Anybody live in the state of Washington or Oregon? (1 Viewer)

[Robert Crawford]

About ten years from now, I'll be retiring and I want to relocate to another area of the country. I don't particularly care for hot nor cold weather, however, rain doesn't really bother me. I will appreciate any useful information, members may have to offer in regard to the Pacific Northwest. Information like housing costs, overpopulated areas, undesirable locations and which cities are most attractive for retirees. I've looked at Seattle, but the housing costs seem pretty high, probably due to the tech. market and Californians relocating there. Anyhow, I'll appreciate any thoughts on the matter.




Crawdaddy

 

[Jack Briggs]

Eugene, Oregon, Crawdaddy. It's one of the most beautiful towns around. Now, you're a tough sort of guy, doing all the labor negotiating and such. Your presence might scare the local hippie population. But the town is beautiful, and the COL is reasonable for the West Coast.

 

[KyleS]

Robert,

Oregon and Washington fit your bill as long as you stay within the valley or over on the coast of either state. One thing is that Oregon doesnt have sales Tax and Washington does so that may be one thing that could sway you.

Medford Oregon close to the California border was rated I believe in the top 5 best places to retire in all of the US. Good weather which doesnt get too hot in the summer and rarely snows. Portland and Seattle will have the typical big city housing prices and you have to deal with traffic. Of course they have more cultural events due to the populations like museums, operas, events, sports, etc.

I live in Eugene which is about 1.5-2 hours south of Portland and absolutely love it. Great summers and rarely a drop of snow but yes we do get plenty of rain in the fall and spring, but that is one of the reason we have such pleasent summers. Everything is green through summer because of all the rain in the spring. Coast and the mountains are within 1-2 hours drive and we have all the major conveniences of a major city except for Pro sports teams. Housing prices are higher then the national average. 1500 square foot home 3bd 2bath in a nice area will run you between 140-175K.

I have heard that Vancouver Washinton is nice due to the weather and because you are in a smaller city with Portland Oregon only 15-30 minutes away. Most people that live in Vancouver simply drive across the border to shop since they dont have to pay tax in Oregon. Vehicle registration I believe is still high in Washinton but I could be wrong about that one. Oregon is $35 for 3 years no matter what type of car, truck, or SUV you have.

KyleS

Now of course living here most of my life I would love to live in an area with a ton of sun (like when I lived in Vegas) but I notice that we have a lot of retiries in Oregon. Best of luck on the decision.

 

[PatrickM]

I don't live in Washington State but I'm just north in Vancouver, Canada. Bellingham, Washington is not bad although its a bit rural. Its not a huge city but the weather is good. I lived there for a 7 1/2 month stretch consulting and I have to say the weather there was always better than Vancouver or Seattle at a given time.

Even when it was raining in Vancouver and Seattle it usually wasn't in Bellingham. If you like the ocean its great too especially if you like boating. Lots of harbours there.

There's no state income tax and both Vancouver and Seattle are short drives away.

Patrick

 

[KyleS]

Now Jack we are not all hippies but we do have a higher population of them then most parts of the country.
You also get the added benefit of having a great college in the town if you Enjoy college sports. The football team is usally really good and Oregon has always had a great track program. Basketball is picking up (Elite 8).
We have a performing arts center, hiking, semi pro baseball, GREAT summers, etc.
Population of Eugene/Springfield is around 250,000 or so and growing but not too fast.
KyleS

 

[Seungsoo Hwang]

lived in portland for most my life, moved to vancouver last year, and going to school in seattle. Id have to say living conditions in vancouver or portland is a lot better in my opinion than is in seattle. For some reason it feels like the air here sucks compared to the lower cities... also seems a lot dirtier.

 

[Tony_Faville]

I live in Beaverton, Oregon (Nike, Intel, Soloflex, Leupold, etc, etc.) but have lived in all corners of the state.

Stick within the Valley and you will find your perfect conditions year around.

Cost of living is not inhibitive but still likely higher than what you are used to.

It's a beautiful state though.

 

[Christopher P]

I've lived in the Puget Sound area most of my life, but have travelled alot and consider this area among my favorites. Maybe because I've spent the most time here...who knows. WA has high sales tax, but no state income tax (that might have been covered) I would never live in Seattle, but I am about 15-20 minutes away and it is pretty convenient....cheaper housing, less traffic, etc...while still being close enough to the attractions of Seattle. The weather here gets too much bad press I think. Sometimes it can just be dreary though, for lack of a better word. Don't know much about Oregon.

Anything specific you want to know...please ask me!

Chris

 

[Ryan Wright]

I've lived in eastern Washington my entire life. Robert, what sort of weather are you interested in? This area is a desert oasis. Literally. We're in the middle of a desert - full of sagebrush - yet are also at the conflux of three major rivers (Columbia, Snake and Yakima). The weather can best be described as tropical without the humidity. Summer temps between 80 and 100, with very low humidity. Winter, it rarely gets very cold, and you can expect a week or so of snow max.
The area is not huge, but it's not a small town, either. Any major store or restaurant you might wish to visit probably has a presence here.
More info & pictures of the Tri-City area: http://www.tcfn.org/tctour/
(Yes, there is life on this side of the state!!!)

 

[Robert Crawford]

Thanks for the input and please, keep it coming. I was born and raised in the NYC Metro area with no desire to go back there except to visit family. I spent five years living in Tennessee while attending college, however, I've come to hate hot and humid weather. Since graduating, I've spent my adult life in the Midwest in such states as Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan, but I've had my fill of the cold winters and humid summers. I've lived in college towns before like Champaign, Illinois and Bloomington, Indiana, therefore Eugene, Oregon does interests me. I've plan on visiting the Northwest area either this fall or next year just to start checking out the area. All my life, I've always had a desire to live in an area that has great landscape such as mountains and forests.



Crawdaddy

 

[Robert Crawford]

Let me get this right, if I live in Vancouver, Washington where there isn't any state income taxes then I can simply drive over to Portland, Oregon about 20 minutes away and shop without any sales tax. Is that correct?




Crawdaddy

 

[Christoph]

Your tax evasion scenario is absolutely correct. At one time, there was a lower sales tax rate in the Washington border counties, but this was ruled unconstitutional.
As far as where to consider moving to, I guess it depends on what's important to you. Are you an outdoorsman? Do you want to be able to easily go to the symphony or the theater? Do you prefer to live among people who share your politics/worldview? Is it important to be close to an airport? Are you a boater, or just enjoy being near the water?
I grew up north of Bellingham Great place in many ways, only a couple hours from Seattle, an hour from Vancouver, BC, easy access to the North Cascades, mostly rural but Bellingham is a decent town. I don't think I would want to live there again, though--more for personal reasons than because of the area.
When my Dad retired, he decided Whatcom County was too crowed, and moved to Powell Butte, Oregon, outside of Bend. He loves it, but he's way into hunting, fishing, hiking, etc. From my point of view, he lives too far from everything, but Bend is cool in that hip mountain town sorta way--which makes it relatively expensive. Before he decided to move there, he was strongly considering Montana.
I currently live in Kitsap County, WA, just across the sound from Seattle. Wonderful for several reasons: lower real estate prices, only a short ferry ride from the city, easy access to the Olympic penninsula, etc. But I commute into Seattle daily for my job, and the 90 minutes door-to-door is killing me, so I'm thinking seriously about moving into the city. Of course if you were retired, you wouldn't be worrying about that...
As far as popular retirement locations, many people seem to like Sequim (say "Skwim"). It's in the rain shadow of Olympics, so the climate is drier than much of western Washington.
I would suggest: spend some time, travel around, see what feels right.
-Christoph

 

[Larry Schneider]

I'm a few years ahead of you. I love the area, and will be there in 2-4 years. I like Bellingham and the top of the Olympic Peninsula; soon I'm going to check out the Oregon coast in the vicinity of Newport. Oregon has no sales tax but does have a substantial income tax; Washington has the opposite setup.

Have you been out there yet?

 

[Mike St.Louis]

Your tax evasion scenario is absolutely correct.

I believe the correct term is 'tax avoision'
I was raised in Eugene but grew up in Canada. I desperately want to move back once the economy picks up again.
You can take the boy out of America but you can't take the America out of the boy.

 

[Craig Robertson]

One thing is that Oregon doesnt have sales Tax and Washington does

while Oregon doesn't have a sales tax, it has the 8th highest government spending per capita of the 50 states. whether it's a called a sales tax, income tax or a fee, there are only 7 other states that take more money out of your pocket.

 

[AviTevet]

In Portland there's opportunity to live downtown for big bucks or in suburbia for a little less, but it's still expensive. Decent 3br/2ba homes on the West side (Intel, Nike, InFocus, etc) start around $150k, but the nicer ones are higher cost, especially as you move closer to the city, up the hills, or closer to Nike/Intel. It's a beautiful city though, I'd say 2nd most beautiful in the nation after Colorado Springs. Plus you're 2 hours from the coast or skiing.

About living in Vancouver though, if you work in Oregon, then you have to pay Oregon's income tax. So the tax avoision only works if you live and work in Vancouver, then shop in Oregon.

 

[Philip_G]

housing in PDX pretty much sucks, but it's a great town to live in, close to the mountain, close to the ocean, fishing everywhere. I'd live in PDX much sooner than I would eugene, but that's just me (I lived there for 3 years or so)

 

[Jack Briggs]

I've come to hate hot and humid weather.

Sorry, everyone, but why does that sound like a plea for Southern California? Really now. Don't sell short our pitiful lil' corner of the US of A just now!

 

[Brian W.]

Well, I was born and raised in the Seattle area. Moved to L.A. three years ago. (I'm about to go back on vacation in two weeks.)

I can tell you to forget about buying a house in the city of Seattle, or probably even in King County, where Seattle is located. Housing and rental prices are through the roof there. Seattle has one of the lowest apartment vacancy rates in the country. I think the average price for a studio when I moved three years ago was something like $800, and the vacancy rate was 2%. And there are no renter's laws in Washington -- they can raise your rent as much and as often as they want.

If you have your eye on Washington, you might have a look at Snohomish County, the next county north of King. I lived there in the city of Everett for a few years, and liked it. God, I had the nicest apartment I've ever lived in there -- one bedroom, two walk-in closets, spacious kitchen and bathroom, and an enclosed balcony, all for less than I paid for my crummy studio apartment on Capital Hill in Seattle.

Seattle has a great bus system, so if you worked in the city and lived in the suburbs you would probably find it fairly easy to take the bus to work.

Pierce County, south of Seattle... well, it is cheaper there also... it's also quite conservative. Snohomish is more conservative than King, but not redneck like Pierce.

Another area of Washington I've always liked is Bellingham. It's beautiful up there. A small college town. Best of all, it's only about an hour or so drive from Vancouver, B.C. (Depending on how long you have to wait in line at the border.) I haven't traveled much, but of the places I have visited Vancouver is the place that keeps coming back to my mind as a place to settle down someday (though I hear it's harder than hell for Americans to emigrate).

If the rain bothers you, well, you're looking at the wrong two states. On the other hand, it rarely gets above 90 degrees in the summer, at least in Western Washington. I miss that on 110 degree days here in the San Fernando Valley. (I'm more or less used to it, but I just thought I would die my first summer here.)

 

[Greg_R]

For retirement, I would look into Bend, OR. Located on the other side of the mountains, it gets very little rain. The mountains and rivers in that area are incredibly beautiful (lots of people vacation there). Speaking of rain, the annual rain fall in Portland is around the national average. We just get a constant fine mist (vs. large thunderstorms). One thing I noticed (after moving from MD) was that the summer days were much longer and the winter days were very short.