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Thom Gardner,
Buyers Broker Phone-
541-480-7554
Email-
Bendbrokersrealty@gmail.com
Snowcamp
on the West Face Route, Mount Shasta- The Queen of the
Cascades
ABOUT
REDMOND
While Bend Real Estate garners national press attention and
attracts lots of white collar folks and retirees, Redmond
Real Estate serves as a blue collar base for Central
Oregon, where country music, pickup trucks, and friendly
faces still have a home on the High Desert. People here
often have horses, as there are many small acreage ranches
and farms close to and even in town, and there are also
lots of rental neighborhoods full of multi family units, as
many people who can’t afford to live in Bend but still need
to work there use Redmond as a home base and commute.
Redmond Real Estate has a little of everything, as there
are some custom homes to be found on the outskirts and
around the Butte, but primarily there are small acreages
and subdivisions filled with families large and small.
Redmond Real Estate is undergoing many of the changes that
occurred to Bend Real Estate a few years before. Upscale
homes have gone in on the outskirts, on the ranches, and on
the hill that sits on the South side of town. Downtown is
in the beginning stages of a renovation, to try to bring
the same sort of excitement that pervades Bend’s downtown.
While folks in Bend have qualms about having a Super Wal
Mart there, it was welcomed with open arms here, and now
Lowe’s and Home Depot have built their stores here as well.
There is a larger hispanic community here, with few of the
racial tensions found in other areas nearby where
immigrants have moved into a previously caucasian dominated
area. Some Redmond real estate has great views of either
the Cascade volcanoes, or of the stratified reddish brown
cliffs of Smith Rock State Park.
Redmond is approximately 15 minutes from Bend, and
currently has a population of about 25,000, growing faster
than her sister city to the South. It is about 500 feet
lower than Bend, at just under 3100 feet, and so has fewer
large trees and more of a desert landscape. Of course, it
rarely gets snow, even when Bend can have a foot or so, and
is generally warmer by a few degrees year round. It is just
minutes from several recreational opportunities, including
fishing at Lake Billy Chinook or the Crooked River, world
class rock climbing at Smith Rock State Park, Boating and
Water Sports at Billy Chinook and Haystack Reservoirs, and
endless possibilities for horseback riding, hiking, and
some off road sports at Cline Falls State Park.
Redmond also has something Bend doesn’t- a regional airport
that has direct flights to Portland, Seattle, Salt Lake
City, San Francisco, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. It is
served by Alaska Airlines, United Airlines, and a few
smaller carriers. A flight to Portland takes approximately
40 minutes. And, Redmond is also home to the Deschutes
County Fairgrounds, where in addition to the Fair, concerts
and trade shows take up residence during most of the year.
Nearby is Eagle Crest, an upscale golf community just
outside of town, right next to Cline Butte (where Barack
Obama stayed while in Bend, among others). More retirees
and white collar folks live here, and real estate generally
starts in the 300’s and goes well up from there. However,
in town proper, you can still find a home in the low 100’s,
which is next to impossible in nearby Bend or Sisters. For
this reason, many first time home buyers buy Redmond homes.
And, just to the North is the little town of Terrebonne, a
bedroom community with lower priced real estate as well as
multi million dollar ranches, owing to the proximity to the
gorgeous views of Mount Jefferson, and especially Smith
Rock State Park and the Crooked River.
ABOUT SISTERS
Ahh, Sisters. Adored by tourists, railed at by motorists
who happen to pass through during one of its many festivals
or the big Rodeo, it is an enigma in Central Oregon. Many
celebrities live here, including NFL Quarterback Dan Fouts,
as there are ample opportunities for privacy on the large
acreage, rural real estate scattered throughout the
Ponderosa Pines the area is famous for. There is even a
little airport community, where you can taxi your own plane
right down the street to your own hangar. Sisters is all
about shopping and tourists, and is situated on Highway 20,
along which you will find shop after shop of Western items
and crafts. People love to go there from Bend just to
stroll and shop, or stroll and eat. Its biggest tourist
bringing events are the Sisters Quilt festival, and the
massive Sisters Rodeo, which practically shuts down the
highway for 3 days in July.
Sisters real estate has survived the downturn in housing
with less impact than in other Bend area real estate
markets, and home sales have barely dropped and in some
cases have increased. Real estate here tends to be among
the most expensive in the county, but gets a little cheaper
if you get out of the trees and towards the more desert
areas towards Redmond or Bend. The town has a very Western
Americana sort of feel, which it has honed over time for
the tourist crowd. Many folks think it is higher than Bend,
as it gets more snow and has more trees, but it actually is
only about 3200 feet, 400 feet lower than Bend. The weather
and tree difference is just due to it being closer to the
mountains. And close it is, as one of the most scenic
highways in the world, the Mckenzie highway, takes off from
town and heads through some of the most amazing volcanic
landscapes anywhere. Numerous hiking trails, high lakes,
camping, and climbing opportunities such as Mount
Washington and Three Fingered Jack are very close. It is a
gateway to the Three Sisters Wilderness, and the Pacific
Crest Trail. The highway often does not open until late
June or even the fourth of July, but should not be missed.
Of course, horses are a big part of life in Sisters, and
ranch real estate abounds. If you are not into Western
Americana, it’s probably not your town. In Sisters you will
find vacation homes and second homes galore, as it is tough
to make a living in town without your own tourist based
business. Sisters Oregon Realtors are few, and most buyers
use a Bend real estate agent to handle their purchase, as
this way they are not limited to using someone who only
deals in the small market there, but has a broad spectrum
of knowledge of similar bare lots, homes, acreages, and
properties in other Central Oregon real estate markets that
might favorably compare. Population is currently around
1700 people.
We generally have homes listed in Sisters (2 as I write
this), so check out our listings on the site!
ABOUT PRINEVILLE and POWELL
BUTTE
Picturesque and dry, Prineville is the warmest town in
Central Oregon. It sits in a bowl that you drop down into
from Redmond, and can be several degrees warmer than the
other towns, year round. It rarely gets snow, and has a
very quaint, from another time feel. There is a golf course
right in town, and the Crooked River runs right through it.
Ample recreational opportunities abound with world class
fly fishing on the river, water sports at nearby Prineville
Reservoir (where I keep my ski boat, thank you), canoeing
and fishing at Ochoco Reservoir, and the wilderness of the
Ochoco Mountains, where you will find fewer tourists, more
hunters, and more solitude in general.
Prineville real estate has had a rough time with its recent
growth spurt, as it exploded in 2005 and 2006, when it got
its first Starbucks! Developers moved in, it was touted as
the next “Bend real estate boom”, homes were built in large
subdivisions in and just outside of town, and then the
bottom dropped out. Real estate sales have fallen sharply
here, and this presents a real opportunity for buyers, as
houses start in the low 100’s. It is still picturesque, it
is still warm and balmy, it still has fabulous recreation,
but you should be able to make a real lowball offer on a
newer home here and make out like a bandit. It also boasts
something VERY rare on this side of the Cascade Mountains-
Lake front properties, on Prineville Reservoir, which is
about 15 minutes away. Population is approximately 10,000.
Powell Butte is Prineville’s upscale neighbor, where small
acreage real estate is the norm, life is slower, and some
gorgeous views of the Cascades abound. If you are looking
to become a gentleman rancher, this is the place. About ten
minutes from Prineville, and fifteen from Bend, Powell
Butte is home to some beautiful real estate with gorgeous
green grass, irrigation, horses, and laid back attitudes.
Real estate with homes starts in the high 300’s and go
through the roof from there.
We would love to represent you in your Prineville or Powell
Butte Real Estate search ( If for no other reason than to
visit my ski boat, which sits at Prineville Reservoir all
Summer long!) As long time Central Oregon Real estate
agents, we are very familiar with the area, and can help
you find just the right property, house, or bare land just
over the Crook County border.