Lived in central Oregon for 19 years, then went to school in Corvallis. Family in Lebenon, Oregon City, and Portland.

Here is something worth knowing.

It's beautiful, the cascades are amazing, Portland is very Posh and "trendy" (in a 1 year lag behind the rest of the world kind of way)

BUT.

It's liberal drug laws and the flocking of hippies, makes it a bad place to raise a family IMO. I was a police office in Oregon after getting out of the Army, and I can tell you first hand, the drug problem (meth) is sooooo bad many agencies are focusing resources on other manageable crimes (read giving up). It's bad..bad..bad ...bad. Please keep in mind I have lived in only 5 states and only about 15 cities, and the Oregon cities (Madras, Corvallis, sisters) have been the worst, however OSU campus made Corvallis tolerable.

Not sure where you are planning to live.. If I had to suggest a City, I would say Bend. The state is dumping hundreds of millions of dollars into the city and it is a pretty nice place to live.

Housing (in family safe, clean neighborhoods) is expensive, most cities with a 4A school or higher are pretty well funded, however some smaller schools (like Culver) have an above average rating dispute being 2A.


Weed is legal,( if you care). Long guns are easy to buy, but the hippies there don't much care for guns, so you will have to be a closet gun owner if that's your thing. The laws regarding firearms is pretty liberal, clean record, no wait, private sale exc. But, the Dems want the guns squeezed and it is a Dem state...so be ready for your gun rights to be ushered out and the pot is carried in. That said, currently there is no wait to buy, no limit, and no bans. But watch this one closely, it's being reworked.

Oregon is full of farm land and Forrest, so it's no shocker that the job market is tilted toward the hands on outdoors get your hands dirty kind of work. I still have close family all over Oregon and everyone one of them hit me up for a Job at some point over the last couple years. There are some big companies there like Bushwacker, Letherman, Gerber knives, and I think Eddie Bauer.... Not sure what your trade is, but in Oregon, it will have to count for something, or you need to know how to set a choker, or run a yarder.

By Taxes I assume you are referring to sales/income, as other tax rates are set by local governing bodies. Well there is no sales tax, but the income tax is can be a bear. 9.9 percent. If you do the math on that, it will hurt.
Example:

If your income is $100k, you pay $9900 annual tax.
People in sales tax states pay tax in disposable income spending as well as most services. So let's call this 45% of your income gets spent on goods and services that are taxable, and the rest gets spent on rent, and utilities. If I recall the national average of disposable income is closer to 15%, but it does not take into account taxable services, like cell phone and cable.
Back to the math.
$45000 per year that you would pay sales tax on comes out to (@ 7.25%) $3263 a year in sales tax.

I know I just made most of the numbers up, but you get my point, paying income tax sucks... You have to pay your state a percentage of every dollar you earn instead of every dollar you spend. There are other factors, but this was just my biased example of why I hate income tax. There is a larger picture to this topic for me, but it does not do you any good so I will drop it.

Well, I have rambled on long enough, and if you are still reading, I'm sorry I stole so much of your time.

Bottomed line, Oregon is a beautiful place to visit... But then again, I know nothing about Maine, perhaps Oregon is better.

+1. I lived outside Seattle for 5 years, but my work had me covering Oregon and Idaho. It really is a beautiful place, but the state was really hurting as far as resources to combat crime. When I was there, they were actually laying off state troopers.

Of course, my biggest pet peeve about Oregon was that you weren't allowed to pump your own gas. .

I forgot about that part, it was normal when I grew up, but now when I visit family, it drives me nuts.

I just flew my sister and her entire family here (Ohio) today, they will be here in a few hours. They are always talking about leaving Oregon

Love their Kettle Brand chips. Just polished off a bag of Jalepeno Jack.

Oregon isn't as bleak or down as you put it out to be... While I would not say we are neck and neck with the silicon valley, we do have a huge tech industry. We are referred to as the silicon forest and we have some major players here -Intel, Google, and a ton of other smaller companies. We also have Nike and Adidas, as well as a major shipping port. Our unemployment rate is steadily dropping and small businesses are being given good incentives to come here or start up here. I'd say as long as you stay in a larger city or get way out in the county you'll be fine, but yeah we do have a big problem with meth, but we don't have many problems other big city's have, and method isn't just an Oregon problem.

As far as guns go yeah we are pretty lenient on them and yeah the dems want to change that but it ain't gonna happen any time soon. I have open carried before and still do from Tim to time in populated areas and only been hassled once and the person who was hassling me lost all his customers when they told me to leave -ever one else who was within ear shot just left the store right behind me... So there is still a majority of pro 2nd amendment people here. I will say that southern Oregon is more of a backwoods barrel-burrnin kinda place and again unless you live way out in the sticks not for me -but then you run the risk of running in to illegal clandestine drug operations by cartel workers. But the dea is getting hot on those guys. My advice is north of Salem (gonna be best for jobs as well as schools and housing and communities) or eastern Oregon like Bend/Redmond/Sisters area. But I'd really look at jumping across the river to Vancouver wa. Its basically portland but without the income tax, and you can shop in Oregon(Portland) and not pay sales tax win win if you ask me.

Just don't tell them you're from California, and you should be good to go. Tell them you're from Maine and I'll bet they'll love you.

I was born and raised in Eastern Oregon, and I mean Eastern Oregon - not Pendleton which is really central Oregon. On the Oregon/Idaho border. I note this as the state is conservative except for Eugene and Portland, and maybe Ashland. "Hippie" culture is pretty close to and in those cities.

I think the climate and overall environment is very close to Maine. I've been to Maine several times, and they felt very similar. They are geographically on similar latitudes, so not surprising.

Oregon has great food, beer, and if you love the outdoors you can't go wrong. The beaches are great, but nobody really swims in the ocean. Tillamook ice cream, need I say more? Sports are decent, culture is lacking. Good health center, Oregon Health Science University (OHSU). Crater Lake (stop at Becky's Pies, order ahead if you want banana creme), Hood River Valley (wines and windsurfing), pretty laid back atmosphere and people are awfully nice versus the East Coast (in general).

The only quirk I found is that I believe CCW (conceal carry) you have to pass Oregon's CCW permit process and other states do not transfer or are recognized. If you are outside of the aforementioned cities, it would be odd for you NOT to have a gun/pistol.

As others have mentioned, the school system is in bad shape. Unlike when I was growing up. So if you have kids, something to think about. You can always do private school like Jesuit in Portland. If you're big into theater, arts, and "high society" type stuff, not so great. Canada and the coast is nearby, so nice easy trips. San Francisco is a hop away by plane, as our other destinations and Asia (versus Europe).

I'm trying to think of things others have not covered, but they did a good job. Its my home state, and I now live in Washington, DC. I really miss Oregon, but I guess you always miss your "home".

What's it like living in DC, and the East Coast for that matter?

Here is a good example. In Washington, DC, its perfectly acceptable to ask what a person does for a living, and I mean within the first three or four sentences - followed immediately by where do you live. With that information you can discern ball park salary range, status, social circles, and if you want to associate with that person or not.

In Oregon, if somebody asks what do you do, the response is something along the iines of artist, cyclist, runner, organic farmer, etc. What you "do" is your hobby. Your job doesn't define you.

There are some great things about the DC area, lot of stuff to do, three airports in the area, major train station, East Coast Corridor (New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, DC).

That being said, people are Type A, the area makes people hypersensitive and just generally tense and/or angry. A "me" first attitude. My wife and I talked about this, and I think in Oregon, the mentality is still help your neighbor (Oregon trail days), because if you don't help no one else will. And if they should happen to live through the 'ordeal' they'll let all the neighbors know you didn't help. Hope that makes sense.

I guess the best way to sum the East Coast is its great - if it weren't for the people.

I know both states. Lived in Portland, OR for 2 years and couldn't deal with the weather. It is grey and damp for 9 months. No big thunder storms. No torrential downpours. Nothing dramatic like that. Just damp and grey with a low cloud cover. I am solar powered and def suffer from S.A.D. It was exactly the wrong place for me.

+1.

I was born and raised in VT, stationed in DC during my first 2 years in the Marine Corps., and then ended up living in NOVA off and on for 8 years or so.

I don't think I could ever move back - too crowded for me, especially after I got used to so much 'space' after living in other parts of the country.

I grew up in Eugene, been in Utah for 15 years. I miss Oregon, but I don't miss "home". The Willamette Valley has turned into a cesspool of whiny activists and I can't stand it there anymore. If I ever move back (probably not) it'll be to central or southern Oregon.

I left Maine for Arizona to go to college at the UofA. Just recently I moved to Seattle. Not going to lie I do not like it here but compared to AZ. Climate wise its cloudy a lot and rains but no harsh winter like Maine's. From what I'm told its not quite as humid in the PNW either. Anyway, the weather adjustment you will probably favor. For me I love the sun too much and heading back to AZ when my lease is up here.

Well I have lived in Oregon for most of my life and I am old.
I am so old that I was an extra in the movie "Animal House" that was filmed in Eugene. I was in the marching band in the parade scene at the end of the movie. You can see me for about two seconds.

I have lived other place on the west coast but I have always came back to Oregon.
I live in Portland but grew up in the Thousand Valleys of the Umpqua till my mid twenties. And will always call it home.

Bend Oregon, I would move there in a heart beat if the employment was a little better there.

What kinda work are you looking for?

I work in the food industry here in Portland and have been a warehouse manager for 15 years at a company that I have worked for going on 18 years.
Portland has work, just depends what you are looking for pay.

Yes, traffic can be bad here but nothing compared to say L.A. or Seattle.
I live close enough to work were I can drive the 205 freeway to Airport Way in morning and then take 122nd/Halsey on the way home. I have no issues with traffic commuting to and from work.

You like the rain? You had better if you move here. I am used to it and it really does not matter to me. The weather report for the next two day calls for about 2+ inches of rain here in Portland. SOAKER!!!

Guns? Yeah I got them. It was a way of life where I grew up. All you really need to carry a long rifle is a hunting license.

You like to 4wheel? Yeah we got that also. Sand, Rocks, Mud, and Snow, the finest in the country. Actually Oregon is pretty unique, We have the Coast, the Forest, the Mountains and the High Desert. I like the desert, as which my handle refers to. The Void of Oregon, unpopulated desert.

I like Oregon and have been to just about every part here and exploring all of it.

Some people say if they ever won the lottery that would travel the world. If I ever won the lottery I would travel Oregon...Then travel the world.

Central Oregon! Bend/ Redmond specifically. Great people pretty low crime. Police suck but they don't really enforce speed limit as long as your being "safe". Great trails for off tossing April to November. And in Redmond cost to live is reasonable. Bend is a little high tho. Portland and the valley suck rainy and higher drug issues and a shit ton of hippies.

Wow - VERY cool!