The best neighborhoods in Portland, Oregon can be narrowed down to just a few, although this does depend on what it is you are looking for. Lets say that you want a nostalgic neighborhood as the residence to bring up your family, The Hawthorne neighborhood would be ideal. The older more rustic homes in this area have beauty and style. Located in this area is the famous Hawthorne Boulevard where you can find many quaint shops ranging from vintage clothing to Starbucks coffee house. It has to be pointed out here, that this neighborhood also is home of the world famous Dosha Salon and Spa. There is a local Fred Meyer food and department store for all your shopping needs and several organic grocery stores located in the area for your convenience.
Hawthorne is a neighborhood in Portland that gives your family a choice of large homes and many good schools that are part of the Portland Public School District. Homes are going in the price range of $250,000 to $875,000. Making this a slightly expensive area in Portland.
If your truly looking for the nostalgic, there is the Pearl District. This is a fairly new district in Portland, Oregon and has a great many shops and stores almost equal to Hawthorne. However, you may find the Pearl District a bit more expensive and parking is certainly not a plus in this area. Located just West of Downtown Portland it is a little more difficult to travel around in. Real Estate is quite expensive in this area with most of your living being older homes and new condominiums and lofts, ranging in price from $240,000 to $900,000 purchase price. There is however, a top of the line hospital located in the area and several wonderful eating establishments such as, The Ring Side Steak House, shopping both in the average grocery store and the Trader Joes who specializes in Organic foods.
The Pearl District also falls within the Portland Public School District and has a very good academic record. However, this District is not geared so much to the family setting as to the more professional and elite.
Downtown is a good location in Portland, if you are searching for a home in a condominium setting, Ranging in price from $300,000 to $1,000,000. This is truly an area for the elite and professional’s of our State. There are several schools in Downtown, St Mary’s Academy for Girls (started out to be a girls only but is now Co-ed), there is also Jefferson High School which is within transportation distance of some homes and apartments within the city. Jefferson is part of the Public School District. Downtown has little parking unless your home is within a building that has parking attached to it. There is a large Safeway’s shopping mart in the Downtown area but, mostly the arts and entertainment and shopping you would expect to find in a Downtown area is available. You will need to be prepared to drive a ways to shop for your local groceries.
Most of the neighborhoods in Portland, Oregon are the best of the best, crime in the Portland neighborhoods overall per the national crime index is approximately 4,000 of 100,000 people, with 500 logged as violent crimes and 4,000 as property crimes. These are averages not exact figures.
The outlying neighborhoods such as Southeast Portland, Clackamas, Northeast Portland all have large malls that cater to just about any kind of store you could wish to shop in. They do however, have a cheaper price tag on their real estate with a ranch style 3 bedroom house going for about $199,000 to $270,000. These outlying areas have some of their own school districts for example, Centennial School District and Reynolds School District these Districts are actually some of the best in the area. There are also private schools available for your children if you so desire, Central Catholic, Lutheran, Oregon Episcopal School, The Catlin Gabel School, and Jesuit High to name a few. These all come with a tuition for each child in your family.
Most of the best neighborhoods in Portland Oregon have summer activities that are geared directly to that neighborhood and its history, Hawthorne; Lents; Belmont; Buckman; Cathedral Park; and Centennial, to name a few. You can always find an activity for you and your family no matter where you have chose to live within the city as it is all conveniently accessible by car.
Traffic in Portland can be considered the norm for a large city. Rush hour on the freeways may become clogged for a short time, it does however, move much faster than the freeway in a place such as, say Los Angeles. Parking is available in most places except those mentioned above and there are lots readily available in those areas that have a shortage.
No matter where you choose to live in Portland, Oregon it will be the best neighborhood in Portland, Oregon as this is one of the greatest cities in the Northwest. Our local mass transit is considered the best in the Nation and our sites some of the most beautiful.
