Posts from June 2020

Bend Premier Brokers and Staff Volunteer

Over the weekend, Bend Premier got to be the first volunteer group to be a part of "Keeping Bend Beautiful" following the initial shut down due to COVID-19. This volunteer program allows various clubs, individuals, and associations the opportunity to adopt a stretch of road or plot of land and improve the appearance by picking up litter, weeding and sometimes planting new plants! 

Bend Premier worked on picking up trash along 14th street on the Westside of Bend on Saturday and it was a wonderful experience. Not only did the team clean up all the trash found along the side of the road, but they also had a great time doing it. The volunteers agreed that they can't wait for the next opportunity to do their part in Keeping Bend Beautiful! 

If you or a group you know wants to get more information on this program and how you can take part, follow this link HERE to direct you to the City of Bend webpage. 

Bend Premier Brokers and Staff Volunteer

Over the weekend, Bend Premier got to be the first volunteer group to be a part of "Keeping Bend Beautiful" following the initial shut down due to COVID-19. This volunteer program allows various clubs, individuals, and associations the opportunity to adopt a stretch of road or plot of land and improve the appearance by picking up litter, weeding and sometimes planting new plants! 

Bend Premier worked on picking up trash along 14th street on the Westside of Bend on Saturday and it was a wonderful experience. Not only did the team clean up all the trash found along the side of the road, but they also had a great time doing it. The volunteers agreed that they can't wait for the next opportunity to do their part in Keeping Bend Beautiful! 

If you or a group you know wants to get more information on this program and how you can take part, follow this link HERE to direct you to the City of Bend webpage. 

Newberry National Volcanic Monument's Lesser Known Hikes

Most Central Oregonians know what a wonderful place to camp, fish, and hike Newberry National Volcanic Monument is. Paulina Falls and the Obsidian Trail are easy, short hikes to beautiful views and interesting geological formations and are well used by visitors to the monument.  However, probably a hike few take is the Crater Rim Trail which is 21 miles in total length and traverses the entire rim of the crater. We have never taken the Crater Rim Trail all the way around, but we have hiked from Cinder Hill campground up to the Crater Rim Trail and 3/4 mile along this to the Cinder Hill Viewpoint several times. The elevation change from East Lake to the Crater Rim Trail is roughly 1000 feet, but it is fairly easy to hike this with multiple switchbacks helping. The majority of the hike is in the woods and the shade helps cool the trail.  We tried to do this hike a month earlier, but there was too much snow and we lost the trail. 

The views from Cinder Hill are fabulous of East Lake with Paulina Lake also visible from the rim. When we were there on June 20th, there was some wind at the viewpoint and the temperature was much cooler than it was during the hike up in the more sheltered woods. The sign at the start of the hike shows 2 3/4 miles from the campground to the viewpoint which felt accurate. This is a great hike to take during the summer.

Painted Hills - Part of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument

Known as one of the 7 Wonders of Oregon, the Painted Hills is series of hills with outstanding colors. Located roughly 86 miles northeast of Bend close to Mitchell, Oregon, the hills get their colors from the geology of the area over 35 million years. The combination of river flood plain, tropical forest, volcanic ash, and time has resulted in the color striations of the hills. Colors of red, green, orange, tan, and even lavender all provide a beautiful representation of millions of years of changing climate and geological upheavals. The hills monument cover over 3000 acres and are the most visited of the John Day Fossil Beds. Several easy hikes enable visitors to view the hills close up and from a distance. As the day goes on, the changing light and shadows as evening approaches can create an even more dramatic landscape to admire.

When we visited Painted Hills on 6-13-2020, we were pleased at the condition of the day use area directly outside the monument with clean, well stocked restrooms and a nicely mowed grass area with clean picnic tables. The trails were well defined and visitors were noted reading the signs explaining the geology of the area. The Painted Hills is a must see for anyone visiting Central Oregon.

Bend Real Estate Sales Impacted by Covid-19 Pandemic

The May 2020 real estate sales figures have been published and the second full month of the Covid-19 pandemic and its subsequent impact on the Bend economy is over. Contrary to the thought process of many, Bend single family real estate sales were extremely strong in May. The biggest limitation to sales was the lack of inventory with sellers either delaying listing or pulling listings off the market. Buyers, however, have entered the market in force and are purchasing Bend single family homes, driving inventory levels below 2 months.

When May 2020 is compared with May 2019, Bend single family homes on less than an acre show the following changes:

• Average sales price down .5% to $553,373*
• Average list price down 1.99% to $596,885
• New listings down 39.2% to 256
• Number of homes for sa...

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