Brasada Ranch is a Destination Luxury Resort Community in Powell Butte

Developed prior to the housing crash of 2008, the first 200 homesites offered at Brasada Ranch sold out in a weekend. This special community offers three clubs - athletic, equestrian or golf - as well as privacy and panoramic views. While the development suffered as did all Central Oregon real estate during the great recession, Brasada Ranch came out of those challenging times stronger and with a great vision. It quickly became a very popular destination for many looking for a vacation home or a year-round residence offering the peace and tranquility of the high desert, while all the while enjoying three great active clubs and their amenities. The residents of Brasada Ranch believe as do the readers of Conde Nast Traveler that it is among the "Best Resorts in the World (2021), The United State...

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Bend Home Sales Down While Rate of Price Increase Drops

The Bend real estate market is in transition. With high mortgage interest rates impacting the buying power of potential Bend homebuyers and with sellers who may currently own a home financed under a low mortgage interest rate not listing, low inventory levels are keeping home prices up while the number of sales have dramatically dropped. We are seeing fewer new listings hitting the market, resulting in fewer pending sales and closed transactions. This is beyond the normal slow down that happens in Bend after school starts. This change is being felt nation wide and fewer home sales are happening with mortgage rates now approaching 8%.

Bend Real Estate Sales Impacted by Rising Interest Rates

We compare Bend Home sales year over year in order to be consistent in our data. When September 2023 sales of Bend single family homes are compared with those from September 2022, the following changes can be noted...

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Broken Top is a Recognized Bend Oregon Luxury Subdivision

Started in 1993, the Broken Top community and golf club have been one of Bend's premier subdivisions for many decades. Situated in Bend's west side, the private Morrish-Weiskopf designed 18 hole golf course and club have hosted professional and local tournaments and have been member owned for the past few years. Residences in the gated community include custom designed luxury homes on large lots, luxury townhomes, and a handful of vacation rentals which can also be used as year-round dwellings. 

Market Trends for Broken Top Single Family Homes

Broken Top real estate sales experienced the same pattern that much of Bend did during the Covid-19 pandemic with home prices and demand rising dramatically during 2020-2021, and then leveling off once interest rates doubled in 2022. Today, median sales prices have dropped from their 2022 peak with inventory levels and the number of sales rising.

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Pamelia Lake is a Very Popular Hike in the Mt Jefferson Wilderness

Prior to the recent adoption of hiking passes in the last 3 years, Pamelia Lake was one of a handful of Central Oregon hikes requiring a pass to access. This special lake is an easy 2.5 mile hike which gains 550 feet of elevation as it passes through beautiful old growth forest, complete with many rhododendrons which bloom in late spring. Our hike in late September, 2023, included some views of fall color in sunny spaces where vine maple grew. We could also see areas where the 2006 flood from Mt Jefferson's Milk Creek Glacier wiped out portions of the trail and lovely moss covered forest floor. Plant life is returning and the area should eventually fully recover.

Past the lake, the trail steepens for those planning on summiting Grizzly Mountain. Although over 2200 feet is gained, the path is well graded and doesn't feel as steep as other hikes we have taken in the past. It is another 3.3 miles to reach the top, the entire way in forest with a great viewpoint break roughly .7 miles from the summit. On a clear day, fabulous views of Mt Jefferson should be visible. For us, however, it was cloudy and while peek-a-boo views of Mt Jefferson appeared as the clouds moved, we never saw the entire mountain at once. However, the top of Grizzly Mountain was a great place for a lunch break before we returned back the way we came, enjoying again the hike through the forest with portions of the trail next to lovely Pamelia Creek. Our entire hike was 11.66 miles with 2739 feet of elevation gain. We hope to return next spring to see the rhododendrons in bloom.

Marion Falls is a Hidden Treasure

Marion Lake, on the west side of Santiam Pass, is a lovely lake that we had never seen during all the years we have lived in Central Oregon. The drive to the trailhead is longer than what we normally travel for our day hikes (roughly 1.5 hours), but the 10 mile gravel road off Hwy 22 to the trailhead is well maintained and easy to access. We hiked to Marion Lake on a late September Saturday in which the air quality in Bend was poor. Reports showed that the quality of the air west of Santiam would be better than in Bend, so we felt a hike in this area would be warranted and were able to obtain two passes.

Once we arrived, the trail began with a fairly short hike through the woods to Ann Lake, a smaller body of water in which the lake's rocky outlet flowed under our trail, creating interesting sounds. Past this point, the wooded trail continued until we reached larger Marion Lake. The trail steepened here, passing through some burned forests until we eventually reached Marion Mountain. There should have been great views of Mt. Jefferson and Three Fingered Jack from the peak of this mountain, but they were shadowed through smoke. After a short break, we returned down the trail, sampling wild blueberries which were still hanging from their fall foliaged bushes. We knew there was a trail somewhere to Marion Falls in the area, but it wasn't until we consulted with a couple of hikers we met that we were directed to the non-maintained social trail which is not on current maps. We quickly discovered why the forest service does not want people to hike this direction; the path has places which are extremely steep, slippery, and can be dangerous. Careful hikers will find plenty of rocks, trees and roots to hold onto to travel up and down this path, however, to obtain great views of both Upper and Lower Marion Falls. 

The entire hike was 12.24 miles with 2381 feet of elevation gain. We will return to this section of the Mt. Jefferson Wilderness soon. There are many trails which we need to explore!