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Hello, my husband and I are in our early 20s and we are from Northwest Ohio. We have lived here our entire lives and are ready for some change. I have some questions I was hoping could be answered. (I posted in the Portland forum, but the general one seems more beneficial)
1. What is the cost of living in/around Portland? It is just the two of us and our dog (a pomeranian). Is it a pet friendly city?
2. My husband has his degree in Early Child. Edu. and I will be finishing mine this year in Middle Child. Edu.. Are there good teaching jobs out there on the east coast? And if I would so choose not to persue a career in education, with a 4 year degree can I find a good paying job?
3. Weather...what are the seasons like? I am not bothered by snow (we see a lot of that where I live) but have hear the summers there are amazing! We love more mild temps and being along the water...the two together are fabulous!
4. What is the city like? Is it safe? Are the people in/around/outside the city genuinely kind? What are some areas to avoid when apartment/house hunting? Are there a lot of good restaurants, entertainment, activities, a good sense of fashion? (we are active and casual people, but hey...I like to dress nice sometimes )
5. Are there good churches around? That is very important to us.
6. About how far is Portland from the mountains? Would it be an easy drive...like for a day trip?
Not sure if I need anything else, or even if I covered everything that I did in the Portland thread, but we'd just like some feedback. Thanks in advance!
Hello mrspink and congratulations on your wedding. Portland is very pet friendly, although you might find a thread on either this forum or the Maine forum on renting with a dog, it can be difficult. 2 or 3 bedroom apartments might run between 700 and 1200 per month and rental houses higher, it all depends on parking, utilities, etc. as to what you might spend. As for teaching jobs, it might be a good idea to put out some feelers at the various school systems around the state. Here is a link where you can start:
The Portland area has 4 seasons, although summer seems to be the shortest. We had an unusually snowy winter this year, Portland averages in the low 70s (inches) and we had over 100. It usually snows from mid-December through March. Spring and fall can be absolutely beautiful with spectacular colors from the leaves changing and clear, crisp air after and warm days in May after the long winter. As for the city itself, I think you'd find everything you need and depending upon your taste for housing, it's all there - old and new. In about an hour's time you can be at Shawnee Peak in Bridgton which has good skiing (including nights) and the Sebago Lake area is just 30 minutes away. The other ski areas are a bit further, but very easy drives, as many come from other parts of New England on a regular basis.
I am originally from ohio, then moved to south carolina, and recently moved up to old town maine to go back to school to attend the university of maine. I love it so far. (i don't know about portland) But I love it here. The weather is amazing. The scenary is beautiful and the people are great. The cost of living is low. Its great. It was hard to find a pet friendly place to live, but my dog was a little bigger. It shouldn't be that hard with a smaller dog.
1. What is the cost of living in/around Portland? It is just the two of us and our dog (a pomeranian). Is it a pet friendly city?
The COL is hard to judge since there are so many factors involved in calculating it. Some couples can live quite comfortably on $20,000 a year, others will require $50,000 or more. It all depends on your lifestyle.
My personal opinion is that Portland has a high COL. Most people live on the peninsula, which is the desirable part of town. The housing stock on the peninsula is limited, coupled with the desirability, cause the rents to be pretty high. A decent two bedroom apartment can go for $1,300+, but you can rent a nice three bedroom home for the same price off the peninsula.
There are many other things that contribute to the COL that I covered in other threads. PM if you want the complete list.
Yes, Portland is very dog friendly. Just don't be like some of these thick-headed East Coasters who refuse to pick up their dog poop off the sidewalks.
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Originally Posted by mrspink
2. My husband has his degree in Early Child. Edu. and I will be finishing mine this year in Middle Child. Edu.. Are there good teaching jobs out there on the east coast? And if I would so choose not to persue a career in education, with a 4 year degree can I find a good paying job?
Not sure about the job market in the education field, but you shouldn't have a problem finding a decent job with a B.A.
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Originally Posted by mrspink
3. Weather...what are the seasons like? I am not bothered by snow (we see a lot of that where I live) but have hear the summers there are amazing! We love more mild temps and being along the water...the two together are fabulous!
The weather here is similar to Ohio's. The only real differences that I can think of are; Ohio gets a little bit colder then Portland, Ohio gets a little bit more humid in the summer then Portland, and you don't have to worry about tornados in Portland. So yeah, Portland's weather is going to be more mild then Ohio's. It did seem to rain a lot so far this summer, though.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mrspink
4. What is the city like? Is it safe? Are the people in/around/outside the city genuinely kind? What are some areas to avoid when apartment/house hunting? Are there a lot of good restaurants, entertainment, activities, a good sense of fashion? (we are active and casual people, but hey...I like to dress nice sometimes )
For the most parts the city is really safe. There are a few shady spots, like everywhere, but you really don't have to look over your shoulder every two seconds like you do in some other cities. In comparison to Ohio, you'd think that the worst that Portland has to offer is a joke. There is crime here, mostly drug related, but it is more of a nuisance then anything. Most people leave you alone and just tend to their own business, but there are the occasional trouble makers who think that they are Billy Bada$$. You find them everywhere.
There are no areas that you need to avoid during the day, even though it might seem shady the bark is definitely worse then the bite (since it is all bark). At night......depends on your level of security comfort. I would say to avoid the Bayside neighborhood while others will say to avoid Munjoy Hill or Parkside. I live in Parkside (only for a few more weeks) and it does have a few streets that are totally grimy, but it also has homeowners, college students, professionals and other good people. There is just a lot of drug dealing and prostitution but there is a huge push right now to clean things up (for the umpteenth time). But like I said, the dealers and users tend to their own business and I saw my first evidence of a car being broken into the other night (and it took an entire year for that).
There are many awesome restaurants around town. Just don't be suckered into going to a place called Becky's
There are tons of entertainment and other activties around town, but it all depends on what you are into. Despite the amount of stuff to do, you can either be bored senseless or never have enough time to do what you want to do.
Most of the younger crowd tends to dress like every other twenty something throughout the country, but the older people tend to go for the LL Bean look. But you don't see too many people who dress flashy. You do see a lot of Burberry, but that is all bought at the Burberry outlet store and to be honest, Burberry has been out of fashion for a long time.
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Originally Posted by mrspink
5. Are there good churches around? That is very important to us.
There are many churches here. Whether they are good or not is your opinion. I am sure that you will not have a problem finding one that is to your liking.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mrspink
6. About how far is Portland from the mountains? Would it be an easy drive...like for a day trip?
The mountains are close enough and definitely doable for a day trip.
Thank you everyone for your help! We kinda figured the pet-situation would be a difficult one for renting, but...he is a REALLY small dog, and around here (I don't know about there) but people will be more understanding if the dog is smaller...I mean for pete's sake...my parent's cat is bigger than my dog...and makes a bigger mess!
Gosh...the weather sounds great. My husband likes to ski, but I'm pretty uncoordinated. I've never done it but he's been skiing out in Colorado and loved it. 70s-80s with less humidity than Ohio sounds perfect! I love Spring-Fall and tolerate winters, but as long as we have activities to do, we are good to go!
As far as jobs go, the market there sounds better than Ohio. The opportunity here is just not good...it gets frustrating. The whole fashion thing isn't a big deal. I love wearing sweatshirts and jeans in winter, but hey...who doesn't like to get dressed up?! It's just nice to know we wouldn't look like "tourists" if we dressed nice.
Portland and its' surrounding areas sound very safe. We have a really small city around where I live that is horrible when it comes to murder, drugs, theft etc. My husband recently said he would feel more safe living in Chicago than in this small city. (WAY smaller than Dayton or Toledo even) So that makes me feel pretty good!
I'm also glad to here about how the churches out there are good. We have been going to ours for quite some time now and we just hope we can find something similar.
Thank you for all your help, and if anyone else has any input, that would be great! Thanks again!
Just wanted to add that my husband and I were looking at rent prices and most seemed very reasonable for their locations...houses and apartments. Again...if there are any specific areas we should avoid, I'd appreciate knowing. We would like to move next summer and be as prepared as possible! Also, if anyone has any pics they'd like to post of the Portland and surrounding areas, that would be great! We are so excited!
You will have extreme difficulty finding a teacher job anywhere in NE without connections.
My late wife was a elem. principal in VT and routinely received 500 + applicants for
any free job.
In some disricts the superintendents would hire the neice of another super a hundred
miles away and his nephnew would get a job there. Coincidence no doubt.
Just wanted to add that my husband and I were looking at rent prices and most seemed very reasonable for their locations...houses and apartments. Again...if there are any specific areas we should avoid, I'd appreciate knowing. We would like to move next summer and be as prepared as possible! Also, if anyone has any pics they'd like to post of the Portland and surrounding areas, that would be great! We are so excited!
As a general comment, unless and until you come to Maine, spend some time here wandering around, talking to people and doing real research with your feet on the ground and your eyes open, you have no idea what you are trying to get yourself into. Maine's public education system is a mess and is under fire from the Governor who has initiated a massive change in the structure and funding methods statewide. This is turmoil for the education system and the towns that fund it. Looking for a job teaching now is problematic, and unless you are physically here looking, your chances diminish radically with every mile that you are distant from the borders of the state.
You have asked about a "good job" out of education in the Portland area. What would you define as a "good job"? The population of northern Ohio is several times that of the entire state of Maine, and wherever you live in Ohio now probably has more people than the city of Portland by a factor of two or three within twenty miles of your door step. Here's an example: the city of Cleveland proper, in the 2000 census had a population that was almost four times the size of the city of Portland, Maine. The great Portland area, totals less than one half the size of Cleveland. So, your job hunt in southwestern Maine is going to be tough compared with northern Ohio based on the density of population.
For further reference, the entire state of Maine has fewer than 1.3 million people. The area of the state is greater than all the rest of New England combined. The highest number of people in Maine live within 30 miles of the city of Portland. So considering the number of people who live in this rural state, what do you think the average income for a family of four is in Maine? If your guess is less than $30,000 you are probably right.
I write something like this about once per week because there are an awful lot of people who want to come to Maine because they have seen pretty pictures of our coastline and our summer weather. But the reality is that Maine is a very small state with very limited opportunities. When my daughter graduated from the University of Maine with high honors, I physically picked her up, put her in the car and we went on a tour of the east coast. She ended up with a GOOD job, in her field, doing what she had studied for, in Naples, Florida. She is now in southeastern Virginia, in a good position with potential for growth, doing what she has used her education to learn to do.
Does she want to move back to Maine? Absolutely. She would MUCH prefer to be here with her children than where she is. But there is NO WAY that she can duplicate the kind of position that she has in Virginia in Maine (doesn't exist), and her salary and benefits schedule is almost non-existant here on any basis.
Make no mistake: I think living in Maine anywhere is a great thing to do, but the reality is that for young people just starting out, the need is to gain experience working somewhere within the culture and population base of this country. After a few years, as I told my daughter, you will have learned several things about places that you DON'T want to be, and will have established something that will enable you to more easily chose what and where you want to be.
Starting out in Maine just out of college will be a challenge for you and unless and until you spend some serious time here getting to know the territory, you can't even make up a good fantasy about how it will be.
I have to agree with Acadianlion. Maine for all its beauty and history and wonderful people is a tough place to live, let alone find a job. You might be able to make a job for yourself. That requires a network, friends, and access to transportation. If, for example, you want to do something in the seasonal tourist industry along the coast, you may have 10 - 14 weeks in which to make enough for the entire year.
I left Maine in January 1977 because there was nothing for me to do. Those were tough times nationally. For Maine, very, very difficult time. So where did I wind-up? In Botswana, with the Peace Corps. Go figure. I have been looking for a way back ever since then. My sister who is a MD, no less, left the state years ago so her daughters could have a good education. She is in the Boston area and does get to visit Maine more frequentlt than I can. She return at the drop of a hat: Hat has not dropped, yet.
However, if you are tough, have a good sense of humor, are tolerate of the culture of Maine, and are determined and persistent. You can do it. I think it is worth the risk at such a young age.
Acadianlion does make some valid points but I have to add that the economy in Ohio is pretty damn bad, and has been for a long time. Yes, on paper it may look better then Maine's, but when it comes down to the real nittty-gritty, Ohioans generally find themselves in a worst position; and the majority of crimes in Ohio seem to fall into the category of crimes of desperation. While teaching jobs may be more abundant in Ohio, my personal opinion and experiences tell me that it would be for more difficult to try and make it in Ohio then it would here.
Yes, moving to Portland would be tough, especially in the beginning; but you can run into that where ever you move and if you really want to live here, then do it. I would strongly suggest coming out for a visit first before you commit to a move. There are some people on this forum who consistently make it seem like Maine has the lock-down on Most Difficult State for outsiders to live in. I still have yet to work out if their advice is being truthful or if they are just trying to keep outsiders out?
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) 
) and it does have a few streets that are totally grimy, but it also has homeowners, college students, professionals and other good people. There is just a lot of drug dealing and prostitution but there is a huge push right now to clean things up (for the umpteenth time). But like I said, the dealers and users tend to their own business and I saw my first evidence of a car being broken into the other night (and it took an entire year for that). 
Sadly agree with Acadianlion
