moving to Portland - advice?

littlepoppyseed

My husband is accepting a job offer in Portland, and I need to start planning a move. His job will have him driving all over the city, and doing some out-of-state travel, so we aren't looking for a particular neighborhood based on his job.

We have a strong desire to be in a more urban area, with good restaurants, shopping, libraries and parks. We have a child that will be entering kindergarten in the fall, and another baby on the way, so schools and family-friendly activities are also very important.

We are moving from Phoenix, and I'm not sure how rent prices compare. We are looking to rent a fairly updated single-family home (3-4 bedrooms, 2 bath, 1500-2500 sq ft) for under $1800, preferably. Is this possible? I would rather sacrifice size of house for a better neighborhood and/or more updated home (we currently rent a remodeled historic home - I LOVE that!).

Any advice about schools, locations, etc would be much appreciated! We are really looking forward to joining a community that (generally) more closely aligns with our values... something that Phoenix definitely doesn't offer us!

Angelcake

You should check out Beaverton/Hillsboro. That's where I live I am sure there are plenty of houses for rent too Check out www.portland.craigslist.org and look into the housing on there. Or there is www.hotpads.com

pdxjenn

If you are looking for walkability you will be hard pressed to find that on the westside unfortunatly, unless you are willing to live in NW Portland (Which is a very fun area, but SPENDY!).

I would look in the following neighborhoods:

Pearl Disrtict (NW)

Sellwood (SE)

Hollwood (NE)

Multnomah (SW)

Laurelhurst (NE/SE)

Hawthorne

ALL of those areas you could EASILY find historic homes for rent... especially in SE and NE. Westside is very suburban and full of strip malls and freeways. I live on the westside and there are some great areas, just not that fit your description.

Not to be an eastside elitist (I do live in SW)... but everything you asked for screams eastside. Especially wanting to rent a historic home.

The only downside is that the Portland Public schools are not the strongest. If you are planning on public school then stick to Multnomah or The Pearl for the best options.

Good luck on the move and hopefully you can come to a GTG!

 

amerifrau

Best advice, having just moved here in December, is to visit first if at all possible! 

Huge variety of neighborhoods, and a lot depends on if you want to be as close to downtown as possible, or if you're looking for a specific type neighborhood (funky vs. staid, elite vs. upper middle vs. blue collar, etc.).  Some neighborhoods more "cleaning service/lawn crew/professional decorator" while some are more "self-composting/veggie gardening/DIY/windchime-collection-on-porch.  And lots in between!  I expect you'll get more for your money if you head for the suburbs, but then you have to deal with the traffic!  Northeast and Southeast Portland are largely residential (read: street after street of charming single family houses from the turn of the century), with great shopping/eating streets sprinkled throughout.  Something I love about the SE (the NE has this to a certain extent too) is that almost every street is lined with trees.  We're in Richmond, in the SE, and lurve it!  Bus to city center is 20 minutes, driving is 10.  I kind of feel like the NE and SE have the same benefits of suburbs while retaining the benefits of being in the city ;} SO, there's my plug for the East Side!

Here are a couple links:

 a way to get vital stats on different neighborhoods and compare them

https://www.portlandmonthlymag.com/real-estate/articles/neighborhoods-by-the-numbers/

interactive real estate map with better (more realistic) neighborhood delineations than first link

https://relocationtoportland.com/search-listings/

and a fun video to get you excited to move!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PC5PDlKKIo

 Feel free to PM me with any more particular questions!

Angelcake

Oops, I thought you said suburban.  Beaverton/Hillsboro are suburban.  But, there are definately great places to live in Beaverton/Hillsboro where you can walk to stuff.  Although my husband and I surely miss SE Portland. 

april262011

SE Portland definitely has what you want house-wise and neighborhood-wise.  Somewhere between SE 10th and SE 70th.  Don't rent out past SE 82nd street, trust me on this one.  Other close-by East side neighborhoods to consider are Alberta, Hollywood, Sellwood.  

Like a PP said, the best schools are in the suburbs west of the city.  The most highly regarded school districts are Lake Oswego, West Linn/Wilsonville, Beaverton, and Sherwood.  

If you can find something in Multnomah Village or really close-in SW Portland, that would be a great compromise (better schools, a bit urban).

queenbone

Another eastside girl here.  In most of SE and many parts of NE you will have the historic housing and commercial walkability for which you are looking.  Some neighborhoods, like Irvington in NE, have adjacent shopping streets (NE Broadway to the south and NE Fremont to the north,) but that leaves you with a wide section in the middle where you are fairly suburban feeling. Same with Laurelhurst, Colonial Heights, Ladd's Edition, and Eastmoreland

SE Neighborhoods like Kerns, Sunnyside, Buckman, Richmond, any of the Tabors, Sellwood, West Moreland have many more business district streets running through them.  And not to toot my own neighborhood's horn, but Sunnyside Environmental School is becoming very popular for it's program.  Transferring is becoming more difficult, so since you have a kindergartner, now would be an good time to get accepted.

 

littlepoppyseed

Thank you, thank you, thank you for all of the advice!  DH will probably be the only one to get to visit before the move - I'm a teacher, so I'll be working until moving time.  I just need to point him in the right direction, and let him pick out a house (scary! I like doing the choosing myself!).  Your information on neighborhoods and schools has been great! 

I'll be sure to keep posting once the move is scheduled... I'm going to need to make some new friends out there- we don't know ANYONE in Portland! 

estherandgeoff2

Check out Portland Monthly online. They have a rating for all the schools in the area that you can view for free. They also have a neighborhood overview that might be helpful. 

 We used to live in SE and loved it there but we had bought a house and it was only a 2-bedroom and a very old house with limited heating so we sold it and bought a house in the burbs. But for renting and with your budget you should be able to find something nice. Check out Sellwood, the area around Division between 15 and 39th, Mt Tabor area, Belmont/Hawthorne area. We lived in Creson-Kenilworth which is near Powell and 39th. We also have friends in Woodstock that like it there. 

I'm not as familiar with N/NE neightborhoods but there are some nice pockets there. SW Portland has some nice areas too though you're more likely to find apartments there. 

Pinkwoman

I just read that you are a teacher The market SUCKS here right now!! The annual teacher fair is in April though if you would like to get familair with the districts. And even getting on as a sub is near impossible unless you have connections. Good luck! I would start looking for work now!!

PS...I live in the Tualatin area and sub in Tigard-Tualatin and Sherwood, which are both GREAT school districts!!!

littlepoppyseed

Pinkwoman:

I just read that you are a teacher The market SUCKS here right now!! The annual teacher fair is in April though if you would like to get familair with the districts. And even getting on as a sub is near impossible unless you have connections. Good luck! I would start looking for work now!!

PS...I live in the Tualatin area and sub in Tigard-Tualatin and Sherwood, which are both GREAT school districts!!!

Thanks for the heads-up on the job fair and job prospects.  Luckily, this move will allow me to stay at home with our newest addition - due in August.  I am excited to just be a volunteer in my son's kindergarten class and stay low-stress for awhile  Hopefully the job market for teachers will right itself once again by the time I anticipate returning to work (3-4 years, probably).

Thanks again, ladies, for the many recommendations - I have so much to think about!