Early Retirement Extreme Forums

More like 60 minutes.
I'm not a resident expert, but from the listings it looks like homes in Oregon get cheaper as you move out from I-5 which splits the state North/South down the middle---even as you get to the coast (101). Most things away from I-5 belong to the white areas of the map (here be dragons!) with lots of woodland where cities are few and far in between. The coast is sparse too.
We didn't get closer to the coast in person.

That doesn't look too bad actually... houses look decent and prop tax not horrible, if you can somehow get over that draconian income tax. What's up with that lake next to Veneta? It looks really weird on Google maps:
http://tinyurl.com/fern-lake
Is it nasty like the great salt lake or something?

http://www.oregon.gov/DOR/taxcalc.shtml

Lots of marshland to the south. I saw sailboats on it.

One of my ERE city criteria is a minimum of two monsters in the lake. Tentacles a plus.

I've been reading this topic and feeling open to every idea.
It interested me enough to sign up and comment.
Jacob, did you consider the towns and cities in the Hudson valley of New York? I realize some people will have to get over issues about NY. Truth is property taxes vary by which place in NY you live, but statewide it is a good state for retired people with income.
I mentioned the Hudson River valley because you mentioned waterways as important, and NY has a ton of water. I have my eye on Troy, NY, which has property in the range you were looking at (below $100k), a very vibrant farmers' market, and a large train station, with regional bus connection to the Greyhound bus station across the river and the airport.
Plus, the city is in a very rural county (and it's beautiful).
Winter exists, but it is three and a half months, not six. Personally, I think winter is a great time to go hiking/snowshoeing in the mountains.

@chilly - that is Fern Ridge Resevoir, formed by an impassable dam (no fish ladder) on the Long Tom River. Contains many fish species and the subsequently formed swamp is home to lots of birds. Good slow-water kayaking area.
The premier native fish species is the coastal cutthroat trout, which grow in the lake and then spawn in the upper reaches of the Long Tom River and tributaries. There are also nonnative species like bass and crappie.
The Long Tom River was not historically a producer of salmon or steelhead, so the fact that the dam has no fish ladder is of little consequence. The coastal cutthroat trout in the Willamette Valley basin can't migrate to the ocean due to the size of Willamette Falls (Oregon City), so once again the dam is of little consequence.
Flowing out of the coast range, the Long Tom River and it's tributaries are fed by springs and rainfall only. Consequently the drawdown on Fern Ridge Reservoir can be fairly severe in a drought year.

@jennypenny - the coast property that's closest to Portland by car with the highest quality homes will have the highest prices. Only Cannon Beach, Neakanie, and Gearhart have prohibitively expensive homes (that I'm aware of), but there are also nearby homes that are affordable in those same communities. If you want to investigate owning property in Oregon, I highly recommend http://rmls.com.
Jacob mentions the woodland between I-5 and the rest of the state. What he hasn't said is that it is mostly government land... over half of Oregon is owned by local and national government entities. Of the state's forest land, probably about a third is in the hands of timber companies.

I have only skimmed the postings on this thread, but saw plenty of interest in NH and the seacoast towns in particular. I grew up in Concord, NH and am a somewhat-recent graduate of the University of NH (Durham. To clarify, Dartmouth is on the other side of the state in the beautiful small town of Hanover). I have also lived in Dover and Newmarket for around a year each. Thus, let me know if there are any specific questions I might answer about my beloved Granite State. As my ERE knowledge was in its infancy while I lived in NH (moved for school; I shall return), I didn't pay much attention to property taxes, etc., but this is easily googled and you seem to have done your research.

Anyway, if I may offer my biased opinions/reviews/recommendations/tidbits, let me know.

NH, we'd be happy to hear your biased opinion of the area in general. Just because you've lived there doesn't mean we can assume you'd recommend it to others.

@NH - What's the general Dover, Durham, Newmarket area like? Is it walkable? Bikeable? Still true in winter? Are people friendly? Nosy? Stick to themselves? How much for a gallon of milk? Have you lived in what you'd consider better places?
This particular area is what I've spent the most time researching from afar. It's currently losing to Eugene, OR due to higher health insurance, higher housing cost, and majorly higher property taxes.

I think if you are happy with a location, most of the rest of us could be happy there. Most of us want LOW property taxes
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Ta ... state.aspx
and cheap health insurance since these are things that we will not be able to reduce (without moving yet again). It’s no longer just death and taxes, it is turning into health insurance, death, and taxes. We definitely need to check community zoning/building rules. I know the states of Colorado, Washington, and Utah do not allow rain water collection.

Nice map, but either those home prices are average (rather than median) or the list is outdated. No way is the median home value in Oregon at $273k today!
The best method for evaluating is using the rates. Most of us won't purchase a home priced in the high range and, if we're retired, the % of income column is irrelevant.

Ya, it is outdated from 2008.

A close friend and I met to work on a school project this morning. We got to talking about retirement and I said we were looking at NH. She said "really, I used to live in Seabrook."
So, here's what she said...

She liked living in that area, but about half of Seabrook is very industrial. I mentioned that we were looking for low RE taxes and she said that with services and the nuclear plant "they practically pay you to live there." After I described some of the criteria discussed here, she thought that for 2x the money you got 10x more in Portsmouth. She also liked a small town just inside the mass border (newberry?--I'll have to ask her again) that she said had the qualities we were looking for. I mentioned Hampton and Hampton Lakes but she said if she were going to spend more than Seabrook she thought it was best (for the money) to live near Portsmouth.
Just FYI...

I'm not sure I mind half of the area being very industrial, as long as it's not the half I live in.
What does "10x more" mean with respect to Portsmouth? 10x the granite countertops, 10x the land, etc.?

I mentioned college towns and she said that Portsmouth reminded her of that. She said it had the kind of downtown and waterfront that provided a lot of entertainment, and was the kind of place that you could just walk around without having to spend money or make plans to have fun.
I also think the fact that she lived in Seabrook is an indication that it's a decent town. She's one of my more grounded friends in Stepford, and I can't picture her living somewhere without it meeting certain standards.

was there a consensus here on any cities states?
I'm moving to Boston soon and New Hampshire is appealing to me for the future. I am looking at buying a little land there.

I would definitely consider a spell of a few years in ERE city.

In the 6 months, we've been living in Chicago, we've met up with 3 (soon 4) ERE people. It seems like there are many more whereas in the east bay area it was always hard to gather people, e.g. the nearest was 15 miles away, the second nearest was 30 miles away, etc.
This suggests that maybe it's easier to establish ERE city where there's already some density.
Chicago pros:

Many ERE people are already living here.

Affordable housing (compared to CA, OR, and NJ).

Very good public transportation (car free is easy).

Very good strategic location (climate change and peak oil)

Coastal incomes but Midwest prices.

The city does, as far as I know, not have any restrictions on backyard chicken coops.
Chicago cons:

Crime can be an issue (certain areas are like Detroit minor) and a driver of real estate prices. E.g the same house would cost $40000 in a gang-ridden area and $160,000 in a prime (safe) area. Conversely, gentrification does happen with artsy people buying up "iffy" neighborhoods. It might only require a massive concerted effort.