Small Towns around Portland...help us decide! (Tigard, Lake Oswego: appointed, apartment)

[OregonLove63]

I haven't been on here in a while, but my previous posts have been about where to move in Oregon...well, we STILL want to move, but are looking for some advice/suggestions!

We're firming up our plans for a two week visit in September, and would greatly appreciate any suggestions of areas to check out. This trip is to get more familiar with the small towns around Portland, with hopes to decide on which one we want to make a permanent move to within the next few years.

We basically want to be able to easily commute to Portland, but have a small town feel. We will be renting to begin with, and would prefer a house in a quiet neighborhood, but are open to rent a condo or townhouse. We don't require alot of "ammenities", but would like to have some restaurants and shopping centers nearby. Oh, and rent needs to be less than $1200, even below $1000 would be better!!

Some of the towns we've done some research on and are on our list to visit in September:
Canby; Newberg; Tigard; Tualatin; Wilsonville; Oregon City; West Linn; Metzger; Sherwood

As you can see from these choices, we prefer the south and southwest side area....so any input would be appreciated about these or any other towns within an hour of Portland.

One last request, can you suggest a hotel in a "centralized location" for visiting most of these towns during our two week visit? I've looked at a couple of hotels in the Tigard/Tualatin area....is that a good choice?

PLEASE help!
And thanks in advance!!!

[Sherwoody]

You didn't mention how many bedrooms but I'm assuming 3. You will be lucky to find a house for under $1500 in any of those towns, well maybe Canby but I've never checked there. A friend found a decent house in McMinnville for around $1200 a few months ago.

We used the Best Western in King City when relocating but we didn't stay two weeks. That would be pretty spendy but I'll bet someone will chime in with a more affordable suggestion.

[gray horse]

Lakeshore Inn in Lake Oswego.

[redguard57]

If you want Portland metro area but lower housing costs I would take a serious look at the Washington side of the Columbia River.

Ie: Longview/Kelso, Washington. I think you could find a house for rent in the $1000 range there.

Smaller or older houses can be rented in Vancouver in the $1200 range.

[Nell Plotts]

However if the OP works in Oregon they need to consider the relative costs of the commute.

[Rob Allen]

The only towns in the OP's list that really have a "small town feel" are Newberg and Canby. The rest are just part of the Portland metro area.

You might want to look at Forest Grove also.

[redguard57]

If the OP wants rents at the $1000 or $1200 price point for a 3br house, commuting is going to happen regardless.

[patches403]

Where do you need to commute to for work? That will be a huge factor in where you would pick to live as some of the towns you mentioned could easily be 1 1/2 - 2 hour one way commutes to other parts of the metro area. Traffic in Portland is far worse than it should be for a city of its size.

Your budget for rent is way too low for a decent house, even being an hour or more out of town unless you will have roommates to split the cost with.

As another poster mentioned, almost all the towns you mentioned are suburbs of Portland and feel very much like suburbs. Newberg is the only one you've mentioned that I would consider to feel like a small town. As someone else mentioned, look at Forest Grove. Also maybe Banks and North Plains.

I get the feeling from your post that you've never been to Portland before so it's good that you're coming to visit. If after your visit you still want to move here, I suggest you make plans to increase your rent budget by several hundred dollars a month as I think you are going to be very disappointed in what little you find available for $1,000 - $1,200 a month. In many parts of the metro area, your budget won't even get you a two bedroom apartment and many of the West and Southern suburbs of the metro area are just as expensive as being in the city itself. The Portland metro area is not as expensive for housing as NYC, DC, LA, SF or Seattle but it's far more expensive than most of the US.

[QueenRose]

Sherwood is a very nice bedroom community with a quaint, adorable "downtown." It's a small community, mostly Christian, and has a fantastic YMCA. Rents are not cheap anywhere in the metro area. Newberg is a small town along a highway, though the segment that was the old downtown is quaint also. Canby is similar. Tigard is sprawling, turning into a dirty big city, and Tualatin is cleaner but also part of urban sprawl. Same for Wilsonville.

September is a beautiful time of year in Oregon but I'm afraid if you visit then, you will be deceived and might regret moving here. Please come visit during the winter months. It might have an impact on your decision. i find it rainy and depressing. We live part of the year elsewhere but have reasons we can't leave Oregon permanently. If I could, I would leave, just personal reasons, some having to do with the winter rain and overcast gray for so many months on end. It is also a wonderful area in many ways and might be just the place for you.