Are the Portland Suburbs for us? beaverton with young kids?? (Gresham: houses, job market)

[whereshome]

My husband has a second interview with Nike in the next week. I figure I might as well just say that so you guys know the exact location he would be working at. We currently live in Pennsylvania, but Oregon is not completely foreign to me. I spent a summer there about 15 years ago. I really enjoyed it but definitely regretted moving out there without an umbrella.

Anyways, we are currently a single income family although I would LOVE to get a job. Our oldest is just finishing Kindergarten. Our youngest has one more year of preschool. He may need special education services when he reaches Kindergarten.

So, here are the things that are important to us: GREAT schools and the ability for my husband to bike or take public transportation to work. Our housing budget is around $200,000 but I don't care if it is small (1300 - 1500 sf is fine), we don't want a big yard and I am not afraid of an ugly house. (You know the ones with fuzzy wallpaper and what not.) We also are not a fan of chain restaurants and really enjoy going to our local farmers markets here.

Is Portland the place for us? Can we afford to live there? And what towns should I have on my radar as far as places to live?

[figmalt]

Nike is a major employer and thus, a major stop for public transportation. There is a bus-stop right outside the gates, plus the MAX lightrail stops at Millikan Way (next to the Nike Employee Store) which is about a mile away. It would be easy to take the MAX and bike, or take the bus. $200,000 is a little low for Beaverton, but in this market you can probably find some good deals if you do the work.

I don't know what kind of salary range you're looking at, so it's difficult to say if you could live here on one income. Note that the job market is still rough in Oregon, so unless you have specialized skills expect to find a lot of competition for the job hunt.

Beaverton school district has a good reputation overall. Individual schools will vary of course, but you can find that information online at the usual websites.

[philwithbeard]

Originally Posted by whereshome

My husband has a second interview with Nike in the next week. .....

Fingers are crossed in hope that all goes well, and for the best for your family's future.

[figmalt]

Apparently Nike runs a shuttle between the Beavercreek MAX stop and their campus. Even better.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beavert...k_(MAX_station)

[whereshome]

Originally Posted by figmalt

I don't know what kind of salary range you're looking at, so it's difficult to say if you could live here on one income. Note that the job market is still rough in Oregon, so unless you have specialized skills expect to find a lot of competition for the job hunt.

The job market is rough everywhere. So, I don't think that should be a deciding factor for me. My skills are in construction management and accounting. Trust me, I know how bad the job market is.

So, what other areas should we be considering besides Beaverton. I would like to be able to live somewhere that had good access to downtown as that could open up a lot of construction opportunities, hopefully.

[Rob Allen]

If you live along the MAX line you'll have good access to downtown as well as Nike.

The largest farmer's market in the vicinity is at the Beaverton City Library on Saturdays. Others are in Aloha, Orenco, Hillsboro, and Cedar Mill.

[hamellr]

If you work at Nike, live in Beaverton. Save yourself the headache of commuting all together. Nike runs shuttle buses from MAX to Campus and to the multiple subsidiary building, and has plenty of Bike Parking on campus.

Beaverton schools are fairly good. Not absolutely great, but not down the worse around by far.

200k will get you a house in Beaverton. Several decent houses in my neighborhood - Central Beaverton are down in the $160 range.

If you live near MAX, you'll be able to commute all the way out to Hillsboro and all the way to Gresham fairly easily. Most construction companies don't have offices in Downtown Portland though, unless it's one of the major companies. Most will have a small office building in a light industrial area somewhere, or run out of someone's house.

[whereshome]

Originally Posted by Rob Allen

The largest farmer's market in the vicinity is at the Beaverton City Library on Saturdays. Others are in Aloha, Orenco, Hillsboro, and Cedar Mill.

That sounds great! We have GREAT farmers markets where we live now with fresh poultry and beef stands, fresh eggs, homemade butter and more than enough fresh fruit and produce. I am really spoiled in that regard.

Originally Posted by hamellr

200k will get you a house in Beaverton. Several decent houses in my neighborhood - Central Beaverton are down in the $160 range.

I did some searching after your information and it looks like we would easily be able to find something we would be happy with in Beaverton. It even looked like our property taxes would be lower? I was seeing only $2,500 in property taxes for houses in our price range. That would be great!

And can anyone tell me why, when I search for Beaverton that Aloha comes up too?

[Rob Allen]

Originally Posted by whereshome

And can anyone tell me why, when I search for Beaverton that Aloha comes up too?

Probably because they share a couple of zip codes. Beaverton is an incorporated city while Aloha is not, so there's a difference in tax rates and municipal services. Aloha High School is part of the Beaverton school district.

[whereshome]

Originally Posted by Rob Allen

Probably because they share a couple of zip codes. Beaverton is an incorporated city while Aloha is not, so there's a difference in tax rates and municipal services. Aloha High School is part of the Beaverton school district.

Thanks for this info.

We just found out that some immediate family members will be moving to washington state this summer, so I think my husband is really hoping this job opportunity works out. The second interview is on Monday. Hopefully if that goes well they will fly him out there.