Should we move from Oregon to Arizona? Help..? (Salem, Phoenix: fit in, apartment)

[daydreamer33]

Sorry for the long post, I'm new here Just looking for some unbiased opinions on what the best course of action is for my family. I originally lived in Arizona for a year prior to moving to Oregon for a job opportunity (I manage a local business)...it's now been 2 years and we have an opportunity to buy the business (which is very successful and take us approximately 5-7 years)...but it would require us to stay in Oregon. We have a 6 month old baby as well.

Reasons we want to leave:
1. Me nor my husband like Oregon very much.
2. It rains a lot and the overcast weather is depressing.
3. We are Republicans and it is a tad liberal here for us.
4. We have been in an apartment for 3 years and would like to buy a home but homes here are SO expensive right now. We can buy a nicer, bigger house in AZ for the same price for a not so great home in Oregon.
5. We are Christians and there are not a lot of options for Christian schools for our kids where we live.
6. Most of my family lives in AZ (2 sisters, 6 nieces and nephews)

Reasons we are considering staying:

1. My parents live here and are elderly and not in the greatest health. If we moved I would only see them maybe once or twice a year. I am TERRIFIED of flying and so wouldn't fly unless I absolutely had to.
2. My parents don't have anyone else in Oregon to help them and I do enjoy being close to them.
3. Our daughter is their only local grandchild.
4. It is cooler here than AZ despite the rain
5. My husband has a guaranteed job if he stays here and could buy the business

I'm worried about leaving my parents and that I may regret it if something happens to them. They don't have anyone else and love Oregon too much to move to Arizona. I've begged and pleaded with them.

Any advice?

[PNW-type-gal]

This is entirely a personal choice issue, not really an "Oregon vs Arizona" issue. I wouldn't stay somewhere I wasn't happy, myself.

Find a place in Arizona where your parents can come for the winter and then you could see them for a few months at a time.

[Willamette City]

I think you should do whatever you need to do to move back to Arizona. Oregon is a lifestyle choice as much as anything. It's pretty obvious you wouldn't be as happy here as in Arizona. It is expensive to live in Oregon, and if you don't like the liberalness of Oregon now, I don't think it's going to improve for you.


Good luck on whatever choice you make!


Tim, liberal Oregonian.

[bobspez]

So many things the OP doesn't seem to have considered....
What do you care what the political climate of a place is? Politics won't personally help you any. I have political beliefs but I keep them on CD.
If you don't like flying there are trains.
Don't expect your parents to follow you, I wouldn't follow my kids if they moved to another part of the country.
How do you know you will have any opportunities in Arizona? You lived there before but left for economic advancement.
Arizona is HOT. You say you lived there so maybe that isn't an issue for you, but would be for your parents.
You say there are not alot of options for Christian schooling in Oregon. How many options do you need?
Have you looked at other possible places to live within commuting distance of your husband's business? Would a 30 or 40 mile commute translate to a nicer home that you could afford?

[Baking.Bigfoot]

I'm on the opposite end of you. I'm an Oregonian who moved to Arizona for a year and now we are moving back home to Oregon. It's a hot housing market in Arizona and it took us 3 days to sell our home. Great for sellers, not so great for buyers. Prices are going up fast.

I am not a fan of Arizona. Yes, the sun is great, but I miss the rain. Arizona is just too hot and dry for me.
And....the creepy crawly bugs and things. No thank you. Scorpions? Tarantulas? Ewwwww.....

As for the Political climate...depends on where you live in Arizona. Phoenix/ Tuscon area is half and half but plenty of liberals.
Sedona and Flagstaff are liberal. The only real super conservative places are Prescott/ Prescott Valley area... Cottonwood and a few other small cowboy towns.

Funny story....the very first week we were in Arizona, we were driving around checking out the towns in Northern Az and someone yelled out their car window at us and told us to go back to California. I'm like ...what?
We had Oregon License plates on our car yet. Why California? LOL

So yeah...we just didn't fit in much. We tried.

My family is scattered all over the US. Some in NY. Some in the Midwest...some on the West coast.
Living in Oregon, I've had plenty of people who came and visited me. The year I was in Arizona, NO one came to visit me. Go figure.

Anyway....If you are not happy where you live. MOVE.
A peace of mind is better than staying in a place you hate.

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

I'd just say that your parents have decided they'd rather live alone in OR than move to where their kids are in AZ. Not saying they're bad for that decision - just pointing out that it's not your job to stay with them in OR. After all, they have 2 other kids in AZ and other grandkids there. Yet, they have chosen to stay in OR and miss out on their lives.

Again, not saying they're bad people. Just putting some perspective in your guilty conscience.

You're not happy in OR. So, move where you're happy.

I left CA at 18 years old. Moved to WA and enjoyed it for a few years, but would have moved back south, if I hadn't ended up married. I really tried to like it. Took me 18 years or so to get back to CA and I'm really glad I moved back.

You could try to make the best of it, but it sounds like that's what you'd be doing - settling. And, if you don't like it there, and your only real reason is to stay for your folks who refuse to move where their other kids and grandkids live, or for a job, I could see you merely existing for many years.

Move where you'll be happy. You have other family and support in AZ. And you can always find another job, I bet.

And just keep the invitation open for your folks to come live with you in AZ. They may take you up on it one day. Or not. But, it makes more sense for them to move to where 3 of their kids live, than for one of their kids to live close to them, where their kid would be miserable. In my opinion.

[Silverfall]

If you aren't happy, move. That means either moving to Arizona or moving to one of the smaller more conservative towns in Oregon.

[DKM]

You could solve a lot of your issues by moving to Salem.

[Thom52]

That seems like one of the easier decisions that I have seen on this forum.
Why are you even hesitating to move to the place where you will be happy?

Are you living your life or your parents' life? You will hit the end of your life and finally realize this is not a dress rehearsal and you should have lived where YOU will be happy.

Just my opinion though.

[Johnny Z]

Originally Posted by daydreamer33

Reasons we want to leave:
1. Me nor my husband like Oregon very much.
2. It rains a lot and the overcast weather is depressing.
3. We are Republicans and it is a tad liberal here for us.
4. We have been in an apartment for 3 years and would like to buy a home but homes here are SO expensive right now. We can buy a nicer, bigger house in AZ for the same price for a not so great home in Oregon.
5. We are Christians and there are not a lot of options for Christian schools for our kids where we live.
6. Most of my family lives in AZ (2 sisters, 6 nieces and nephews)

Reasons we are considering staying:

1. My parents live here and are elderly and not in the greatest health. If we moved I would only see them maybe once or twice a year. I am TERRIFIED of flying and so wouldn't fly unless I absolutely had to.
2. My parents don't have anyone else in Oregon to help them and I do enjoy being close to them.
3. Our daughter is their only local grandchild.
4. It is cooler here than AZ despite the rain
5. My husband has a guaranteed job if he stays here and could buy the business

I'm worried about leaving my parents and that I may regret it if something happens to them. They don't have anyone else and love Oregon too much to move to Arizona. I've begged and pleaded with them.

Any advice?

Then by all means run, go as fast as you can...