Oregon instead of washington? (Portland, Beaverton: apartment complexes, to rent, low crime)

[PNWobsessed]

I just moved to Olympia Washington about two weeks ago from SoCal. I was born in Los Angeles and spent the last 15 years in beautiful Orange County. I had been wanting to move for a while because the summers are much too warm (in the 90s and sometimes 100s) for me and because its so expensive. A small one bedroom is $1500 to $1800 in the clean safe areas. I was on this forum many months prior to moving but sadly didnt get much advice as to where to live. I asked for apartment suggestions and where to rent houses but only a small few were willing to be helpful. I visited Seattle and Bellevue which reminded me of orange county mixed with new york city buildings- but sadly it was just as expensive as orange county. I found tacoma to be quite run down compared to where Im from. I looked at few homes with a realtor in kent and renton that weren't very nice and seemed to be in the middle of nowhere. I finally settled in Olympia in a nice townhome that is near westfield mall and a grocery store with a nearby college. The weather has been nice except for 2 minor storms including some hail. Its very pretty. But there are homeless people everywhere all the time which makes me think Ive picked a bad area. Maybe they are harmless but it generally brings down the quality of an area and I wouldnt feel safe going out alone at night. Maybe people can be of more help this time?? I like washington as well as oregon. I drove through both states and stopped and stayed at hotels to explore. Lake oswego is a favorite of mine but this seems maybe out of my price range? I dont want to pay more than $1350/month for 2 bedrooms. I dont think downtown portland is ideal because I like a clean looking city and I guess they have a huge homeless population and I didnt care for all the strip clubs. It seemed unclassy. Im also open to San Diego since its a bit cooler than Orange County and Ive visited there several times. While the area seems old-looking I didnt see homeless on every corner. It appears to be safe, lots of colleges and beaches, maybe slightly more affordable than Orange County? Trying to find the right place to put down roots that is clean and safe but isnt outrageously overpriced. Please advise!!!!!

[hamellr]

Overall Portland, Tacoma, and Olympia even with the "homeless problem" is safer then Orange County any day of the week. The homeless for the most part do not cause problems though.

If you want to live in an area free of homeless people and doesn't look run down, you're going to have to either pay for it or live so far out of town that it's not worth the trouble. The bigger problem is that nicer areas are more likely to be targeted for property crimes, West Seattle is having a huge problem with that right now. They are finding a lot of the crimes are being committed by people from other parts of the city. Criminals travel to where the money is - there is no use in robbing their own neighborhoods because nobody there has anything nice either.

Add in the fact that it rains and is dreary - most of Oregon and Washington just tend to look run down. It's near impossible to keep a house in tip top shape when rain is beating down on it off and on for months at a time.

[pandaundercover]

We just moved to Lake Oswego and I can assure you, you can definitely find a 2 bedroom apartment for less than $1450. The issue might be about availability, not the price. But if you google apartment complexes and check out what they have available and their rents, you'll see a handful of options. I did notice that many of Lake Oswego's complexes don't show up as top searches in google... if you open google maps and type "apartments, lake oswego, or" you will find a bunch of smaller complexes. Now that I'm here, I realize there's more complexes than even showed up on google maps. But you'd definitely have options in your price range and the areas around here are very nice.

[oldtintype]

There's no perfect place to live unless you have tons of money to spend. Most places do NOT look like Orange County (thankfully), which generally is all about driving, manicured streets and appearance. The PNW is unkempt as other people have said, due to the weather. And yes, there are homeless people in just about any city/area, even Orange County, they just make it harder to see. With your price restrictions and appearance restrictions you may not find your ideal place. I used to hear the same comments about Northern California when people would move from southern. Different places look different and have different cultures. You probably would have been happiest in San Diego.

[Mclaurin]

The NW has many homeless. I have never been bothered by them myself. We have a natural looking environment. I prefer the look to heavily manicured and pesticide use in yards. You might be happier in San Diego.

[Minervah]

Personally, I love the look of unkempt lawns. I live in a very old neighborhood in Portland. For a while it was a trend for people to plant wildflowers in their front lawns back in the 70's and 80's. It was great. We still have a few of those. For the most part though, it's anything goes. Some people plant vegetable gardens, some rock gardens, some have a variety of plants. Some even have little kiosks with poetry sharing windows all in their front lawns. People don't really have uptight landscaping here on the whole. And you will find a small amount of homeless in just about every neighborhood. They are not as visible as in downtown but they are there.

$1350 may get you a two bedroom apartment in some areas, it will definitely get you a one bedroom. But you might have to put up with all the rest.

[EnricoV]

I think some of that "do your own thing" attitude might be that there aren't so many "neighborhood associations" keeping watch on everything everyone does. Or maybe it's the other way around? who knows. Most of us, I think, prefer it this way. I know I love an unkempt, more wild looking, greenspace.

Or maybe that came from hating to do so much yardwork when I was a kid. Lol. We had an acre of pretty neatly trimmed yard.

[ladderoflocus]

The newer suburbs in either state should suit you. Seattle area has some nicer burbs up north. Check out lake Forrest park, Bothell, Kenmore, lynwood, or any city north or ne of Seattle. East side prices tend to be more inline with OC prices but you might find some deals if you look hard enough.

In the Portland area, check out one of the many west side burbs like Beaverton, tigard, lake Oswego, etc. East side of Portland has nice parts too, but it tends to be older and not as pristine as the newer burbs. You might like Ladd's Addition or Sellwood areas if you don't mind a little grunginess but some nice architecture, low crime and lots of tree lined streets.

[ladderoflocus]

Originally Posted by EnricoV

I think some of that "do your own thing" attitude might be that there aren't so many "neighborhood associations" keeping watch on everything everyone does. Or maybe it's the other way around? who knows. Most of us, I think, prefer it this way. I know I love an unkempt, more wild looking, greenspace.

Or maybe that came from hating to do so much yardwork when I was a kid. Lol. We had an acre of pretty neatly trimmed yard.

yeah, developments with HOAs tend to be more well kempt. Perhaps you want to find a place located in a subdivision governed by an HOA.

[lalahartma]

Originally Posted by Minervah

Personally, I love the look of unkempt lawns. I live in a very old neighborhood in Portland. For a while it was a trend for people to plant wildflowers in their front lawns back in the 70's and 80's. It was great. We still have a few of those. For the most part though, it's anything goes. Some people plant vegetable gardens, some rock gardens, some have a variety of plants. Some even have little kiosks with poetry sharing windows all in their front lawns. People don't really have uptight landscaping here on the whole. And you will find a small amount of homeless in just about every neighborhood. They are not as visible as in downtown but they are there.

$1350 may get you a two bedroom apartment in some areas, it will definitely get you a one bedroom. But you might have to put up with all the rest.

What is your neighborhood, please?