need help picking the best fit neighborhood for our young family (recent kidney transplant recipient) (Portland: best neighborhood, insurance)

[usernameisalreadyinuse]

Greetings!
My husband and I are both in our early 30s. I am a nurse and he is a pharmacist. We have 2 boys (3 and 1) and I am currently pregnant. Our annual gross is $210K and we have about $90K in cash. We both work from home and will be able to move with our jobs. We need help finding the best neighborhood for our family. Here are our needs:
1) Safety-We are smart and are embracing the minimalistic lifestyle. We really don't have anything that someone might want..really! We just want to be safe.
2) Good public schools-We don't want to pay for private. We work with our kids a lot at home.
3) Good healthcare- I received a kidney almost 10 years ago so I need access to a good hospital just in case. I also need to see a kidney doctor every 3 months for labs and check ups.
4) Close to public transportation-We don't like to drive (hence we work from home). I would love to be car-free.
5) Can walk to grocery stores, public library, parks, restaurants, gym-We don't want to drive.
6) At least 3 bedrooms, 1 bath, maybe a small yard

Our budget for a house is $400K. We can afford a lot more than that but we don't want to be house poor. We also need to be conservative on how much mortgage we can afford because I might have to back on disability in the future if my new kidney decides to quit working.

Thank you! Please help us get out of here! I am so tired of this dump!

[oregonwoodsmoke]

I don't have a neighborhood to recommend, but Portland has the OHSU, so medical care is top notch.

[AnotherPDXGuy]

It is unclear if you want to live in Portland proper, or in the region. You will likely have to visit and look around. The best public high schools in Pdx are Lincoln on the west side and Grant on the east side. You should look for the elementary/mid schools which feed into these, and those should be good districts. These areas also tend to cost more. For a family, you probably want to look on the east side. The west side is downtown and NW pdx which is pretty expensive.

Out of curiosity, how does one be a nurse or a pharmacist and work from home?

[patches403]

Good schools and being close to public transportation don't really go together in the same neighborhoods here. Most of the best school districts are in the suburbs where public transportation is too spotty to be relied on for 100% of anyone's transportation needs. Portland is a very difficult place to go car-free in spite of what the city leaders would tell you; the coverage of the public transportation system outside the city center is just not that good.

If you want to stay close in, the neighborhoods west of the Willamette will have better schools, but the public transportation options will be mainly bus routes that may or may not go where you need them to in a reasonable amount of time. I would say the best Portland neighborhoods that have most of what you want that might be within your budget would be areas like Raleigh Hills, Multnomah Village etc. Basically SW Portland.

[Harpaint]

The idea of being completely car-free is not realistic here IMO, either in the city or the burbs. If you chose an area such as Tanasborne, you would be close to the services you need and driving could be kept to a minimum. The Max train and buses are also readily available there. This is an area where a large number of young professionals reside.

[NWGirl74]

Originally Posted by AnotherPDXGuy

Out of curiosity, how does one be a nurse or a pharmacist and work from home?

I was wondering that as well. I can see a nurse with in-home patients but a pharmacist?

[Harpaint]

Originally Posted by NWGirl74

I was wondering that as well. I can see a nurse with in-home patients but a pharmacist?

The nurse could be working for an insurance company and the pharmacist could be working for on line scripts?

[usernameisalreadyinuse]

Originally Posted by AnotherPDXGuy

It is unclear if you want to live in Portland proper, or in the region. You will likely have to visit and look around. The best public high schools in Pdx are Lincoln on the west side and Grant on the east side. You should look for the elementary/mid schools which feed into these, and those should be good districts. These areas also tend to cost more. For a family, you probably want to look on the east side. The west side is downtown and NW pdx which is pretty expensive.

Out of curiosity, how does one be a nurse or a pharmacist and work from home?

WOW! Thank you very much for all the replies! I work as a clinical advisor for a research company. Our clients are pharmaceutical companies. I started out as the only nurse in my department but we have plans to expand so I will most likely be promoted to management by May 2016. I work from home full-time. I've met my manager in person once during the 3rd panel interview. Our company does meet annually so associates could mingle but my manager had conferences to attend the last 5 years so I haven't seen him since. A lot of nurses can work from home. I have many friends who work for insurance companies as case managers, consultants and etc. My husband works for an insurance company and he approves specialty medicines. He also works from home full-time. He is the running for a consultant role with the same company and if he gets it, he will still be able to work from home. Sorry, if i am talking too much but working from home has given us the work-life balance that we need. We have also been able to save a lot of money (no buying lunches, no work clothes, no make-up, no wear and tear on cars, no gas). Another important thing is that I am on immuno-suppresants so not having to work in an office or hospital has helped me not get sick too much.

[usernameisalreadyinuse]

Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke

I don't have a neighborhood to recommend, but Portland has the OHSU, so medical care is top notch.

OHSU is on the West side right? Does the Max go there? If yes, which line? Which neighborhood is it in? Thank you!

[usernameisalreadyinuse]

Originally Posted by patches403

Good schools and being close to public transportation don't really go together in the same neighborhoods here. Most of the best school districts are in the suburbs where public transportation is too spotty to be relied on for 100% of anyone's transportation needs. Portland is a very difficult place to go car-free in spite of what the city leaders would tell you; the coverage of the public transportation system outside the city center is just not that good.

If you want to stay close in, the neighborhoods west of the Willamette will have better schools, but the public transportation options will be mainly bus routes that may or may not go where you need them to in a reasonable amount of time. I would say the best Portland neighborhoods that have most of what you want that might be within your budget would be areas like Raleigh Hills, Multnomah Village etc. Basically SW Portland.

Thank you very much for your reply. I was looking at houses in Raleigh Hills and Multnomah Village earlier today! Multnomah Village has the Orange line right?