Coastal living South Oregon (Portland, Eugene: real estate, rentals, crime rate)

[Mermaid26]

Hello all

I am looking to move to Oregon from my Dallas suburb. I want to live in a coastal town between Brookings and Florence. Gold Beach is my first choice, but very open to all suggestions. Can I get some advice on a good location with respect to:
cost of living
crime rates
airport proximity
general population demographic
I would like to be within walking or a short driving distance to the beach: looking to rent a house for the first year.

Single, 40 yr Female, self-employed and I have a dog. Not looking for the city hype-- would much rather have a mellow lifestyle by the ocean in a cozy town with kind & friendly neighbors, shop at the local stores or farmer's markets, a caring vet in the area (my lil fur-child is 10 yrs old), and Internet/WiFi signal strength is a MUST (for work). Also, any recommendations on a property management co. or a good realtor in the area who may be able to help with my search? Thank you much.

[Cloudy Dayz]

Originally Posted by Mermaid26

Hello all

I am looking to move to Oregon from my Dallas suburb. I want to live in a coastal town between Brookings and Florence. Gold Beach is my first choice, but very open to all suggestions. Can I get some advice on a good location with respect to:
cost of living
crime rates
airport proximity
general population demographic
I would like to be within walking or a short driving distance to the beach: looking to rent a house for the first year.

Single, 40 yr Female, self-employed and I have a dog. Not looking for the city hype-- would much rather have a mellow lifestyle by the ocean in a cozy town with kind & friendly neighbors, shop at the local stores or farmer's markets, a caring vet in the area (my lil fur-child is 10 yrs old), and Internet/WiFi signal strength is a MUST (for work). Also, any recommendations on a property management co. or a good realtor in the area who may be able to help with my search? Thank you much.

The only air service on the Coast are four flights a week from North Bend to San Francisco and two flights a week seasonal service to Denver, on United Express. The flights are extremely expensive, and I'm not optimistic they will continue. If close proximity to an airport that actually has flights is important, I don't recommend living anywhere on the Coast. In Gold Beach you would be about a three to four hour drive away from a working airport.

[Mermaid26]

I appreciate the information. What is your general opinion of the the Gold Beach vicinity?
Thank you kindly.

[PNW-type-gal]

You've probably looked at an Oregon map, but below Coos Bay (pop ~ 17,000) and above Brookings (pop ~ 6,500), the towns on the coast are tiny and far apart. In the summer there is a lot of tourist traffic on the highway. Gold Beach does have a small Ray's Market, so there is a basic grocery store.

A friend who used to live in Gold Beach says the availability is spotty (I think it was Charter and it was never as fast as promised), but I don't know the extents. Generally in small Oregon towns, once you get outside the city proper lots of services go away .

Make sure you check the flood and tsunami zone maps for wherever rentals or properties you look at.

[Tulippsy]

Hello Mermaid,

I moved to Gold Beach last August. I think it’s a wonderful place to live for someone who loves the coast. It doesn’t get much prettier than this.

To your questions -

Cost of living - almost certainly more expensive than your Dallas suburb. You will have state tax to pay here in Oregon. Real estate is relatively expensive.

Crime rate - some petty crime, nothing major.

Airport proximity - terrible. Medford is your best bet and it’s 3+ hours. I usually leave the day before and spend the night before my flight.

WiFi/Internet - It’s the fastest speed available from Charter/Spectrum in Oregon. We stream everything and have never had problems.

Location - everywhere in GB is walking or short driving distance to the beach. Free parking, always a spot. The beaches here are some of the most beautiful I’ve seen. Rocks, driftwood, sunsets, whales.....

Vet- yes! Two wonderful ones and two amazing pet sitters,

I don’t know if real estate agents here deal with rentals because the market is so small. I would check craigslist.

If you have any specific questions, feel free to DM me!
Tulip

[Cloudy Dayz]

Originally Posted by Mermaid26

I appreciate the information. What is your general opinion of the the Gold Beach vicinity?
Thank you kindly.

My opinion is that Gold Beach is a great place to live if you are retired. But if you are working and need to travel, I don't recommend it. The Oregon Coast is a retirement and tourist area.

[Mermaid26]

Hi Tulip,
Thank you so much for your detailed advice. Where did you relocate from? Should I be too awfully concerned about Tsunami and/or Flood zones? What is your opinion of the surrounding towns/cities that might be a little more "urban"? I definitely want to stay as close to the coast as possible, but may consider in-land towns close enough to the water. My major concerns are Safety: as a single woman (with her lil dog) and Internet reliability (to be able to function for work and make my living).

All your words of advice are greatly appreciated

[Tulippsy]

Originally Posted by Mermaid26

Hi Tulip,
Thank you so much for your detailed advice. Where did you relocate from? Should I be too awfully concerned about Tsunami and/or Flood zones? What is your opinion of the surrounding towns/cities that might be a little more "urban"? I definitely want to stay as close to the coast as possible, but may consider in-land towns close enough to the water. My major concerns are Safety: as a single woman (with her lil dog) and Internet reliability (to be able to function for work and make my living).

All your words of advice are greatly appreciated

You are most welcome! Just sent you a DM.

[texasdiver]

If it were me, I'd pick someplace on the northern coast. Gold Beach and Bandon are gorgeous but really isolated. You can get airport shuttles to PDX, for example, from northern coast towns. And there are more services nearby. And if you want more off the beaten path there is the Tillamook Coast way off Highway 101 where there are some little out of the way towns like Oceanside and Netarts that are still close to Tillamook for shopping and farmers markets and that sort of thing. Or maybe down in Newport if you want more services. MUCH easier to hop over to the Valley for shopping and services in Portland, Salem and Eugene.

[NoMoreSnowForMe]

If you lived in Brookings, you could use the Crescent City Airport. Right now, they have a contract with Contour Air that apparently just flies between Crescent City and Oakland, CA. Then, you could fly anywhere from Oakland. The fares don't look too horrible.

The thing to keep in mind, is that these airline contracts seem to come and go in CC. They always have some airline, but it seems to not be consistent as to where they will fly. The previous contract was with a division of Alaska Air - I think it was called Penn Air - that flew to Portland, but they aren't listed on the website anymore.

https://www.flycrescentcity.com/