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Old 02-01-2011, 07:45 AM
 
Location: New Jersey
5 posts, read 7,136 times
Reputation: 10

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Hi Portland! We are considering a move from NJ to Portland and are very torn. Would love to hear if anyone out there has done a similar move.
The details are that we live about 1/2 hour outside of NYC and are ready for a change. We pay a premium to live here, but we don't really love where we live. We have considered moving along the east coast, but are open to going west. We have 3 young children, so this is a huge decision - especially since we would be leaving family behind.
- our perception is that the lifestyle would be better - not as intense or congested - true?
- how is the public school system? My husband's job would be in Tualatin, so would want to be in a roughly 10 mile radius of there. What towns should we be considering?
- while the cost of living is supposed to be lower than here, the housing seems just as high with small yards - is that true or am i just getting a bad sampling online?
Any insight would be much appreciated. I'm a little concerned about the posts about people not welcoming outsiders - this surprises me. I also saw the Philly thread - i would want to leave Philly too if I were you! ;o). We would be coming from the suburbs - nice area, but a little too congested for us.
Thoughts?
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Old 02-01-2011, 12:10 PM
 
3,928 posts, read 4,896,212 times
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I lived in NYC but have family in Brooklyn, NJ, and Queens, Long Island and I know what they pay for health insurance, life insurance, income and property taxes, food, entertainment, transportation, etc. Portland is wayyyy less expensive. My advice is get one solid job lined up and rent in a neighborhood with a great school that you love. Look at homes for sale when you get here. The quality of life is excellent here. The overall attitude and lifestyle on the West coast, esp. In Portland is laid back and not nearly as aggressive as anywhere on East coast. I would come for a week visit during the gray months to see if this is the kind of place you want to re-locate your family. I DO really love it here but I am a S.F. Native so I am used to foggy weather and a very liberal political environment.
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Old 02-01-2011, 12:35 PM
 
Location: New Jersey
5 posts, read 7,136 times
Reputation: 10
Thank you for the feedback. Is the weather gray during the winter months or is it an issue all year?
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Old 02-01-2011, 02:04 PM
 
3,928 posts, read 4,896,212 times
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There is a thread here on forum dedicated just to the weather.
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Old 02-01-2011, 02:05 PM
 
Location: Lakewood OH
21,695 posts, read 28,402,512 times
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I would want to live in or around Tualatin if I worked there. It's not a great commute from Tualatin to Portland; the highway is congested and there is little public transportation. There is also Tigard and Sherwood. Sherwood is a really neat little town.

There are nice homes, parks and shopping etc. in Tualatin. I don't know about the schools there but Portland is really hit or miss regarding schools and they are constantly changing the boundaries.

We do have sunshine in the summer and at the odd times. In fact I am looking out my window right now ( I live in Portland) and the sun is shining bright on this February day. However it is overcast much of the time and some people suffer from SADD so that may be a considereation. Many of us love the "gloom."

Will you have the opportunity to come and look things over? That is the best way I think to decide whether or not a new location is right for you.
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Old 02-01-2011, 02:28 PM
 
Location: Sometimes Portland, other times LA
600 posts, read 1,466,962 times
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The weather is rainy/gray/drizzly/cold about 8 months out of the year. It can begin to wear on you if you are not into that kind of weather. If your husband is working in Tualatin I would stick to the westside. There are limited routes to get to Tualatin (basically I-5 is it) and traffic is congested during rush hours because of this problem. Check out West Linn, Lake Oswego, Tualatin, Tigard, Beaverton, Wilsonville. Better schools than those in Portland as well
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Old 02-01-2011, 04:22 PM
 
Location: Portland, Oregon
10,988 posts, read 20,527,667 times
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I lived in N. NJ and NYC after college for several years. The major difference in the weather is that we don't get so many frigid blasts in the winter or the humid-hot weather in the summer as is common in your area.

The work way of life is a lot less frenetic. That doesn't mean we don't work very hard, we do, and we do so efficiently. You don't need to shoulder anyone to get a table at lunch, for example. People tend to stand in line quietly, let someone with just one or two items go ahead of them at grocery checkout. There isn't as much competition for daily activities.

In many ways it is less diverse and where there is diversity we don't wear it on our sleeves, so to speak. Folks don't bring up their religious denomination in everyday conversation. Glances at folks who are different for any reason (color, dialect, dress) are out of curiosity.

There aren't any 'bad' schools around Tualitan. Like anywhere else you could experience a teacher you don't like. There is a website where you can see each school's test results and demographics, I don't expect a lot of variation. Like everywhere else school funding is under a lot of pressure. Great schools have a lot of parental involvement so your efforts with your child's school can make a difference. I suggest you visit a couple of the schools that interest you and talk to teachers.

I agree with others who suggested you should rent before buying. That will give you an opportunity to change school enrolment area easily if need be and time to find the 'just right' house.

Having family so far away is a mixed bag. Plan on a gathering at least once a year. Our beach isn't the Jersey shore, much more like New England's.
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Old 02-01-2011, 05:09 PM
 
Location: Portland, OR
1,657 posts, read 4,476,779 times
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Just so you know:

- Hellman's mayo is re-labeled in the PNW as Best Foods Mayo.
- Butter and Margarine are sold in "Western Pack" which has different dimensions for the 1/4 lb sticks, and some of your very old East Coast butter dishes will not fit the different butter dimensions. Wikipedia has some information on Western Pack butter at the bottom of the entry on Butter.
- Portland has few places that sell cannoli, and those you can find in PDX are more San Francisco style (low butter fat, and low fat / sugar cookie shell, not East Coast cornucopia crunchy flaky shell filled with totally decadent cream and ricotta cheese delight.)
- Only a couple of 'Kosher-styled' Delis in Portland. "Kosher Style" label is due to unavailability of Rabbinical supervision of restaurants in-order to legitimately claim to be a "Kosher" restaurant.
- Good prosciutto ham? Forget about it, this is Portland, not east coast.

Oh, and when (not if, when) you taste fresh smoked Columbia River Steel-Head trout, or Salmon, that you can buy at the Saturday Farmer's market down on the PSU campus, two people can blow through $35.00 of smoked fish in one sitting in no time flat, add some smoked local cheese and crackers, and we are talking about big time pig-out while watching a DVD movie. White wine optional, it will only slow you down feeding your face. (The smoked salmon is really that good.)
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Old 02-01-2011, 09:14 PM
 
Location: New Jersey
5 posts, read 7,136 times
Reputation: 10
Smile Thank you!

Thank you all so much for taking the time to respond! It sounds like you live in a wonderful part of the country . I spoke to one of my neighbors today who goes to Portland every summer to visit her niece, and she had nothing but glowing things to say about the area. So, I don't know what will happen - my husband needs to do more research on the job opportunity - but you have all helped so much - thank you . And if we don't wind up moving there, I definitely want to come visit to experience the smoked fish/wine pig-out!!!!
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Old 02-01-2011, 11:00 PM
 
7,934 posts, read 8,576,975 times
Reputation: 5889
Quote:
Originally Posted by jennwood View Post
Hi Portland! We are considering a move from NJ to Portland and are very torn. Would love to hear if anyone out there has done a similar move.
The details are that we live about 1/2 hour outside of NYC and are ready for a change. We pay a premium to live here, but we don't really love where we live. We have considered moving along the east coast, but are open to going west. We have 3 young children, so this is a huge decision - especially since we would be leaving family behind.
- our perception is that the lifestyle would be better - not as intense or congested - true?
- how is the public school system? My husband's job would be in Tualatin, so would want to be in a roughly 10 mile radius of there. What towns should we be considering?
- while the cost of living is supposed to be lower than here, the housing seems just as high with small yards - is that true or am i just getting a bad sampling online?
Any insight would be much appreciated. I'm a little concerned about the posts about people not welcoming outsiders - this surprises me. I also saw the Philly thread - i would want to leave Philly too if I were you! ;o). We would be coming from the suburbs - nice area, but a little too congested for us.
Thoughts?
As a single guy with no kids, I'm not much of a connoisseur of anything family friendly (barf!) but, Tualatin is actually a very very nice community in the southern Portland region for that sort of thing. High end neighborhoods, good schools, all the shopping you could ever need at Bridgeport Village or nearby Washington Square (which is now one of the largest malls in the country I was shocked to hear.) Nearby Lake Oswego also pricey but nice.

Home prices are going to be lower than anywhere in the NYC metro area, and your money will definitely go farther here, but, maybe not shockingly farther if that's what you were hoping for. Home prices around here actually seem a little out of touch with economic conditions and in fact prices have been slumping and are expected to continue to slide or remain stagnate for possibly years to come. (That's the noise I hear anyway, I'm no real estate analyst.)

Overall though, your initial impressions are pretty close. Not as intense or congested as your part of the country, but on the flipside, not as exciting or energetic either. With 3 kids I'm sure your priorities have probably long since shifted towards the "livable" end of the spectrum. Portland is very easy and livable by comparison. Typically the snow and sub-freezing temperatures stay in the mountains where they belong too.
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