Portland: Model Evaluation

It's time to get back to the real reason for this trip, and that is to find a new place to live (and to develop the software that helps people evaluate good places to live). We've seen lots of good scenery, but it's been a long time since we were in a truly viable location for us. Now we have one to consider - Portland.

The model for Portland has some missing data. First let's start with what we know: accessibility is great -- good airport, good hospitals; quality of life is great -- walkable neighborhoods, affordable housing, great views and scenery; climate is good -- mild winters, nice summers, and only 1% less sunshine than Hudson, despite the rumors to the contrary. Work opportunities is a mixed picture: high unemployment and not many fulltime work opportunities, but a great Microsoft network here and good freelance opportunities, so that works for us. The unresolved issue is affordability.

We've looked at housing and we know that now, with the reduction in prices taking place, that we can afford a nice place to live within our budget. The published COL numbers say Portland is 2% higher than Hudson, but that is largely driven by the (old) housing prices. Back those out, and it is no more expensive than Hudson. There is no sales tax here, and property taxes, while high, are not as high as Hudson (which is unfortunately almost in a class by itself - 2% of appraised value). The unknown is availability and cost of health insurance. Oregon is a complicated state on health insurance and you can't get quotes over the internet. I have calls out to people to get some answers, but they've all gone for Memorial Day weekend, I guess.

So, the current model looks like this:

Portland OR (Decision)

• ○This town is a good choice for our next home.
• ●AND [1 of 5] : This town has a good climate.
• ●AND [1 of 2] : This town has moderate winters.
• ○OR [1 of 2] : The number of days each year at or below freezing should be 10 or less.
• ●OR [2 of 2] : The average winter temperature should be at least 10 degrees warmer than Hudson OH.
• ●True
• ●AND [2 of 2] : This town has a good balance of sunshine and summer heat.
• ●OR [1 of 2] : This town has moderate summers in exchange for lots of sunshine.
• ●True
• ○OR [2 of 2] : This town has lots of sunshine but hot summers.
• ○AND [2 of 5] : This town has an affordable cost of living.
• ○AND [1 of 4] : This town has health insurance available for less than $1500 a month.
• ●AND [2 of 4] : This town has lower taxes than my current home town.
• ●True
• ○AND [3 of 4] : This town has a lower cost of living index than my current home town.
• ○Undecided
• ●AND [4 of 4] : This town has good housing for less than my maximum house budget.
• ●True
• ●AND [3 of 5] : This town has good work opportunities.
• ●OR [1 of 2] : This town has good fulltime work opportunities.
• ●False
• ●OR [2 of 2] : This town has good freelance work opportunities.
• ●True
• ●AND [4 of 5] : This town provides a good quality of life.
• ●AND [1 of 2] : This town can provide a healthy lifestyle.
• ●OR [1 of 2] : This town has neighborhoods that provide a walkable urban lifestyle.
• ●AND [1 of 2] : This town has at least one neighborhood with a walkscore greater than 90.
• ●True
• ●AND [2 of 2] : The neighborhood with a walkscore greater than 90 has a crime rate no greater than 125% of the national average.
• ●True
• ●OR [2 of 2] : This town has areas with affordable nature 'compounds'.
• ●True
• ●AND [2 of 2] : This town can provide an inspirational lifestyle.
• ○OR [1 of 3] : This town has a high quality university.
• ●OR [2 of 3] : This town has cultural diversity.
• ●True
• ●OR [3 of 3] : This town has beautiful scenery and views.
• ●True
• ●AND [5 of 5] : This town has good accessibility.
• ●AND [1 of 2] : This town is within 2 hours of a major airport.
• ●True
• ●AND [2 of 2] : This town is within 30 minutes of high quality hospitals.
• ●True

Hopefully, I will learn that health insurance is available and affordable. If so, Portland will be our strongest candidate so far.