Live in Washington work on Oregon? (Portland, Beaverton: real estate, assessors, house)

[MtnSurfer]

Do any of you live on one side of the river and work on the other? For example live in Vancouver or White Salmon and work in Portland or Hood River/The Dalles?

I am just curious how many people actually do this and what advantages there may be. Obviously no income tax is one incentive. I have heard a lot of folks say wages are generally lower in Oregon. From the job listings I have seen this seems to be somewhat true. I have lived in California and now Colorado. In both places I have enjoyed a decent wage. I am a aerospace software engineer and need to support my wife and three children. If my wages go down, being able to keep more of my pay may be a good thing.

Are there other advantages/disadvantages to 'crossing over'?

Thanks,

- Derek

[PNW-type-gal]

Originally Posted by MtnSurfer

Do any of you live on one side of the river and work on the other? For example live in Vancouver or White Salmon and work in Portland or Hood River/The Dalles?

I am just curious how many people actually do this and what advantages there may be. Obviously no income tax is one incentive. I have heard a lot of folks say wages are generally lower in Oregon. From the job listings I have seen this seems to be somewhat true. I have lived in California and now Colorado. In both places I have enjoyed a decent wage. I am a aerospace software engineer and need to support my wife and three children. If my wages go down, being able to keep more of my pay may be a good thing.

Are there other advantages/disadvantages to 'crossing over'?

If you live in Washington but work in Oregon, you WILL pay Oregon income tax, which runs about 9% (roughly). That's the biggest disadvantage, but the commute is another - you have to go over the Columbia River, and in the Portland metro area there are only 2 bridges. The traffic near Hood River isn't as serious, and the fact that you're going over the Hood River bridge isn't as big a deal (there's also Bridge of the Gods, downriver quite a bit).

There's little to no aerospace in Oregon - Columbia Helicopters, FLIR and a Boeing fab would be about it.

[MtnSurfer]

Thanks PNW-type-gal,

I didn't realize that one would still have to pay Oregon income tax even if you didn't reside there. In that case there would be no great advantage for me.

Even thought I work in aerospace now, I would consider working in other high tech industries. The main thing I would be looking for is a solid, stable company which is the most important thing for me. I know there are no guarantees and that even Intel and HP have layoffs. But I prefer working for a company with a solid history and financial stability. I already went thru the dot com bust working for a start up = no fun.

[PNW-type-gal]

My husband still works in high tech (I got out) - most of the largest companies are in the Beaverton-Hillsboro area, with the exceptions being Hewlett Packard in Vancouver, WA and Corvallis, OR and Xerox in Wilsonville.

[ginger44]

Hi - I am also looking to move to either Vancouver or Portland, so thought I'd also ask a question here...

If living in Vancouver, which of the 2 bridges into Portland is less congested? I can get a job at a hospital on either side, but was wondering what my husband would have to go through if he had to drive over the bridge.

Thanks!

[PNW-type-gal]

Originally Posted by ginger44

Hi - I am also looking to move to either Vancouver or Portland, so thought I'd also ask a question here...

If living in Vancouver, which of the 2 bridges into Portland is less congested? I can get a job at a hospital on either side, but was wondering what my husband would have to go through if he had to drive over the bridge.

Thanks!

I-205 (The Glen Jackson Bridge) is far less congested - it's newer and has double the lanes (more or less). Several of the offramps back up, though.

The I-5 bridge is, pretty much, 3 lanes, and I-5 narrows to 2 lanes just south of the bridge, causing huge backups. IF/WHEN the interstate committee decides to fix it, there will be years of construction congestion and another bottleneck will still exist just a few miles south, where the 405 splits off of I-5. Potentially, construction on the I-5 bridge will back up the I-205 bridge as well. I'm not entirely convinced the committee will get around to deciding to do anything, though.

Where you're starting from and what your destination is play heavily into which bridge you take, though - even though the I-5 bridge backs up (badly), it still might make more sense to go that way than to drive quite a ways out of the way to get somewhere.

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by MtnSurfer

...I know there are no guarantees and that even Intel and HP have layoffs. ....

guess that would be me! Laid off after 32 yrs of service, and only 6 wks before retirement. Now I get to pay $1,000/month for medical rather than free... but it was good for 'the company'

WA is not as attractive now that there is no income to tax

my CoL numbers indicate that OR and WA costs are about the same for me (low / no income) as long as you are in an area of real estate equity growth. OR actually has favorable property tax in many areas (not the way it used to be), and they list as more favorable on overall tax burden. (WA is #3 ) But OR has significant funding issues at the state level.

Best bet... live and work in WA in an area of moderate home costs, and within EZ commute of OR. That would not include Clark County (Vancouver), unless you can find a 'beater' house in an area with a low levy. Their assessors are very aggressive and nailing owners for 'bubble' prices. (one of my props increased 48% this yr and another 76% yes, that is tax valuation increase in ONE yr @ ~ 1.5% tax on value) Tough to pay with ZERO income.

[MtnSurfer]

Wow Jan,

That really stinks. I can't believe they would do that after 32 yrs of service.

Thanks for the tips on WA. My wife has family just outside of Vancouver (Brush Prairie). They say it is like being in the country and were able to buy a few acres. They really love the area - close to Portland, Oregon Beaches, Mt Hood, etc...

I guess I would be concerned with going over the bridge every day. It would be better to work in Vancouver.

That is amazing that your properties went up in value so much, especially with the market cooling nationwide.

[diggitydot]

Originally Posted by MtnSurfer

I have heard a lot of folks say wages are generally lower in Oregon. From the job listings I have seen this seems to be somewhat true.

Thanks,

- Derek

Hey Derek,

I'm not sure which job listings you're referring to, but normally wages in Oregon are higher than their counterparts in southern Washington. People living in WA are really unwilling to work in Oregon for even equal pay since they still have to contend with paying the Oregon income tax, even though they reside in Washington.

Kind of like real estate, it's all about location. If you have a lower cost of living in an area, you'll likely find lower wages. When the cost of living is higher, you'll find the inverse is just as true. I worked for MANY years in Portland because I wouldn't make anywhere near the same wages in SW Washington that I was making in Portland.

[MtnSurfer]

Diggitydot,

I was actually referring to general wages in the PNW as compared to toher places such as Colorado. I lived in California at one point and was able to move to Colorado and retain my same salary. This goes a lot further in a place where home prices average ~250K vs 750K in Ca.

But in the PNW wages seem significantly lower than either Colorado or Cal. I just don't know if I could afford a major pay cut while supporting my family.