[Guest Post] Falling in Love with Portland is Easy

An increasing number of residents are considering moving out of the Bay Area. To help with their search for a new home, this is part of a series of posts written by Red Oak’s brokerage partners from around the country. We are members of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, the largest network of independent brokerages in the country. If you would like help exploring your options, please contact us.

Portland is Oregon’s largest city and sits on the Columbia and Willamette rivers, in the shadow of snow-capped Mount Hood. It’s known for its quality of life, friendly people, parks, bridges and bicycle paths, as well as its eco-friendliness, microbreweries, coffeehouses and neighboring wine country. The city hosts thriving art, theater and music scenes. A short distance to the mountains for skiing, the Gorge for sightseeing and hiking, and the ocean beaches for whale watching and kite flying make Portland a premier U.S. location. Portland boasts one of the lower costs of living on the West Coast. In July 2020 the average single-family home was $559,798 and the condo average was $343,650. Vancouver’s average for SFH was $475,046 and Condos averaged $314,386.

The greater Portland area includes Vancouver, Washington, located just across the Columbia River. By the time of the 2020 Census, it's estimated that the population will exceed 4.3 million combining Vancouver and Portland metro areas. Although Portland has 4 distinct seasons, they are typically mild. The public transportation systems from light rail train, bus, streetcar, bike, and car services are more popular than ever with Portland raking high for one of the nation’s congested traffic. Unemployment is typically one of the lowest in the US.

The Places in the City

Fourteen Bridges offer beautiful views and convenient travel over the Willamette River and connect Portland’s East and West Side including the new modernist cable-stayed bridge, Tilikum Crossing, which is the only bridge in Portland not open to private motor vehicles but offers pedestrian, bus, bike and light rail traffic. In addition, two major bridges are thorough fares between Portland and Vancouver, WA.

The Downtown area of Portland is on the west bank of the Willamette River, and is where you find the commercial center of the city, with a series of high rise towers where many major companies are located. However, even here you cannot get away from how green and attractive the city is, with the Tom McCall Waterfront Park being one of the areas where the business people of Portland will spend lunch hours and evenings after work. This park runs along the riverside area and has a wealth of plants including some lovely cherry blossom displays when they are in bloom. This park is also a key part of the annual Portland Rose Festival.

Enjoying the Outdoors

One of the many draws to living in Portland is how quickly you can escape the urban area. While most cities expand out as they grow and sprawl, Portland does not. Oregon established an urban growth boundary law. This law controls the Portland area’s urban growth boundary and urban expansion, therefore, protecting farms and forest that surround Oregon’s cities. Thanks to the urban growth boundary law a short drive will land you in the countryside where fresh air trees and farms abound. You can typically reach downtown Portland in 20 minutes or less using the freeway in non-congested traffic from most corners of the Metro area. High density and smaller lot sizes, especially in the late 1990s and today are common due to the UGB.

Walk for miles on Oregon Beaches as close as a short 1.5 hours from Portland. From Astoria to Haystack Rock to Lincoln City and Waldport, you can explore the Oregon Beaches for years.

You’d be hard-pressed to find vistas as stunning as these. From there dozens of awe-inspiring waterfalls spill from basalt cliffs, lining the Historic Columbia River Highway, like the famous Multnomah Falls, Bridal Veil and Latourell falls. The landscape seems to grow bigger, grander and brighter as it rolls east. The Gorge is made for exploring. Walk along a waterfront, discover hidden waterfalls, follow the wildflowers at Rowena Crest or challenge yourself with a trek up Dog Mountain. Cycle the roads around The Dalles or in the Post Canyon mountain bike network. And it’s hard to resist water sports on the Columbia, especially when Hood River is known as the windsurfing capital of the world.

Hasson Company, Realtors invites you to explore all there is to love about Portland real estate and its neighborhoods on our website hasson.com or call us at (800) 527-4939 or email us at [email protected]. We would love to hear from you.