Affordable Housing an Issue with Both Aspen Colorado and Bend Oregon

The question of affordability of housing in Bend has been around for quite some time with many jokingly asking the question "is Bend becoming the next Aspen?" Now granted Bend is a much bigger city than Aspen, and the average home price in Aspen is much higher, but there are some striking similarities between the two places when you look at these four leading indicators:

•       Listing inventory is down dramatically in both locations with Aspen homes for sale ↓ 34% to 371 homes, while Bend homes for sale is ↓ 84.1% to only 89 homes.*
•       Average days on market in Aspen is actually up↑ 16% to 208 days, while in Bend we are ↓ 86.2% to historic lows of just 12 days.
•       Average sales price in Aspen is ↓ 10% to still an impressive $3,673,560, while in Bend our sales price is ↑28.2% to $666,293.
•       The number of new listings in...

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For a blast of flavor, a bite of paradise, and a tingle of spice, look no further. Our food journey has brought us to one of the newest food trucks in town and this did not disappoint. The new Shimshon Food Truck, featuring Israeli street food in the Mid Town Yacht Club, was such a wonderful taste experience that we highly recommend it if you are looking for something with a totally different flavor profile. 

When we arrived at the Yacht Club, we instantly spotted where we were to have lunch. The truck was so wonderfully decorated with brightly colored pomegranates and a fun two tone paint job. We appreciated the simple menu and explanations of what the sauces were on the menu board. Needless to say, we wanted to try a few different items and each was excellent. 

First we ordered the Shimshon Bowl with Chicken Shawarma, Zhug and Toume s...

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Following a record breaking year in 2020, fueled largely by the influx of workers desiring to work from home in a more desirable location after being locked down by the coronavirus, Bend Premier Real Estate took some time out to celebrate the success of our hard working Premier Agents at our 2020 Broker Awards. Even the ceremony itself was a bit different this year being held entirely online, but the achievements of our brokers was no less impressive with 21 individual and 3 team awards being given out.

BEND PREMIER REAL ESTATE AGENTS TOP HONORS

Gold Level Awards (5-10 million dollar producers)

•        Katharine Miller
•        Tina Roberts
•        Elizabeth Ueland
•        Diane Lozito
•        Rob Lindberg

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What's in the February 2021 Newsletter?

• Bend Real Estate Sales Hit Record Highs in January 2021!
• For an Easy Hike in the Desert Try Fort Rock Loop
• 3 Reasons We're Definitely Not in a Housing Bubble
• Wishing for Warm Sands, Cerveza and Tacos?

Just an Hour's Drive SE of Bend is Fort Rock State Park

It has been several years since we last visited the Fort Rock area located 67.7 miles SE of Bend in Lake County. Fort Rock itself is a volcanic tuff ring located on an ice age lake bed. The ring is about 4,460 feet in diameter and stands about 200 feet high above the surrounding area. Its name is obvious from its resemblance to the tall, straight walls of a fort.

When we arrived at the state park February 6th, we saw just a handful of people using the facility. We hiked the 1.1 miles around the interior of the crater, but then scrambled up the far side to the rim which provided for nice views of the mountains to the west. The hike itself was easy and would be very warm in the summer. We had hoped to combine this trip with another hike in the general area - Hole in the Ground - but the forest service road to this location was closed for the winter.

If you do go to Fort Rock, a stop at the Fort Rock Homestead Museum is very worthwhile for those who enjoy seeing how early settlers to this part of Oregon lived. When we were there February 6th, the museum was closed; not sure if this was due to Covid restrictions or if it was just a seasonal shut down.