To determine its list of the safest cities in the U.S., Forbes Magazine looked at the country's 40 largest metropolitan statistical areas across four categories of danger, including: workplace death rates, traffic death rates, natural disaster risk and violent crime rates.The Portland metro area ranked 3rd as it boasts the lowest crime rate out of the 40 cities examined.
When it comes to new homes for sale in Portland or Portland-area real estate, the Villebois community in Portland's sister city to the south, Wilsonville, Oregon, upholds the area's reputation for safety and comfort. From affordable prices to exceptional amenities, Villebois offers buyers everything they are looking for in today's real estate market in Oregon.
Known for its pedestrian- and bike-friendly nature, the award-winning Villebois neighborhood in Wilsonville, Oregon, offers its residents miles and miles of nearby trails and 160 acres of community green space. A web of paths, nature trails and sidewalks traverse neighborhood parks and green spaces, serving as pedestrian and bike connections between streets and pockets within Villebois. Several major regional pathways also snake through Villebois, including the Tonquin Trail, the Villebois Loops Trail and the Coffee Lake-Wood Trail.
The future of the Tonquin Trail and its connectivity to the rest of Wilsonville and the Portland metropolitan area's Westside has been one that local residents have watched closely. Metro, the Portland, Oregon area's regional government, is currently working on the future Tonquin Trail Master Plan, which involves a multi-use regional trail that will connect natural areas, neighborhoods, schools, jobs, shopping centers and transit stops between Sherwood, Tualatin and Wilsonville.
You can now get involved and add your two cents to the planning process of the new Tonquin Trail Master Plan. Attend an open house or share your views online between Dec. 7 and Dec. 21, 2009.
Here are the open house dates:
Tuesday, Dec.8 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Tualatin Council Chambers Building 18880 SW Martinazzi Ave.,Tualatin Co-hosted with Tualatin Parks Advisory Committee
Wednesday, Dec.9 6 to 8 p.m. Wilsonville City Hall, Council Chambers 29799 SW Town Center Loop E, Wilsonville Co-hosted with Wilsonville Planning Commission
Thursday, Dec.10 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Sherwood Community Room, Sherwood City Hall 22560 SW Pine St., Sherwood Co-hosted with the City of Sherwood
Click here to view additional information, including area maps, about the Tonquin Trail Master Plan.
For more information about the Villebois or the Wilsonville trail system, please visit: www.ChangeHowYouLive.com or contact Costa Pacific Homes New Home Specialist Andy Green at 866.580.2836 or Blog@CostaPacific.com. The Costa Pacific Homes sales office in the Villebois Village Center is open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and Sunday; and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays.
The Milken Institute recently released its annual report of the nation's "best performing" cities and the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area (which includes Portland, Beaverton and Vancouver) ranked No. 37 and Salem, Oregon ranked 58 out of 200 large U.S. metropolitan areas.
The Milken report ranks cities on a variety of factors, including job and salary growth over a given time period as well as the strength of their high-tech industries. Last year, the Portland area ranked No. 28 and Salem ranked No. 66 on the list.
Wilsonville, Oregon, resides about halfway between the city of Portland and the city of Salem. Known as the gateway to both Oregon's rich, horticultural wine country and its urban area, Wilsonville is certainly a special city.
Located along the scenic Willamette River, Wilsonville is home to a number of high-tech companies, such as Mentor Graphics and Xerox, as well as acres of public parks and gardens, including Town Center Park - an attraction with activities for all ages.
Not only is Wilsonville a great place to work and play, it's a great place to learn, too: the town is known for it's superior schools, libraries and earth-friendly initiatives, including a public transit system, a state-of-the-art water treatment facility and a comprehensive urban forestry plan.
Last but not least, the city is an exceptional place to live as well. Home to the award-winning Villebois neighborhood, residents living in Wilsonville love their city.
For more information about the city of Wilsonville or the Villebois community, please call 866.580.2836 or email Blog@CostaPacific.com. You may also visit ChangeHowYouLive.com.
Portland, Oregon-based public transportation organization, TriMet, announced this week that it acquired two previously owned rail diesel cars (RDCs) from the Alaska Railroad for use as spares on the metropolitan area's Westside Express Service (WES) Commuter Rail.
WES currently boasts three diesel multiple unit (DMU) trains that provide transit service between Beaverton and Wilsonville on the metropolitan area's west side. According to TriMet, there are no spare vehicles for WES service when a DMU is out of service. With the new, additional trains, TriMet can reduce or eliminate the need for shuttle buses to supplement WES service and help make service for riders as seamless as possible.
The new cars are currently being retrofitted and will be available for service by next summer. According to TriMet, retrofitting includes "installation of cab signal and communications equipment and modifications for mobility device accessibility". TriMet's WES maintenance facility is also expanding to accommodate the two trains, which are 85 feet long and stainless steel.
For the eco-conscious commuter-or those who just like a little extra time to read the newspaper-WES is a wonderful transportation option. Residents living in the Villebois community in Wilsonville, Oregon, appreciate the close proximity the transit-oriented neighborhood provides to the area WES station, which is just a short walk or ride from the Village Center.
Villebois is a master-planned community that hosts a variety of housing options - from luxurious new condominiums and rowhomes to beautiful single-family houses. Currently under construction, the Villebois Village Center will feature retail and commercial space as well a thriving Piazza space where residents will flock for the weekly Villebois Sunday Market, live music and fun on the bocce ball courts. Villebois is unlike any other neighborhood in the Willamette Valley.
Last week, President Obama signed legislation that extends and expands the first-time home buyer tax credit originally made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
The new legislation extends the $8,000 credit for first-time home buyers for sales contracts entered into by April 30, 2010 and closed by June 30. In addition, the law has been expanded to now include a $6,500 credit for owners of existing homes who are buying a new principal residence. Current homeowners can claim the $6,500 tax credit if they lived in their home for five consecutive years out of the last eight.
In other news, the income eligibility limits for the tax credit - now for both groups of buyers - has increased from $75,000 to $125,000 for individuals and from $150,000 to $225,000 for married couples. Additionally, the new law also provides relief to cash-strapped home builders by providing broader tax benefits for businesses with net operating losses (NOLs).
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) released a statement last week saying the new legislation will "provide a much-needed boost to the fragile housing market and economy". In addition, NAHB estimates that the new and improved homebuyer tax credit will create 211,000 new jobs and generate 180,000 additional home sales over the next year. NAHB also expect the tax credit to generate $9.6 billion in wage income and $6.9 billion in federal, state and local taxes.
This means that now - more than ever - is the perfect time to purchase a new home.
And why not purchase that new home in the award-winning Villebois Village Center in Wilsonville, Oregon?
Villebois is the latest master-planned community to be developed by Costa Pacific Communities. Featuring a vibrant mix of single-family homes, row homes, condominiums, retail and commercial space and 160 acres of parks and open green space, the Villebois neighborhood has something for everyone. And with new homes priced starting in the mid-$100,000s, Villebois is a sweet surprise for buyers looking for homes in today's real estate market.
To learn more about the Villebois community in Wilsonville, Oregon, please visit ChangeHowYouLive.com. You may also speak with New Home Specialist Andy Green by calling 866.580.2836 or emailing Blog@CostaPacific.com.
From retirees and grandparents to young couples and families, the Villebois Village Center in Wilsonville, Oregon, is perfect for people of all ages and lifestyles to live, work, play and learn.
At the heart of the neighborhood will be a bustling mix of row homes, loft-style condominiums, shops, restaurants and sidewalk cafés that will embody the character of a European village. The community is far more than a place to live. It is a place that can actually change how you live.
For more information about the Villebois community, please call 866.580.2836 or email Blog@CostaPacific.com. You may also visit ChangeHowYouLive.com to learn more about this exceptional new neighborhood.
The new Carvalho Condominiums now range in price between $269,900 and $394,900. These new Portland condos are available in both one-level flat and two-story townhome-style designs with four distinct two bedroom/two bathroom floor plans.
Ranging in size from 1,291 to 2,102 square feet and steps from Piazza Villebois and the Villebois Sunday Market, these new Wilsonville homes are ideally suited for a broad range of home buyers - from young professionals to empty nesters.
The Carvalho Condominiums in Villebois feature spacious kitchens with GE Home Essential appliance packages, gas fireplaces and Kohler fixtures as well as one and one-and-a-half car garages and covered porches. Not to mention, the Carvalho Condominiums offer buyers the only single-level homes within the entire Villebois community.
Also located in the Villebois Village Center are the Seville Rows, which are now between the low price of $367,900 and $437,900, and range in size from 2,005 square feet to 2,500 square feet. The Seville Rows feature open, inviting great rooms with dining nooks and gas fireplaces. The gourmet kitchens boast tile countertops and backsplashes, stainless steel appliances and hardwood floors. The homes also integrate multiple levels of covered decks, outdoor living spaces and generous two-car garages. They too are within walking distance of all of the activity and events that grace Piazza Villebois.
Visit Homes.Villebois.com today to search all the homes for sale in the Villebois neighborhood.
Call 866.580.2836 or email Blog@CostaPacific.com today to learn more about Villebois or the homes listed in the Village Center.
Allied Waste of Wilsonville is starting a new recycling program in the Villebois community in Wilsonville, Oregon. Allied Waste will be delivering 32-gallon roll carts the week of November 16, 2009, dropping-off the carts at the end of your driveway. Collection of recycling materials will start the following week.
What should I do with the two bins I use now for recycling? You will need to keep one bin to recycle glass. Allied Waste will pick-up the other bin on the day recycling material is collected, or you can keep the bin to store items you may use once in a while. If you want Allied Wasteto pick-up the bin, please set it at the curb, empty of waste, next to the new roll cart.
Instructions for what can and cannot go into the new roll cart will be attached to your new roll cart. Our community now keeps between 55-60 percent of its waste out of the landfill. The new roll carts will enable you to keep even more waste out of the landfill.
If you want a larger, 60-gallon roll cart, call Allied Waste in December at 503.682.0336. The company will exchange your cart at no charge.
Imagine...riding the WES commuter train home from work, on your short walk to your new home, you pass trails and sidewalks shaded by towering trees, there are families in the park, laughing playing together. You stop to pick up some fresh pastries in Piazza Villebois or fresh vegetables at the Villebois Sunday Market.
As you step out onto the cobblestone street, you exhale "Life is good."
The award-winning Villebois community in Wilsonville, Oregon, has been designed to feel and live like a cozy and vibrant village, with timeless European-inspired architecture and 160 acres of parks and beautiful landscaping.
At the heart of Villebois resides Piazza Villebois, where friends from the entire community come to relax and mingle together on the streets; you will always see a friendly face in Piazza Villebois.
An exceptional, award-winning diverse design and sustainable, social community, Villebois is proud to live a green lifestyle with its innovative rainwater management plan. In Villebois, you are connected to the area's natural features.
Change how YOU live.
Go to ChangeHowYouLive.com and visit the Villebois Living section, then come and visit in person just west of downtown Wilsonville. For directions visit ChangeHowYouLive.com or call 866.580.2836. You can also email Blog@CostaPacific.com for more details about this exceptional, new community.
Villebois residents of all ages and lifestyles discuss what their families enjoy the most about the unique Wilsonville, Oregon, neighborhood from the close-knit social atmosphere to the variety of community events and activities that bring neighbors together.
For more information about the Villebois community, please call 866.580.2836 or email Blog@CostaPacific.com. You may also visit ChangeHowYouLive.com.
Disclaimer: ActiveRain Corp. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site. These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. ActiveRain Corp. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles, that are written by the members of this community.
The Portland, Oregon, metropolitan area, which includes cities from Beaverton to Clackamas, 
Known for its pedestrian- and bike-friendly nature, the award-winning 
The Milken Institute recently released its 
Portland, Oregon-based public transportation organization, 
Last week, President Obama signed legislation that extends and expands the first-time home buyer tax credit originally made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Costa Pacific Homes
Allied Waste of Wilsonville is starting a 
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