There are other places in the great northwest and mountain states with great outdoor lifestyle experiences. We’re just saying Bend is better than any of them. To start, you’re on the Deschutes River so canoeing, kayaking, swimming, and just walking the shores are 10 minutes away. Next, Mt Bachelor, a world class ski resort, is LESS than 10 minutes away. Add to all of these things an amazing biking scene, hiking trails everywhere you look, and 160-165 days of sunshine per year (the most of any city in Oregon) and you’ve got the premier northwest spot for outdoor lovers.

Quotes from Locals: *If you like the outdoors this place is like heaven. It's within an hour of some of the best wilderness in the country and a couple hours of even better stuff. It really is an outdoorsman's dream.*

The Great Outdoors

The Best Thing About Bend? 

This is a tough call but perhaps a tie between population growth (or the popularity of complaining about the growth) and not much of a local business economy. Most of the newbies pouring into Bend are either retirees or those who can work remotely. If you’re looking for a job, other than in the service sector, it’s going to be tough.

Local note: *People move here for the quality of life, so they're willing to take lower wages. Also, the economy here is largely driven by tourism and construction, so there are relatively few white collar (high paying) jobs. But there is a large community of 2nd-home owners / retirees willing to pay inflated prices for homes / housing.*

Hmmm

The Worst Thing About Bend?

Given most people are moving here from cities along the west coast it is extremely likely you’re going to live in a bigger home with more land than you’re used to. There are plenty of cool condo buildings as well, that a ton of empty nesters and retirees enjoy. We’ve never seen a healthier boomer population than in Bend and given it has a 91 walk score, you can expect to be a short walk or an extremely short drive from downtown and tons of breweries, restaurants, boutique coffee shops, and everything else you need.

To get an understanding of all the happenings in Bend check out the calendar of events: https://www.visitbend.com/event-calendar

In A Bigger Home With More Land

Lifestyle of Bend

When people talk about escaping their city lives and moving to a new roomier, healthier, happier place they might as well just pack and head to Bend. Central Oregon is ridiculously beautiful and Bend is right in the middle of that beauty plus it has a really cool town you get to enjoy.

Pandemic (and post-pandemic) Nirvana

Why You Should Move Here Now? 

**The Best Thing About Bend?**  The Great Outdoors

There are other places in the great northwest and mountain states with great outdoor lifestyle experiences. We’re just saying Bend is better than any of them. To start, you’re on the Deschutes River so canoeing, kayaking, swimming, and just walking the shores are 10 minutes away. Next, Mt Bachelor, a world class ski resort, is LESS than 10 minutes away. Add to all of these things an amazing biking scene, hiking trails everywhere you look, and 160-165 days of sunshine per year (the most of any city in Oregon) and you’ve got the premier northwest spot for outdoor lovers. 

**The Worst Thing About Bend?**  Hmmm

This is a tough call but perhaps a tie between population growth and not much of a local business economy. Most of the newbies pouring into Bend are either retirees or those who can work remotely. If you’re looking for a job, other than in the service sector, it’s going to be tough.

**How You Living?**  In A Bigger Home With More Land

Given most people are moving here from cities along the west coast it is extremely likely you’re going to live in a bigger home with more land than you’re used to. There are plenty of cool condo buildings as well, that a ton of empty nesters and retirees enjoy. We’ve never seen a healthier boomer population than in Bend and given it has a 91 Walkscore, you can expect to be a short walk or an extremely short drive from downtown and tons of breweries, restaurants, boutique coffee shops, and everything else you need. 

**Why You Should Move Here Now?**  Pandemic Nirvana

When people talk about escaping their city lives and moving to a new roomier, healthier, happier place they might as well just pack and head to Bend. Central Oregon is ridiculously beautiful and Bend is right in the middle of that beauty plus it has a really cool town you get to enjoy.


Old Bend is the heart of the city, in large part due to the great restaurants, bars, breweries and community events that happen throughout the year. It’s also home to Drake Park and Mirror Pond, the riverfront park where locals hang out on weekends. Old Bend has some of the most beautiful historic homes in the city as well as apartments and condos for those not ready to take the homeowner plunge. 
- Old Bend
- Downtown


Young Professionals

Old Bend/Downtown

For families that are looking to focus on outdoor recreation, Century West is a perfect neighborhood. Homes are being built here at a rapid pace which makes sense given the access to kayaking on the Deschutes river, close proximity to skiing, snowboarding or mountain biking at Mt. Bachelor. Orchard District is another good option if you are looking for green space but are just as concerned with being close to downtown Bend, demand great schools, but also want great homes and tree-lined streets. 
- Century West
- Orchard District
- Old Farm District 


Families

Century West

Bend pulls in retirees for a combination of reasons. The weather is pretty temperate. The prices are better than the coastal cities, and the recreation and health options for seniors are amazing. There are plenty of beautiful neighborhoods that have both young professionals and retirees, like Old Bend. And wonderful retirement residencies including Regency Village, Aspen Ridge and Fox Hollow, that all look and feel more like ski lodges and ski communities than typical retirement facilities. These facilities are located in neighborhoods like Old Mill District or Downtown and so walking to restaurants and shopping is simple. 
- Old Bend
- Regency Village
- Aspen Ridge
- Fox Hollow


Retirees

Regency Village/Downtown

Bend

**Everything you need to know about Bend Oregon**

Living in Bend Oregon is an amazing experience. There is no other city in the country like it. The recreational opportunities that exist here are limitless.  From the amazing mountain views of mt. Bachelor and the three sisters, to the weather and the job opportunities, we cover everything in this video.

**What is it like to live in Bend, OR?**

It entirely depends on what your income is. Bend has become a very expensive place to live due to the invasion of developers from California. Property prices became obscenely expensive creating a serious gap between those who work there and those who can afford to live there. When I first moved to Bend in 1984, the population was small but it had a thriving economy of wood products, retirement needs, and recreation. After the San Jose earthquake of the late 80’s, people moved north in droves bringing much of their ultra liberal ideals with them. Clinton’s moratorium on logging killed the wood products industry leaving Bend ripe for rape of California developers. After a few short years starting in the early 2000’s, property was bought for cheap and created a surge of investments, much of the money went out of state. Now it is a California Palm Springs wannabe and a mecca for recreation. Unless you are a business owner or earn six figures, you can forget about living there. The people who are employed in the service industry have to live in Redmond, 20 miles to north due to cost of living. 

I moved back to Bend from the midwest in 2012 with promise of a $65,000/yr job which was considerably more than what I earned in the Midwest. I quickly witnessed how disparaging the income and housing divide is. Unless you drive an expensive SUV and own lots of toys, you are shunned. Equally troubling was the attitude of the church community… if you did not give generously, you were treated as a commoner. $60,000 is scraping by in Bend unless you can live dirt cheap, certainly not for a family of four. You really can not afford many of the perks and recreational activities. I moved to Portland in 2014 and can live considerably more comfortably. I still go to Bend during the summer for fishing and mountain bicycling… but certainly can not afford to live there.

**What is it like to live in Bend, OR?**

I moved to Bend 8 years ago after living 18 months in Park City, UT and 40 years in Orange County, CA. Short answer is Bend is heaven. Why?:

It is beautiful. 3,500′ elevation, a calm river goes right through downtown. Trees everywhere, on the leeward side of the Cascade Mountains that are covered with snow year round. Downtown is a quaint 110 years old: brick buildings and filled with restaurants, shops, bars.
It is an outdoor meca. World-class mountain mountain biking, hiking, horse trails, skiing of every kind, Cascade lakes for water sports, white-water rafting/kayaking, and Mt. Bachelor is one of the largest ski areas in North America with snow that lasts till Memorial Day (or longer).
With a new 4-year University (OSU-Cascades) and a vibrant business community filled with successful start-ups, the economy is thriving.
Compared to California, everything is half-price. Restaurants, bars, etc. We bought a 3,000 sq. ft. home with 2 1/2 acres on a stream for $625k. I saw a 19-year old with a high school education post here that housing was not affordable. A nice 1,800 sq. ft. home costs $350k. Rents are up due to the demand (a 3-bedroom home costs $1,900 per month).
It is a foodie town. I’ve had an office in downtown San Francisco for 15 years, and we have 3 restaurants in Bend that would be in SF’s top ten, plus many more affordable places with amazing food (like 30 in town to chose from). And, we have 15+ food trucks that kick butt that park around town.
Lastly, the perfect weather if you like four seasons. Averages 300 days of sunshine a year since we are East of the mountains. Summer averages 85–90, with no humidity and a couple weeks with 95+ temps. Winters usually have a couple snow storms in town, a few days in the teens. But, most days in winter are dry and days average 45+ degrees.

Net, I’ve travelled the world. This is the place.

**What is it like to live in Bend, OR?**

I currently live in Redmond, OR but did live in Bend for just over 4 plus years (2012 to 2016). When I first moved to Bend it was a cozy town where everyone seemed very welcoming and friendly. I remember cars would ALWAYS stop for me when crossing 15th street to go to the park with my dogs. As the summers went by though, less and less cars would stop, until eventually no one would anymore.

Traffic was a breeze when I first arrived too. People did not seem in a rush and it was quite easy to get across town with zero traffic. Those days are long gone! Not only is there traffic but the road rage is in full effect and understandably so as the more traffic there is, the more anxious and in a hurry people become. What once took 10 minutes to drive from the east side to the west side now takes 20 or more.

The home values in Bend were ridiculously low when I first arrived. I was in school and not making much money and neither was my wife. The recession was still being felt in Bend in 2012 thru roughly 2014-ish. We rented a house the whole time we lived there and were lucky our rent never exceeded $1,100. That same house now rents for over $1,500. I remember a house around the corner was listed at 109k…….that same house today would list for close to 300k (on the eastside I mind you). My parent’s once looked at a home on the west side listed at 285k, that same home is now worth well over 650k. Jobs were few and far in 2012 but are now in abundance. The only problem is, can you find a job that pays enough to afford the rent or a mortgage?





**thoughts on moving to Bend Oregon as an early 30s divorcee with no kids?**

Bend seems to be an oasis of normalcy, surrounded by conservative wingnuts, here in Central Oregon.

The local demographics are skewed by the hospitality/outdoor recreation businesses. That has drawn a big following of younger poorly paid single people, who bump up against the highly compensated Digital Nomads that have migrated from CA. COVID-19 will force a number of small business closures, that disproportionately impact the poorly paid workforce.

The local social scene is outdoor recreation focused, during all four seasons. You will be building friendships through: skiing, mountain biking, hiking, and possibly the equine community. Good luck, but be patient!

Bend, Oregon

Farewell Bend

Looklyloo Score: 90

We're on it!