Thinking of moving to Portland

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TheBostonian

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Moving to Portland

There's a fair chance I will attend USM's planning masters program as soon as January. I'll have some specific questions when a definite relocation approaches. Mainly I want to know which areas near USM should be avoided. I plan to live car-free and dirt cheap at first.
 
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I thought of pursuing a dual degree in Law and Urban Planning

The law school is a block away from the main campus, its a very pleasant area and is undergoing major redevelopment with a new parking garage, skywalk, and campus student center

downtown is a short walk, maybe 5 minutes

a 50 acre park serves as a buffer between the peninsula and the suburban neighborhoods around USM

The area you really want to stay away from is Park Side, I can give you specifics if you need them

anything else around USM is fine

congress street is cheap, highly accessible by bike, foot, and public transportation, and is close to the school
 
That's cool to hear that you might come here. I hope you are not intimidated by our 80 story high rises all connected by skybridges.

The whole area around USM is a great place to live. Like Patrick said, the only area sorta near USM that you might unknowingly rent is in Parkside. I would suggest anything on William, Pitt, or Fesseden St near USM and any of the streets that connect to that. Check craiglists for Maine and type in Portland. There are always pics of USM area apts on there. Good thing about that area for housing is that the apartments are usually bigger than in any other part of the city and not any more expensive.

Living in that area, especially closer to Forest ave, put a grocery store only a five minute walk from you and the whole Marginal way redevlopment is right there as well as downtown being a short bikeride.
We'll help you out with details when the time comes. Be careful of Patrick, he's from the streets and not afraid to live in the middle of an urbarn warzone.
 
Thanks, guys. I'll likely post here when things materialize and my housing options are narrowed.
 
given what I have gathered from your posts on here, I believe you would most like the West End. It is dense (23,000 pepple per square mile, though it is only a half mile), close to downtown, close to the school, and is full of charming brick structures. there is also a range of options from mansions to the more humble.
 
Bayside is the neighborhood in the front and the complex under construction, look for the plywood colored building, will have affordable units ready for occupation soon, and are a block from downtown and a wholefoods market.
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Thanks, Patrick. Since Portland rent appears to be half of the Boston area's, it is all already affordable to me. Although, nothing will really be affordable when I am a full-time student with zero income. Ideally I would like a $500/per month studio near USM. Very tiny is ok and parking is not required.
 
you won't find a $500 in the USM area unless you room with others

try congress street, most studios are around $500 and have no parking but are on a bus line and are close to the school

USM area ranges 800 - 1400

There's one building near the USM area, but I forget the name, where you might find some very cheap apartments; its right across from the library on Forest Ave

USM is one of the more expensive areas, given its suburban character combined with proximity to downtown
 
Thanks, Patrick. I've had my eye on the new construction at USM-PTLD. I haven't set foot on the campus yet, but it looks like it could use some reorientation. The Wishcamper Center is due to open in Fall 08, which would be my 2nd semester if I enroll.
 
Apartmenting

Without saying my whole life story, I am working at Unum full-time and going to USM part-time while I decide what to do as far as working/learning. I have always wanted an apartment intown somewhere, but I am finding that even with a pretty good job ($10.50 an hour at 40 hours a week) I can't afford much of anything. I'd prefer slightly more than a tiny studio for $600 a month (as offered by port property management). I check craigslist everyday looking for deals but it's still not looking too promising.

If anyone has any good tips, feel free to post 'em here!
 
Call Adams management. They have a lot of building intown and the owner is the coolest guy ever. I used to go drop off rent and end up talking with him for an hour.
 
first piece of advice, find a higher paying job, Unum is taking advantage of you

that's low for a major insurance agency
 
I sent an email to adams management gritty's, good suggestion.

Haha, making more money is good advice indeed. It's an entry level job through a staffing agency for now. The highest paying job I've had before this was $7.50 at pizza hut for a while. I actually still can't believe they pay me $10.50 an hour to sit in my own cubicle and do some scanning and indexing and surf the interweb.

My dad is moving from Windham to Bridgton in October, and I need to figure out where I shall live as Windham is about 30 minutes away, whereas Bridgton is about an hour. If I go to USM full time I might be able to get housing on campus, but going full time will put me in debt further with student loans and I won't be making much money working part time.

It's all very confusing. All I know is I can't live as far away as Bridgton.
 
I know this may be a bit dated and the following response long winded, but I think it's relevant for anyone else moving to town and looking for an apartment.

As a former tenant of one of Port Property's downtown buildings, my advice is to stay away from them! The people at the main office have a horrible lack of communication with their tenants. If they have a question for you, they make the call or leave the message. Sounds good so far, right? Normal method of business...

Alternatively, the times I'd wanted to speak with a representative from office when I had a concern, I ended up making several phone calls and leaving messages with no response. The few times something actually came up that my landlord couldn't resolve, I had to go to the office to speak with someone.

Surprisingly (or not) one of their rental agents was always in and out of my building. The one that went with me to check out the apartment I stayed in most times! I kinda felt sorry for the person walking through. I will say though that my landlord was a great guy and was quite helpful on a few minor problems I had with gas and electric service in my apartment.

In summation, I REEEALLY wish I'd looked a bit harder before making that choice... I have learned!
 
Besides being a little out of the way and surrounded by highway crap, what can you tell me about this area?

 
TheBostonian said:
Besides being a little out of the way and surrounded by highway crap, what can you tell me about this area?

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west end. it is primarily business and industrial. rundown. but close to USM and the seadogs. I wouldn't recommend it.
 
It has a Denny's!

I think it's gotten a little better over the years, not quite as rough as it used to be. I wouldn't highly recommend it either. I'd also avoid the St. John's St. area, which this borders. If you found something in this area that you like, I'd definitely check it out before completely writing it off though.
 
I would check out munjoy hill, congress street, forest ave areas
 
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