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I would recommend Corvallis Oregon. It is very smart college town and is great. It is expensive but there are cheaper options near Corvallis like Philomath which is pretty nice and still next to Corvallis.
Another Town in Oregon is Salem. It is cheaper than Eugene and you should check it out. As for Washington I would check out Olympia which feels smaller and is very Trendy. Puyallup is another option because it has very good schools but Puyallup is sprawling with Tacoma so it does feel rather big compared to Olympia, Corvallis, Salem etc..
^^Thanks for the suggestion. I'll add Corvallis to my list of cities to research.
Something I forgot to mention in my original post, is that I'm not religious. It's another reason why I don't really like living in Utah. In terms of politics, I'm a registered Democrat, but I'm in the middle.
When it comes to neighbors/friends/co-workers, I do not like discussing politics or religion. I find that there's not much good that can come from it. And I'm very much a live and let live type of person.
I'm mentioning this because it may influence the suggestions.
Look at Bellingham and Olympia. Both nice small (Liberal college towns) cities, each with excellent health care. St. Joe's in Bellingham is an amazing hospital. Ranked in the top 3 in WA State
Bear in mind,, Spokane is really hot in the summer. If heat is a problem, then stay west of the Cascades in either OR or WA.
The thing about Oregon is that, because of land use laws, it may a bit more difficult to find the kind of property that you are looking for, particularly near Portland, Salem, or Eugene, as the drive is to have tiny lots with lots of density. You would more likely than not have to look to the outlying areas of smaller towns outside of those cities, while seeking work in one of those cities. Otherwise there are a lot of good fits for you--very nearly any town in the Willamette Valley. I'd recommend Lebanon, Silverton, Newberg, Monmouth/Independence, and McMinnville
Oh, and don't forget to check out Vancouver, WA and surrounding areas in Clark County. They have looser land use laws and more horse-friendly properties and areas that are affordable, yet still very close to Vancouver and Portland. Camas in particular has good schools, but Vancouver has a number of good schools as well.
And I will second Bellingham and Olympia, though Bellingham is quite a bit cooler throughout the year than areas further south, and Olympia averages 10 more inches of rain annually than Portland and Seattle/Tacoma areas (I am not sure about Bellingham's precipitation stats). Traffic in Olympia can be pretty bad sometimes. Well, when compared to some of the other cities listed at least...
Last edited by backdrifter; 07-12-2013 at 01:22 AM..
The thing about Oregon is that, because of land use laws, it may a bit more difficult to find the kind of property that you are looking for, particularly near Portland, Salem, or Eugene, as the drive is to have tiny lots with lots of density. You would more likely than not have to look to the outlying areas of smaller towns outside of those cities, while seeking work in one of those cities. Otherwise there are a lot of good fits for you--very nearly any town in the Willamette Valley. I'd recommend Lebanon, Silverton, Newberg, Monmouth/Independence, and McMinnville
Oh, and don't forget to check out Vancouver, WA and surrounding areas in Clark County. They have looser land use laws and more horse-friendly properties and areas that are affordable, yet still very close to Vancouver and Portland. Camas in particular has good schools, but Vancouver has a number of good schools as well.
And I will second Bellingham and Olympia, though Bellingham is quite a bit cooler throughout the year than areas further south, and Olympia averages 10 more inches of rain annually than Portland and Seattle/Tacoma areas (I am not sure about Bellingham's precipitation stats). Traffic in Olympia can be pretty bad sometimes. Well, when compared to some of the other cities listed at least...
Thank you! I will definitely look into Clark County, Bellingham and Olympia, as well as the Willamette Valley. I also don't mind cooler temperatures during the year - actually, that's a pretty big plus.
How about considering places in some of the less discussed states?
Billings, MT (beautiful, housing's not too bad, and it's rated high for health care. I kind of like Bozeman and Missoula better, but Billings is rated better for health care availability)
Casper, WY (Nice town, and highly rated health care facilities. I really like Casper)
Coeur d'Alene, ID is just hop to the hospitals in Spokane, and is gorgeous. It's a lot more expensive than it used to be, though. I have relatives in Spokane so I can say fairly that I wouldn't recommend living in Spokane itself, but Pullman, WA is about 75 miles away and is much nicer - and so is the neighboring town of Moscow, ID.
And, if you don't mind looking a little east, the small, very lovely and affordable city of Fergus Falls, MN is just 59 miles away from the highly rated hospitals and health care in Fargo, ND. Fergus (pop. 13,000) is located on the edge of the beautiful MN Lakes region and is also an easy 2 hr drive to the Twin Cities. You can't beat summer in Northern MN!
Thanks! I do like hearing about suggestions in states I hadn't thought of. I have heard that Casper, WY has good medical facilities, so I'll have to look closer at Casper as a possibility. I hadn't considered anywhere in Minnesota, so I'll do some research on Fergus Falls. I am worried that in winter, if I have to commute to the hospitals in Fargo, that it would be difficult and take awhile, though. The same is true of Pullman, WA and Moscow, ID. The commute in winter, if I have to undergo chemo again, would worry me.
I hate having to think about what I'd do if I ever got cancer again, but unfortunately, me being a single mom, I have to consider how easily it would be to drive myself to a good hospital for treatment and back.
I understand the fear of driving in snow, but in both CdA and Fergus, the commute to the larger city with hospital is on a major interstate which gets plowed first priority. CdA and Spokane are on I-90, Fergus and Fargo are on I-94. In both of the smaller towns, people commute both ways for work daily.
I understand the fear of driving in snow, but in both CdA and Fergus, the commute to the larger city with hospital is on a major interstate which gets plowed first priority. CdA and Spokane are on I-90, Fergus and Fargo are on I-94. In both of the smaller towns, people commute both ways for work daily.
Good luck in your exploration!
Good to know! If the highways have first priority, then it probably wouldn't be too bad. I was worried not so much about driving in the snow, but in the traffic that can happen because of it (when people drive slowly and/or accidents happen). What could've been a 40 minute commute can turn into a 60+ minute commute.
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