considering moving to oregon (Portland, Eugene: rental car, low income, apartments)

[swerl]

I am presently living in Southern California. I'm in my late 30s, and eat a vegetarian (mostly vegan) diet. My main interests are cultural in nature--literature, art, music. I am considering moving to another state, because rent prices are so insane here that I feel I am throwing money into the wind. I prefer rain to sun, so Oregon seems like the natural choice. Scanning Craigslist for different areas in Oregon the one bedroom apartments I've found are typically going for around half of what I'd pay here for something far less spacious and far more shabby. Apparently what one's really paying for here is the weather, which I don't even like, since rain is more my thing.

If anyone cares to offer suggestions about areas I should read more about, I'd appreciate it. Even more on my mind is how can I accomplish such a move. I don't know anyone in Oregon, and only know as much about the different areas of Oregon as I've very recently learned--primarily through this forum. It doesn't seem prudent to purchase an apartment which one hasn't seen and I don't even know if it's possible to purcahse an apartment from out of state. I have savings, so financially there isn't a problem; I just have no idea how to arrange such a thing.

I would love to hear some feedback from anyone who has made such a move before or has any helpful suggestions to offer.

Thanks.

[malachai23]

Hi there. First off - what will you be doing for employment? Do you have a job that you can take with you wherever you go? If not, then that would be the first and foremost thing on *my* mind regarding this move! Oregon has a very high unemployment rate right now, as do many other states. If you move there without a job, you could realistically be out of work for a year or more. Do you have adequate savings or alternative income for that situation?

Assuming you can take your job with you, you will first have to determine what size city best suits your needs. Without telling us that, it would be impossible for us to recommend an area for you. Oregon is a BIG place. Not as big as California, but still a BIG place! So are you looking at the Portland metro area or small-town life? You can find culture in both places in Oregon.

As for accomplishing the move - a lot of that will depend on, once again, how much money you have saved up. There are many ways to accomplish it. And luckily, you are not too far away from your target destination. I'll tell you how *I* moved cross-country (Oregon to Ohio): I flew out to my target destination, rented a car, stayed in a hotel for a couple days, got the general lay of the land by driving around and figuring out basically where the good and bad areas are located, got on the computer at the internet/business room at the hotel, searched for apartments in my price range in the areas I decided that I would be comfortable living in, set up appointments with a few of them to see an apartment, looked at a handful of apartments and picked my favorite, signed the paperwork and put down the deposit, bought plane tickets, told the apartment manager which night I was flying in and he agreed to leave the apartment door unlocked for me on that night, flew home, called a moving company & had them come pick up all my stuff, called an auto-transport company and had them come pick up my vehicle, had a friend drive me to the airport, flew back into my target city, rented a car again, let myself into my unlocked apartment, and then basically lived off take-out food and slept on the floor and drove around a rental car for two weeks until all my stuff and my vehicle arrived. And I did this all dragging along a cat in a Delta duffel bag, by the way. So if I can do it, so can anyone!

The way I moved does take some money though. Like I said, there are a billion different ways to accomplish a sight-unseen long-distance move. My example is just the way that I personally did it. Like you, I would be *very* leery of renting completely sight-unseen from the internet. I know a lot of people who have done that and weren't very happy with what they ended up with. Keep in mind, those pictures of the apartments are almost always going to look better than the apartment really is. A great tool nowadays is Google Maps Street View. Now you can actually see what the rest of the neighborhood looks like. If you have never been to Oregon, I think you definitely need to make a trip up there this winter (during the "rainy season") and get a feel for it yourself before you go making any big moves and spending a lot of money and ending up jobless for an extended period of time. You may not even like it once you get there.

So, good luck to you. Let us know what size city or town you would be interested in and we can offer some suggestions as to which areas to look at.

[Hawk J]

Howdy swerl...

After you figure out where you want to live & want to rent/buy then you could rent a Uhaul/Hertz/Penske truck/van to move your belongings.

Some folks even buy a used Box Van/Truck to move, then sell it.

Best of Luck to You...

[swerl]

Hi Malachai,

I have no income at the moment but have enough savings to live comfortably for two or three years at least, so there shouldn't be a problem there. In fact one thing I was considering was purchasing a condo, if I could work that out somehow. Someone also mentioned manufactured homes to me as a cheaper option--but I don't have a lot of knowledge about the advantages and disadvantages of manufactured homes. What would be the best way for me to find the average price would be for a nice one bedroom condo in a city like Portland? Where I am the very cheapest condos go for around 120k--and those are very rare, and one must qualify for low income housing to get them.

I've lived in a city of 400,000 most of my life, which I guess is moderate sized, compared to bigger cities in CA, though from what I've read so far Portland has a population of about 550,000. I guess I'd do well in either a large or moderate sized city. I don't have a car at the moment. I'd be willing to get one, but would rather not if I live in an area with good public transportation, so if any city in Oregon, like Portland, has a particularly good public transport system that would be a factor in my decision. Surroundings with a lot natural beauty would be nice, but that's not a must.

[Silverfall]

Well I would think Portland or Eugene would be the best for those interests.

As far as moving, when we moved here many years ago, we flew out, scoped out areas, visited apartments, then filled out an application for the one we wanted. Since you are in SoCal, you could always just amtrack up which would be cheaper, I think.

Whether or not you move depends on whether or not you can get a job here.

You need to visit before you move.

[Silverfall]

Originally Posted by swerl

Hi Malachai,

What would be the best way for me to find the average price would be for a nice one bedroom condo in a city like Portland? Where I am the very cheapest condos go for around 120k--and those are very rare, and one must qualify for low income housing to get them.

Unless you are going to pay cash, you won't be able to get a mortgage without a job. I would rent first.

[Minervah]

Originally Posted by Silverfall

Unless you are going to pay cash, you won't be able to get a mortgage without a job. I would rent first.

Unfortunately I don't think it will be easy to find a landlord who will rent to someone without a job either. Understandably with the economy the way it is and the competition for good apartments it would be pretty risky for them to do so.

[swerl]

Thanks to everyone who replied.

I think making a visit via the Amtrak would be a good idea. I am going to look into that more.

To clarify a bit, I am not unemployed... I am an artist, so self-employed... but I do not have a steady month-to-month income.

Minervah, I have substantial savings and would be willing to show a financial statement to any landlord who requested it. I also have a good credit history. I'm hoping for this reason it wouldn't be viewed as a risk?

Silverfall, I don't know if I would be able to pay cash to purchase. I would have to get a better idea of what one bedroom condos are going for in a place like Eugene. Is there a website you would recommend, where I might be able to research this? If I could not purchase the condo outright I would at any rate be able to make a large downpayment. Does proof of financial assets have any weight with lenders, assuming the amount of the assets covers most of the loan?

[sarahkate_m]

Swerl, by west coast standards, the COL in Oregon is not high at all. There are very nice apartments for rent in SE Eugene that I'd take in a heartbeat if I didn't have pets (difficult to find a rental if you have a pet).

Now, if you compare the same apartments (that I'm refering to) to apartments in KC, Kansas, you'll find a big difference in size/amenities/rent. Kansas wins on that one. But that isn't the west coast. So that's the bite, no offense intended.

Jobs are so scarce that employers are getting many times more applicants for every position than they ever have - hence the window of opportunity is being shortened by many employers - shorter time windows to give an application. I've been out of work for over a year. No savings left. Credit card is a big drag.

[Jumpman023]

Why would you want to come to Oregon when you're in SoCal? I've lived here (Portland) all my life and I'm be dying to be in the SoCal area, although I've heard a lot of people in Cali are looking to relocate (maybe the economy). Why in the world would you give up the perfect weather, better job opportunities (in good times, although Oregon doesn't have that great of an economy right now either) for Oregon?