Commuting from Prineville to Bend (Redmond, La Pine: apartment, rent, houses)

[deenaudrey]

Hello,

I am looking to see if anyone makes the commute from Prineville to Bend for work? Housing is so expensive in Central Oregon. I am not willing to pay nor can I afford to pay 900 on up for a 1 or 2 bedroom apartment, duplex or house for that matter. I start my new job on the 8th of July and I am considering finding something more affordable in the outlining areas.. any suggestions or opinion's would greatly be appreciated. I am single, no kids and have been living in Bend for the last 6 mo in Lapine with family. So ready to set up house, its tough here.

D.

[flyonpa]

I would suggest you post to one of the Oregon Forums,

http://www.city-data.com/forum/bend/

[Poncho_NM]

Moved thread to Oregon Forum

[mrwibble]

Bear in mind it's a 72 mile round trip, so it's going to put some miles on your car and use up some gas. That hill going out of town can be a bit tricky in the winter too. Have you looked at Redmond, rather than Prineville? It's half the distance and a pretty straightforward run up and down the 97.

[oregonwoodsmoke]

I'm sure someone is doing it.

Prineville is not a bad place to live, but I suspect you will get tired of the drive. Roads are going to be a lot better in winter than they will be if you commute from La Pine, which is also a cheaper place to live. I have spoken to several people who commute from La Pine and they all hate the drive-- that can be a very bad and dangerous drive in the winter.

Rents are lower in Prineville and it is a decent little town. Rents in Redmond aren't as low as Prineville, but Redmond rents are cheaper than rent in Bend, and you'll have a savings on gasoline to help balance out for the slightly higher rent.

There is a small area of cheaper housing in Terrebonne and that is a better commute than from Prineville. Most houses in Terrebonne are expensive, but there is a cheap area west of the highway, right across from the store.

[redguard57]

People do what they have to do. I've met people who commute 4-5 times weekly from Madras to Bend. I commute from Redmond-Bend 3 times weekly and truthfully the drive is most frustrating inside the city of Bend.

If you're ONLY looking at cheaper housing options, you might consider La Pine if you're commuting to somewhere south of downtown Bend - it's about the same distance as Prineville (a little closer). Prineville would be easiest to somewhere on the east side of Bend.

If you have good winter tires on your car it should be fine in winter. If it's really bad the authorities will recommend that people stay off the roads and your employer will probably understand. For my first year and a half here all I had was my rear wheel drive sports car -- lots of horsepower and torque in the rear - probably the WORST car you can have for winter in Oregon. I put good winter tires on, 3 sandbags in the back and never got stuck although I did pick my battles where to drive when it got real snowy, icy. Just please don't get studs - they don't make much of a difference and we all pay for that through taxes and inconvenience when they have to resurface roads that studded tires have destroyed.

I'm considering moving to Prineville for a few years because it is much cheaper and in Prineville I could live debt-free and save up the egregiously high down payment I would need to live in Bend. I think of the outlying choices Prineville, Madras, La Pine, Prineville is the best.

As others have said Redmond is a much easier commute but it's getting increasingly expensive as it absorbs more and more Bend outflow. Since the OP is looking for <900, Redmond is probably not an option because the duplex next door to me charges something like $925.