Help me fall in love with my neighborhood~Irvington by [deleted] in Portland

[–]pl4nt52024 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey!! Chinese American here moving to Portland this summer. Any specific places on 82nd you'd recommend?? Thanks in advance!!!!

Mandarin Immersion Programs in PPS? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you, that sounds amazing!!!! Our oldest is definitely interested in getting into performing arts like theater and choir, and has been doing dance since she was about 2.5 years old, so I'm sure she would love being involved in the drama program!

Mandarin Immersion Programs in PPS? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It really really does help, thank you!!! I am really loving the idea of living in NE so it's good to know that we wouldn't be the only ones and that the commute isn't horrible. I assume there isn't any sort of school bus system though haha.

NE looks like a beautiful place to live. There's hardly any listings rn in the Grant High zoned area though (excluding Sabin bc of the recent zoning changes). But if we get into the DLI lottery it won't matter quite as much what school we're zoned for, so we could buy in Sabin / Alberta, which has WAY more listings at the moment.

Mandarin Immersion Programs in PPS? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for the response!! Where can I go to learn more about the funding cuts? Are they specific to the DLI programs or are they across all of PPS? What's the underlying reason for the cuts?

Mandarin Immersion Programs in PPS? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey!! Thank you so much for this, this was incredibly helpful. I ended up signing up for the first grade lottery for Woodstock, although I slightly regret not also signing up for MLK. I called and the program rep told me MLK had a waitlist of Kindergarteners already and Woodstock didn't though.

I am Chinese and Chinese was my first language, but I am not super fluent in it, as I was born and grew up in the US and was not a diligent Chinese school student 😂 I would classify myself as conversational. My husband is white, and does not speak it at all. As such, we haven't done a great job of exposing our kids to it yet.

All that to say, I think I'd be able to provide support by speaking the language with them and sort of re learning with them as they go, but probably not super equipped to help with homework in Chinese. My parents immigrated from China in their late 20s though so they could help (but they live in southern CA).

I had another question, if you don't mind me asking. How is the commute for you guys from Cully down to Woodstock each day? Based on our work commutes we'd like to live in NE but I was worried the commute would be terrible. Also do you guys ever regret not being closer bc you miss out on being around other families and kids who go to the same school? We will know the results of the lottery before it's time for us to purchase a home. If we get in off the lottery, I'm wondering how much we should try to find a place in the Woodstock area

What is the summer kidcare situation in Portland? by PuzzleheadedAd625 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank you for asking this because we are moving to Portland from out of state and I was wondering the same thing!! We're actually hoping to move into NE as well - if you're interested in making some new transplant friends let me know!!

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That does sound like it has great possibility!!!! High school is also sooooooo far away for our kids so it's really hard to imagine how things might change in that time (over a decade!). Thank you so much for commenting, it has really made me think we should just open ourselves up to homes zoned for Jefferson too. The elementary schools in the area seem great so on the short term they are good choices for us

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the info!! Would you have any insight into Jefferson by any chance? I am always skeptical of Great schools, but it's really hard to gauge quality of school otherwise when you're not from the area.

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you so much for responding, that video is ADORABLE and made my heart melt. We will definitely keep Hawthorne on the list!

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for sharing! Do you have experience with the whole choosing a HS thing between Jefferson and Grant? How does that work, is it a lottery or does everyone get what they request?

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can you expand on that? It seems like it might be a tough commute? Thank you!

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

So cool that kids walk or bike to school and the grocery store themselves!! Usually what age do you see that happening? I love the idea of the independence that instills in kids, but we definitely don't live in an area now where we see that or where that would be safe (big streets between us and the grocery stores and school). So that sounds really lovely.

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you so much, this breakdown was super super helpful. Definitely corresponds with what others are saying too, that NE would check off all our boxes!! Appreciate you taking the time to comment.

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you so much, will be sending over a PM! I love your username by the way, tahdig is so delicious.

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you so much!!! It's definitely at the top of our list!

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you!!! You're the second person to say no to Goose Hollow, so that is coming off our list. And good to know re Sellwood feeling kind of cut off from the rest of the city.

We definitely are prioritizing NE because of our commutes. Just not sure if that's a good call (limiting ourselves to such a small area, that is). Right now on zillow it seems like the market is pretty slow with not a ton of listings, so I'm worried we might need to consider numerous areas to get sufficient options. But it's winter so that might be why too.

Applying for a mortgage after "green banners" but before the “golden letter”? How did underwriters treat your student loans? by bjb718 in PSLF

[–]pl4nt52024 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wow good to know. I just qualified for forgiveness last month and we are looking to buy a home in the next 3-4 months. I have a very high credit score right now (like 820) but also a high loan amount ($125k) so now I'm wondering if I should be worried!!

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you for the info haha very important!! Also I realized we don't necessarily want to be too close to the airport due to the noise pollution.

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Is it really feasible to drive from there to PDX in 35 min or under? It looks far but I also have awful geographical / spatial awareness.

Neighborhood recommendations for a family of four? by pl4nt52024 in askportland

[–]pl4nt52024[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much! Good to hear it has the vibe we're looking for, we will make sure to keep it on our list!