He was able to take care of the overdose or whatever was going on. Of course he is also a Physician thankfully. It's a shame the city can't do a better job with the drugs in Portland. Every place has them, but Portland has a specific problem that doesn't get addressed.

[BBurn]

Originally Posted by Jimrob1

I agree people can appear to be different from place to place. In many instances I suppose they are for whatever reasons I'm not sure. As far as Portland goes. I found nice people and not so nice like anywhere. The same as one could find in Denver. I did find many in Portland to come across as being depressed, and as having had a hard life. Certainly not everyone, but enough of the population for it to really show. The amount of drugs in that small big city alarmed me, and the amount of people using them in public definitely turned me off. I worked at the airport and became increasingly nervous about riding the Max train late at night, from the airport to the Union Station, and then walking to my apt in the Pearl District. Luckily I was able to change to a day shift.

Just today I saw on the news that the Oregon Governor saved a person's life. Someone drugged out on the street in downtown Portland. He was able to take care of the overdose or whatever was going on. Of course he is also a Physician thankfully. It's a shame the city can't do a better job with the drugs in Portland. Every place has them, but Portland has a specific problem that doesn't get addressed.

Yeah, seemed like drugs were a real problem there. Didn't the news have a "Meth Watch" segment?

[cagarcia8]

As a whole COL and salary do not even out here in the Denver area. The pay is ridiculously low compared to what you will spend on living expenses. There are of course those exceptions where people are lucky to be making a decent living and not work just to pay bills, but as a newbie here to the area and having family that has resided here for years this is what I have been told/experienced. The area is beautiful, however; it will cost you to wake up to the view of mountains. For long term and financial purposes I do not plan on staying here, but if this city fits your needs and you find stability then this might be your best move! Good luck on your journey to CO!