Current information on living in Dallas OR (Portland, Eugene: real estate, rentals)

[Nester2]

Hi - I have searched for information on Dallas OR and found a few threads but some are a bit old and don't really address any specifics about neighborhoods so I apologize if you have seen this question a few times.
My husband and I are retired, sold our house in Vancouver WA about eight weeks ago and decided to spend some time in Central Oregon while deciding where to live out our lives. Yes, we have been enjoying it here but I don't think this is the place for me although husband likes it. Our two children are at opposite sides of the states so while we would love to be close to them I don't think we can make our living decision solely on that. Besides, I imagine they will be moving a few times over the years as well. Husband is native Oregonian and attended OSU in Corvallis while I am originally from northern CA. As I said, we are retired and have a limited income now so we need an affordable place to live. I have been studying real estate sites and I see no bargains but I am hoping we will find something if we become serious lookers. We drove around Dallas about a year ago and liked the feel and the main city park. We like the location of the town - can get to the coast and pdx within an hour or two but far enough away from the Portland Metro area. Can anyone tell me about the specific neighborhoods, ease of living, any draw backs to living in Dallas? I did read a thread with a comment about diversity intolerance and some small town politics - any expansion on either of these? Thank you so much for any info you can share!

[Silverfall]

Dallas has a lot of small town politics. Honestly, you'd just have to go and spend some time there to decide. I think you are referring to the thread from a man that was moving after living there for 4 years. Whether or not that is your experience depends on you and your expectations.

[Hawk J]

Some of the folks on oregonfishingforum.com live in Dallas. They seem to like it there. Someone mentioned there are wild Turkeys around town.
Turkey Attack! - YouTube

[Nester2]

Thanks for your response, Silverfall. Yes, I understand your point. We expect that we will have to rent first while we check out the town/area. We are doing just that in Central Oregon right now. After being homeowners for over 30 years renting is a bit uncomfortable for me but it is necessary at this stage. We don't really have any big expectations. We are quiet people, not big socializers, like walking and biking so we are looking for a place that is peaceful but not isolated, within easy access to pdx for kids flying in to see us and our traveling as well. Bike friendly - good safe places to ride. Also, I like the lower taxes in Dallas. We will need all the $ breaks we can get. Do you know anything about the neighborhoods? North, south, east and west of the town center? Do you know if the town is growing at all? I don't see a Fred Meyer there, only a Walmart, which is too bad...

[Nester2]

Loved the Turkey "shoot" Hawk J! Thanks for the chuckle! Husband did some fishing many years ago before his job and life took over. He is going to pick it up again here in Cent OR and I am going to join him very soon! I will suggest he check out the oregonfishingforum. Thank you!

[Steve Pickering]

When my wife retired in 2011 (I retired in 2000) We found acreage in Dallas (The last house in town within the city limits to the south) on a hill with a spectacular view for $56,000. We have about $85,000 in it including the purchase price with remodeling and all.

Dallas is a mixed neighborhood community with many areas having Old and New side by side. (Very Old and Very New). But there are some rather upscale and new only communities also.

Taxes are low here in comparison to other places. The coast is close, and Salem is only 15 minutes away to major shopping. Portland is within 50 miles or less depending. International Airport is only 2 hours door to door. Traffic is almost non existent. The weather has four seasons with mild winters. You are right at the coastal foothills with the Cascade range within 30 miles to the east.

Yes small town politics can be amusing (This comes from a former City Council, Mayor, County Commissioner candidate), but you can actually have a say.

We have Gas, Electric, wind, and solar throughout the community. Crime is very low with modest to heavy METH use which is confined to Poverty Flats on the Northeast side. Drunk driving and an occasional murder make most of the headlines.




Our View

[Nester2]

Wow, thanks Steve! Looks like you have exactly what we want! What a beautiful location! Yes, sounds like Dallas might be the place for us. Your descriptions sound about what I expected/hoped for. I hope there is something cheap enough for us when we start to look at real estate. We rented a furnished place here in Central Oregon for six months (all of our belongings are in storage in Vancouver) so we could just relax while we do our homework on areas. Husband retired five years ago and I just resigned from my job in May. I'm not quite retirement age yet but I've had enough... We never took to the Vancouver area very well but we were tethered to PDX all those years for husband's job and then when you have children, well, you just stay put. So, now that we have total freedom (except for money constrictions, of course) we don't know where to go! Be careful what you wish for! We love Corvallis, of course everyone does, but it is too expensive for us. So, perhaps it will be Dallas. I found a couple of files on the City of Dallas website. One is a property tax comparison and the other is a survey comparison of costs of utilities for several surrounding small towns. Great information and the tax information was very interesting. Dallas definitely takes the lead in the least taxes and expenses for a town with full services (police, fire, ambulance). Do you find that you are driving to Salem a lot for things? I see that Dallas has a Safeway, and a Walmart (which I usually try to avoid).

[Steve Pickering]

Dallas is a relatively short drive to Salem, but we find most of what we need right here. We did use Lowe's a lot during remodel but we used the local hardware/building supply just as much. We actually only go to Salem because we want to, not because we need to.

The Portland Airport is two hours door to door. Corvallis is only 25 miles and we go there for the eclectic college food on occasion or passing through to Eugene. There is a large Waremart in Independence 5 miles away, and a Roth’s (Like Albertson’s for the non Wal-Mart crowd who like spending more for the same items to prove a point). We have a very good selection of restaurants in town or nearby.

There are a lot of rentals right now with school out. Houses currently on the market are running from $80,000 to $450,000. There are some real upscale properties with acreage on the market at this time. Yes we have Million dollar plus houses here, but we have dirt cheap and mostly affordable also. Rents in today’s paper were from $350.00 to $1,200 a month and everything in between.

[Silverfall]

Originally Posted by Nester2

Thanks for your response, Silverfall. Yes, I understand your point. We expect that we will have to rent first while we check out the town/area. We are doing just that in Central Oregon right now. After being homeowners for over 30 years renting is a bit uncomfortable for me but it is necessary at this stage. We don't really have any big expectations. We are quiet people, not big socializers, like walking and biking so we are looking for a place that is peaceful but not isolated, within easy access to pdx for kids flying in to see us and our traveling as well. Bike friendly - good safe places to ride. Also, I like the lower taxes in Dallas. We will need all the $ breaks we can get. Do you know anything about the neighborhoods? North, south, east and west of the town center? Do you know if the town is growing at all? I don't see a Fred Meyer there, only a Walmart, which is too bad...

Yes Dallas has grown, but not in an employment sense. Due to the low taxes and ease of commute to Salem during the boom homeowners were moving out there as they could get a much nicer house for less.

There are only a couple of areas, as Steve pointed out, that are generally not in good condition but otherwise it is a hodge podge in many neighborhoods. It isn't really big enough to have bad areas of town by my definition.

[Steve Pickering]

Yep. And that is a good thing. The jobs are in Salem and there seems to be enough to go around. Dallas does not have the major unemployed issues so many small Oregon cities have. And also the mill is to be auctioned off starting this weekend.