east coaster moving west - maybe bend area, or kalispell, mt

[hamellr]

I personally have a couple of hours worth of allergies when I'm in Central Oregon. It goes away as I acclimate though.

[delta07]

Originally Posted by kdata

thanks for that info. I had no clue how many people on here lived around bend. I guess that's helpful to know that I've probably received all the opinions I'm going to get. Thanks for the allergy info as well. I was having trouble finding a good resource online for historical pollen count data.

Can I ask where you lived in colorado where it was trendy?

I didn't actually live in the "trendy" parts of Colorado, only nearby in a bedroom community. I was about 25 miles from Breckenridge and it always drove me crazy to go into town during tourist season (summer and winter for the most part). Bend has it's share of tourists, but I guess what I get annoyed with the most is the upper middle class to upper class crowd that calls Bend home. It's just a bit much at times, but it could be me.

[kdata]

can I ask how you jumped from there to bend, or what made you move? Did your job move you, or you just wanted a change of scenery and picked bend?

I've spent maybe an entire 7hrs in the town of breck, so I can't really say a whole lot about it. I was just amazed at the amount of people walking around the town. It kind of felt like a college town with a lot of 20-something year old people out and about.

Vail was kind of the same when I was there. Except, the age demographic of the people walking around seemed to be much more in the late 30's, and 40's+. A lot of people eating, shopping, etc. It felt WAY more (dare I say) snobbish. I felt out of place because I wasn't covered in coach, ed hardy, lv, gucci, and every other designer brand. I may have just had a bad experience, but I felt a lot of eyes on me, like I was being judged. I really don't care if you do, or don't have money, but you don't have to make others uncomfortable.

[delta07]

I actually didn't move from there to Bend, I lived in Grand Junction, CO for almost 7 years before relocating to Bend. My husband and I were tired of GJ, so we started looking at other locations. I was born and raised in CO, and decided we wanted to try someone else in the country while we were young (we are in our mid-30s) and didn't have kids. We narrowed our search down to Missoula, MT and Bend. Ultimately Bend one out because the pay was so much better for my husband (he's an RN, BSN) and he was the one with the job offers. I've yet to find decent employment, as I'm a teacher and no one is hiring.

The uncomfortable feeling you got in Vail is definitely what I'm talking about. It is here in Bend, although not as blatant as the resort towns of Vail, Aspen, etc. in Colorado. You can generally avoid it by avoiding the places the rich frequent. However, it's still a bit snobbish, IMHO. I don't really know whether Kalispell is that way or not. I've only driven through there on my way to Glacier NP once. My sister did say she thought we would like Kalispell though. However, that was probably 10 years ago when we first talked about MT.

[delta07]

kdata, I went back and read your original post because I couldn't recall where you are currently located. While I didn't find that, it sounds like you are either on the east coast or the south with the heat and humidity comments. Obviously you know that either location, Bend or Kalispell, is going to be a big change (and one it sounds like you are looking forward to) from your current location.

I did notice that you stated you wanted to live in a densely wooded area, preferably with some land where you can build. If you are set on this scenario, make sure to familiarize yourself with Oregon's urban growth boundary laws. I don't know a lot about them, but I do know that is why it's very difficult to find land just outside of town that you can build on. It sounds like you've been looking online and realize that most of those wooded properties are very expensive. We originally had that idea as well (as did my sister-in-law and her husband when they relocated here too), and quickly realized it wasn't going to happen for us. The few places we found with an acre and a house were either in an undesirable area for us, out of our price range, or the lot was strangely laid out. You'll notice this quite a bit in Deschutes River Woods, where some property is affordable. As another poster stated, you can find acreage and a home or buildable lot, but for the most part you will have to go east and north of Bend. You will then be out in the desert, where it's still nice, but vastly different from the densely wooded lot you are seeking.

Kalispell, from you drive through experience, definitely is more a mountain location (Bend is a mountain town, but never feels that way to me because of the other mountain towns I've lived in). You will be surrounded by densely wooded land. The winters however, are probably a bit harsher than they are in Bend. Summers are probably a bit cooler as well (but not positive, just guessing based on the location).

[Dry Side]

It's not the UGB that prevents one from buying land and building a home outside of Bend city limits. The UGB just prevents new subdivisions from being developed outside city limits. Developers have figured out how to circumvent this. They are called "Destination Resorts". A developer can build a destination resort and make the promise to have over night lodging, but for the most part the county looks the other way if they never build the over night lodging. Most of the land in the forested sections are South and West of Bend are owned by everyone via the Deschutes National Forest. The largest acreage bordering the forest and on the West side of Bend is "The Highlands". sixty three 10 acre lots.

[mtn 2 h20]

Just curious if you have moved yet and if so, which town did you move to? I am considering a move from Whitefish, MT to Bend and was curious on what your final opinion was?

[Dry Side]

Now Destination Resorts such as "Tetherow" are not even building the required roads in the required time frame. They just ask for an extension from the county and it gets granted.

[SunDreamer]

Both states are absolutely amazing. They each have their trade-offs. I currently live in Portland, Oregon, moved here from Missoula, Montana and am preparing for a move to Bend.