Contractor considering move to Bend (Portland: transplants, short sale, hair salon) - Oregon (OR) -Deschutes County - City-Data Forum

AndrePDX · 07-16-2010, 04:20 PM

I am a native from Portland. Work brought me down to Palm Springs, CA. Been here about 7 years. I met my wife here and have a 2nd baby on the way. And a step daughter who is 9. I just turned 31.
I am getting little home sick, tired of the desert and the wife (born and raised here) absolutely loves OR. I dont think she can handle all the rain in Portland....I know I dont want to again. So I am looking into Bend. With population of 80k+ I hope its big enough for me. I dont need big city but Palm springs and other cities is well ove 200k people.
Bend is a retirement comunity as is Palm Springs and I know there is some $$ there as well.
My only concern is Work. I wont have my Oregon CCB and specially clients for a while. I'll work on that but in mean time need clients to pay bills.
Thinking about calling some General Gontractors there for work and slowly build up my clients on the side. How is work for GC? how much do guys get paid in Bend after the whole housing buble bursted?
My girl does hair, she is well established here but is willing to make a move. SO it will be a big adjustment when it comes to making $. If the wife doesnt work I need to make at least 4K a month take home. is that really possible there right now?
I will be visiting Bend for a few days in August and look at renting some homes and neighborhood comparison. which neighborhoods are good and bad and why?
I tried to compare cities but I am having hard time finding the info I am looking for.
Would like to hear from locals about work, schools, city/night life, peple, cops, etc...
Thank you
Andre

delta07 · 07-17-2010, 10:16 AM

I think right now would be a really rough time to move to Bend and try to make it as a contractor. When the bubble burst, that left hundreds of contractors out of work. I have several good friends who lost their jobs and/or couldn't find contract jobs because people are not building. However, I do have some friends, all of whom are top notch and well known in the area, have a steady increase in business due to the fact that so many contractors had to leave the area. That's a tough call, but I would make sure you do some leg work and call the contractors in the area first to find out if they are hiring before you move here and find yourself without work. That way you can also get a feel for wages in the area. $4K a month seems like it could be hard on one salary in Bend, since most jobs here pay less than $15 an hour, even for experience and/or education. That's one of the reasons so many people can't make it in Bend. There are plenty of people willing to do a job that pays very little.

I have no idea about hair salons. I often see booth rentals in the classifieds, but don't necessarily know if that's what she would want to do. I imagine she would have to build a client base as well.

In terms of neighborhoods, I don't really think there is a bad one around. There are, however, some areas where crime is higher due to density issues and/or foreclosures in the area. I think it would be great to meet with a local realtor who can drive you around and give you the scoop on the town. The west side of Bend is very nice, but can be pretty expensive. There are very nice neighborhoods on the east side, and these are more affordable. I happen to live in one and we love it here!

Do a search of Bend on the Oregon forum (you'll find the search in the upper right tab on your screen) for lots of discussions regarding neighborhoods, nightlife, etc.

Silverfall · 07-17-2010, 11:12 AM

Contractors are hurting all over Oregon. Honestly, I can't imagine trying to do contracting work here without a client base. If you want to move to Bend, then plan on trying to find another job, and do contract work on the side. Then as you build your base, you can go back to GC work full time.

Several of the Bend builders went bankrupt. I think trying to move to Bend right now is a long shot.

middleoftheroad · 07-17-2010, 02:29 PM

I read someone's post yesterday that said there are no gang problems in Bend. I read another post that said there ARE! The only thing worse than gang activity in an area, is denial, or ignorance of their presence. It doesn't mean that there are not great areas to live in, but to actually not know that they are there is, I think, a real problem. I have lived in a town where everyone denied there was "really a problem, just some kids acting like wanna-be's" and for me that means that the gangs have moved there, are banging there, and ARE a problem.

I lived in Mendocino area for a while, and saw exactly that in Ft Bragg, about 5 miles up the coast. "No gangs here, just some kids acting tough", until about '07-08 there were shootings, (drive-by's) and folks from other areas coming in and robbing the "local, friendly pot-growers" for their pot/money, with violence.

Its a real shame when the people and the POLICE in an area deny their presence, and don't recognize it until AFTER the troubles begin.

I sure hope that the poster that claimed gangs were there was mistaken. The City-Data crime index is pretty good for the area (213) in 2008, which is well below the Nat'l Avg (320).

Just sayin, thats all.

delta07 · 07-18-2010, 11:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by middleoftheroad

I read someone's post yesterday that said there are no gang problems in Bend. I read another post that said there ARE! The only thing worse than gang activity in an area, is denial, or ignorance of their presence. It doesn't mean that there are not great areas to live in, but to actually not know that they are there is, I think, a real problem. I have lived in a town where everyone denied there was "really a problem, just some kids acting like wanna-be's" and for me that means that the gangs have moved there, are banging there, and ARE a problem.

I lived in Mendocino area for a while, and saw exactly that in Ft Bragg, about 5 miles up the coast. "No gangs here, just some kids acting tough", until about '07-08 there were shootings, (drive-by's) and folks from other areas coming in and robbing the "local, friendly pot-growers" for their pot/money, with violence.

Its a real shame when the people and the POLICE in an area deny their presence, and don't recognize it until AFTER the troubles begin.

I sure hope that the poster that claimed gangs were there was mistaken. The City-Data crime index is pretty good for the area (213) in 2008, which is well below the Nat'l Avg (320).

Just sayin, thats all.

MOTR, I'm confused about your post? I guess I don't understand what this has to do with the OPs question about making it in Bend as a contractor? Maybe I'm missing something...

middleoftheroad · 07-18-2010, 11:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by delta07

MOTR, I'm confused about your post? I guess I don't understand what this has to do with the OPs question about making it in Bend as a contractor? Maybe I'm missing something...

OP mentioned "Would like to hear from locals about work, schools, city/night life, people, cops, etc...

I took that to include concern about crime.....

AndrePDX · 07-18-2010, 08:39 PM

Thank you Delta07 and middleOTR for your post.
To start off about my Q.... people, cops.
It had a little to do about crime. I do want my kids in safe neighborhoods and get them away from cali mentality and gangs that are down here. Going to public schools the ratios is more then 50% latino. Not that latino or black is bad. but... honesty the polls show that.....
dont get me wrong. not racist. just realistic.
anyways sooner or later they will be around gangs. I know bend is more white and less crime from city compar cites. but its nice to hear that there is almost no gangs.
The Q. also had to do about how people look at new people moving into Bend and the ones from cali.....Thank god I keep my residency at my parents house and still have OR plates.

Delta how do people survive on 15$ an hour. how could have Bend been selling home for $300k+ and no real economy to support it? There has to be more $ for people to survive on.
Have there been alot of lay offs?
I have a good client base here and really only need one or two big jobs a year to survive with handy man work on the side. so that is what I am hoping for when I move up. I wont really be moving for about a year. EARLIEST nect summer. so I want to get the ball moving slowly. are the home values still falling in Bend? People doing any remodels, spending $ on their homes. at least kitchen or bath..
thanks
Andre

monalisssa · 07-18-2010, 10:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AndrePDX

Delta how do people survive on 15$ an hour. how could have Bend been selling home for $300k+ and no real economy to support it? There has to be more $ for people to survive on.
Have there been alot of lay offs?
I have a good client base here and really only need one or two big jobs a year to survive with handy man work on the side. so that is what I am hoping for when I move up. I wont really be moving for about a year. EARLIEST nect summer. so I want to get the ball moving slowly. are the home values still falling in Bend? People doing any remodels, spending $ on their homes. at least kitchen or bath..
thanks
Andre

Excellent questions Andre but yeah basically homes were selling for $300K plus with no real economy to support it.

Oregon in general is not a good place for even established contractors right now and contractors in Bend? Even worse (way worse if you believe the contractors I've talked to). I sure wouldn't hang my hat on being a contractor in Bend.

Silverfall · 07-18-2010, 11:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AndrePDX

Delta how do people survive on 15$ an hour. how could have Bend been selling home for $300k+ and no real economy to support it? There has to be more $ for people to survive on.

Andre

The reason Bend crashed so hard is because they don't have an economy. Homes skyrocketed in price because people from other states where homes appreciated like crazy walked in with massive equity which they used as down-payments.

I mean I had CA clients that made $50k a year here that bought a $350,000 home. Their mortgage was only $120,000 because they sold their home in CA for an insane amount of money. They used all that profit to buy a nice home here and still keep an affordable mortgage. THAT is why real estate was so crazy high in Bend. It is also one of the reasons that housing was hit the hardest there. No more transplants to buy homes.

AndrePDX · 07-19-2010, 08:53 AM

SO it sounds like Bend has not recovered yet. or at least even stabilized. home prices still droping, foreclosure, short sale, etc...
I know economy is still down but here in PS it has leveled off and people are buying homes. no one is really doing big remodels unless they have sick money. but there is constant flow of little work for me.
When I come up in this Mid Aug. any place not to even bother looking at homes.
I have only driven through Bend few times, been to sunriver, things like that. if i dont want to comute to town whats the furthest I want to be. how is the traffic?
ALso do the rodas get pretty bad in winter, or they get plowed/gravel pretty good? My girl has never driven on snow.