Bend does not live up to its propaganda (Coos Bay, Redmond: rentals, insurance)

[oregonwoodsmoke]

I don't care how wonderful a town is, or how much there is to do there, no place is fun to live if you don't have enough income to provide for yourself, with enough extra to participate in the fun events.

Any place that is an excellent place to live is going to have expensive real estate. That's because people want to live in an excellent place and that produces demand for housing. If you want cheap housing, move to Detroit, where you can buy a large house for $5,000. That is because nobody wants to live there.

Anyone who asks is told that jobs are few and housing is expensive. 3 seconds of research would have revealed that information.

So, anyone else who is reading this and thinking about moving to Bend: living wage jobs are few and far between and real estate is expensive, which makes rentals expensive. Very close to the only industry is tourist oriented, which means that there are mostly tourist industry jobs and none of those pay well. There are also dozens of eager people applying for those tourist industry jobs, so snagging a job can be difficult, especially if you have no marketable job skills.

Now you can't say you weren't warned.

If OP is unhappy, it is time to get organized and find a new location that might work better for him. His expectations haven't been met in Bend, so roll the dice again.

[Steve Pickering]

Originally Posted by mrwibble

The job I do in Bend for $80K per year would pay $130K+ in Seattle.

Again ..... Bend is not Seattle.

[delta07]

Originally Posted by redguard57

When I got a job in Central Oregon 2 years ago, I believed a lot of the hype about this place.

What I've found is that it was mostly propaganda.

1) Breweries - the craft brewery movement is spreading nationwide and Deschutes beer is getting to be a national brand, at least west of the Mississippi. So it's not all that special anymore, and most good pubs, especially in the PNW, have the good beer selections available.

They're fun the first time, but after that they blend together.

2) Festivals - it seems to be the same two festivals with a different name held at various times of the year. I will say that BendFilm is pretty cool for a town this size.

3) The Lifestyle - a lot of people are athletic poseurs or define "adventure" as hiking a well-worn trail.

4) The social life - there is none. This is a place for families and retired people. If you don't already have a family, dating is damn hard, mostly because there are very limited dating options. When there is someone with potential - they are going to move to find a better job... that leads me to:

5) Jobs - there are few. I got one here but it was a lucky break and sometimes I wish I hadn't, because now I feel trapped.

6) Cultural life - there is little of it.

7) Isolated - 3 hours to Portland. Most everything closes down early at night except the usual suspects.

8) Housing costs - they are insane. I don't know how a working person can afford a house here, but I sure can't, and I'm in a financially stable position. The best I can do is *bid* on a double wide, there's no guarantee I'll win the bidding on these foreclosures and short sales. Other than manufactured homes and places that need tens of thousands worth of work, I can't afford crap. One townhome that I was interested in had 18 offers in less than 2 weeks.

This is not a great place to live at all, unless you're already wealthy. The hype was all bull****.

Others have already responded well to this post, but thought I would throw my 2 cents in as well. Yes, there is a lot of "propaganda" out there about Bend right now. Some of it is true, others are exaggerated. You have to realize that every article, blog post, etc written about Bend is going to have an agenda behind it. There's no hard science to this kind of subject. That's true for any place though. You really need to do your own research to determine if a place is right for you. For me, that includes at least one visit, if not more, to a location. If you can't afford to do that, then you can't afford to move. If you choose not to visit, then it's on you if you don't like it.

I know I am lucky, but my housing costs are far less than the average. My husband also makes great money compared with many of the jobs in the area. We aren't rich, by an stretch, and we choose to drive 20 year old cars, live in an older, smaller home, and don't try to keep up with the Jones'. But, I do think Bend is still affordable for most people I know. If you want to live in a small city, with easy access to the outdoors, festivals, a thriving downtown, an active community, etc. then you are going to pay for it. That's life.

Bend is not for everyone, that's clear. But your list really isn't true for most people I know. Sounds like your expectations were very different than the reality. One visit here before relocating would have made all the difference for you, in my opinion.

[BendLocal]

Originally Posted by kapetrich

Also, if you want the best and most unique beer in town go to the tap rooms of Bone Yard and Deschutes. Both often have amazingly select beer on tap that you truly can not get anywhere in the country BUT directly at their counter - aged, high alcohol content, pretentious beer.

Another option since I agree that most of the breweries flagship 8 beers are all similar no matter where you go anymore?.....The Ale Apothecary. This brewery is WITHOUT A DOUBT one of the most unique and truly artisan breweries in the country. The guy is an old master brewer from Deschutes (created Red Chair/Dissident) where he got tired of the stainless steal production nonsense. He makes truly artisan 'Belgium/french' old world style beers. He brews in totally wood barrels from the begging to the end. It is extremely time intensive and EXTREMELY unique in this country.

So, really, do you not like our beer scene because you don't know much about beer nor actually care? ...Because if you did as I explain, we have an AMAZING and extremely unique beer scene here....if you get past the standard 10 brewery's flagship 8 beers.

The Ale Apothecary creates tasty if expensive beer, but it isn't open to the public like the others. That would leave Crux as the best option for Belgian's on tap.

[Steve Pickering]

Originally Posted by delta07

... ... that includes at least one visit, if not more, to a location. If you can't afford to do that, then you can't afford to move. ... ...

The internet to search and Google to actually see far off places has created an expectation of finding your utopia on line. It isn't going to happen. Good point Delta.

[redguard57]

I was feeling angry when I made this post. A lot of you have made good points. I grew up in a town slightly smaller than Bend is now, about 60,000. I didn't realize how used to bigger cities I'd gotten since then. A lot of what I experience here is similar to how I felt back home. Bend is one of the nicer towns of this size I've experienced, however. Most people I talk to (if they've heard of Bend) are actually quite jealous when I tell them where I am now.

I think the most frustrating things for me are when a person I'm dating suddenly says she's moving to Seattle, Reno, Phoenix or wherever because she's looked for better jobs than her server gig for over a year in Central Oregon and there's nothing. That's happened to me twice, the latest recently. I was pretty upset about it.

My search for housing has also been incredibly frustrating, since my borrowing limit is $150k. Buying a home is a big decision, and I take about 3 days to think about whether or want I really want a house I've seen. I've lost at least two deals because of that 3 days, since at that range a lot of people can pay cash and they sell almost immediately. It's to the point where I'm going to have to tell my agent to put an offer down within hours of viewing something acceptable.

[Steve Pickering]

In your price range yes. Especially if it is worth two cents.

And people from east of the big river have always thought utopia lies west. Often that is just what it does. Lies.

[gray horse]

If you are hating Bend enough to post this, maybe wait to buy a house. If you were feeling stuck before you will be really stuck once you own.

[Steve Pickering]

Originally Posted by gray horse

If you are hating Bend enough to post this, maybe wait to buy a house. If you were feeling stuck before you will be really stuck once you own.

Another good point. Sometimes people get set on a track and even when they figure out it is the wrong direction, they bull ahead because their pride can't say "I was wrong".

[redguard57]

Originally Posted by gray horse

If you are hating Bend enough to post this, maybe wait to buy a house. If you were feeling stuck before you will be really stuck once you own.

With the rental market the way it is, owning is cheaper than renting.

I'd be a lot happier if my living conditions were better. I don't really "hate" Bend as much as I hate the particular location I live now. I've got a good deal on my current apartment - so my main concern is that if I give it up, I'll pay more for an equivalent or worse situation.

The other problems I mentioned I would likely face elsewhere, although maybe to different degrees.