Considering a move to Portland from Michigan (Gresham, Beaverton: renters, how much)

[ChargerMatt]

Hello all,

I've done my research on cost of living, lifestyle, etc. I'm currently in negotiations with two different employers that are within the Portland city limits.

Question,

I can easily google "places to live in Portland" or look up a renters database, but I'm wondering from the local crowd, where's a decent place I can look - whether it be for a long-term rental OR for a short term until I find something I like.

Key concerns:

I have a dog, a black lab. So I need something that is pet friendly.
Other than that, I don't want an hour long commute and I haven't looked at traffic data during rush hour times.



So, any suggestions?

[bler144]

Well, with just a few exceptions not much in the metro will be outside an hour to downtown. The usual objection is that congestion means that routes that look like they should take 20 min end up taking a full hour.

Where are your potential employers located? For example, if you were working at Nike in Beaverton, you don't want to live east of the river because of the various bottlenecks getting to the west side.

For those who don't have kids, the big questions are where you're commuting to, and what your housing budget is.

[urbanlife78]

You wouldn't be the first from Michigan to move to Portland, I have a number of friends that have done it that use to live in Michigan. Some made it, some didn't.

Depending on what you can afford, you should probably look in areas that are close to where your job is, it is good to have a short work commute because when it comes to commuting for fun Portland is an easy city to get around in.

The dog won't be too much of an issue, just need to make sure a place takes that size of a dog.

[Nell Plotts]

Avoid a commute into the city center on Hgy 26 (the Sunset Highway), I-5 or I-84 in the morning (outbound after 3PM), and avoid I-217 any direction.

The best rental search tool is Craigslist and PadMapper.

If the positions are within the City then you aren't looking at NIKE, Columbia Sportswear or Intel (three of our large employers).

[LittleOne10]

Portland's a bit spread out and each neighborhood has its own unique characteristics. It also has an extensive public transportation system, as well as numerous roads with designated bike paths. I commute into downtown Portland every day, and drive through rush hour traffic, and it's really not that bad compared to other major cities. It really depends on which area you're working, and what direction you have to commute.
If you have a dog and want to be near a lot of parks, I suggest SW or the east side.

[ChargerMatt]

The location of this potential employer is right off the 205/84 crossing

[Steve Pickering]

Go for Rockwood or Gresham.

[sergeim105]

Anywhere on the Eastside would be good from Inner NE/SE to Outer NE/SE, that's a pretty easy spot to commute to from the Eastside. I could name a dozen neighborhoods that would be easy to navigate from. Montavilla would be an easy first idea to consider. Specifically in the SE 70's within 5 blocks north or south of Stark would be ideal. You may even be able to bike to work, however there are a lot of busy roads in that area because its near a highway interchange.

[ChargerMatt]

So with everyone mentioning this neighborhood or that neighborhood, I'm guessing there aren't many bad choices for me, it just depends on how much I want to spend and how long I want to commute for?

[urbanlife78]

Originally Posted by ChargerMatt

So with everyone mentioning this neighborhood or that neighborhood, I'm guessing there aren't many bad choices for me, it just depends on how much I want to spend and how long I want to commute for?

Pretty much, Portland in general is a good city, you can't go wrong with any neighborhood depending on what you are looking for.