Not sure where to Retire (Portland, Bend: appointed, sales, property tax) - Oregon (OR) -Deschutes County - City-Data Forum

Wisewoman59 · 06-02-2014, 02:15 AM

Hi
My Husband and I our retired now, and we been looking at different states
we live in California now. but we want to fine a cheaper state to live in. We were
thinking about Bend Oregon.my Husband is a disable Vet. with a 100% pay, and he has his
SSD. So money is not a issue. I was wondering about the weather. I use to live in Portland
and they had a lot of rain, and grey days. 3 year of that and I had enough. so now I thinking of Bend
is it as rainy and grey as Portland. I need to have sun. I suffer from S.A.D. I really love Oregon. I miss the
beauty. where is the best area to live around Bend. do they have 55 community. our the property tax high there. also we were going to check out Releigh North Carolina. but now I think I wont be able to handle the Humid Summer. and I never live on the east side. always live on the westside.
any advise would be welcome.

volosong · 06-02-2014, 06:11 AM

Having visited the east coast often to see family in all seasons, there is no way you could get me to live there on a full-time basis. Mostly because of the weather. The humidity would kill me, at least kill me emotionally. I also live in SoCal, for have for my whole life, (will retire myself in about two-three more years). Climates that are different than Csa/Csb/BSk are very foreign to me.

Bend, being east of the Cascades, has a BSk climate, (semi-arid steppe). If you like and enjoy the climate where you are now, you will like the climate in Bend.

Can't help you with your other queries. Perhaps you could post your questions in the OR sub-forum? Bend has its own sub-forum under the Oregon sub-forum. Your questions may have already been answered.

Best wishes. Enjoy your retirement.

augiedogie · 06-02-2014, 06:15 AM

This thread should probably be moved to the Oregon forum.

ABQ2015 · 06-02-2014, 10:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by augiedogie

This thread should probably be moved to the Oregon forum.

I don't understand why a question about Oregon should be moved given that a huge amount of time is spent on this Retirement forum discussing Florida, South Carolina, and Asheville.

But to get back to the OP's questions, 55+ communities are not that popular in Oregon. There is a 55+ community close to Bend called Eagle Crest but it is near Redmond, Oregon, about 20 miles from Bend. The 55+ community is part of the Eagle Crest Resort and has a golf course and other amenities that are shared. I don't think the 55+ community is as organized for activities as a Del Webb community would be but the resort itself has activities. Bend housing is getting expensive as the housing market is recovering from the big bust but prices are not as high as the 2007? levels. Redmond and Eagle Crest are more reasonably priced than Bend. But coming from California, the prices may not seem that high to you.

The Bend area is a high desert and can be very cold in the winter and the winters can be very long. The joke is that Bend has 10 months of winter and 2 months of summer or something like that. But Bend is experiencing a little bit of drought as are some other parts of Oregon and the last few years have not been that cold although there was one horrible snow storm this last winter where they got 15-20 inches of snow. But Bend does not tend to get as much snow as Denver or some of the other mountain areas.

I live in New Mexico and plan to retire in Bend in a couple of years (if I can still afford the housing). I'm tired of the heat and am looking forward to living in a cooler climate and living in a small, mountain city that is a resort area.

BendLocal · 06-02-2014, 11:03 AM

With the exception of sales tax I'm not sure Bend would be much cheaper than similar smaller towns in CA.

PNW-type-gal · 06-02-2014, 11:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wisewoman59

Hi
My Husband and I our retired now, and we been looking at different states
we live in California now. but we want to fine a cheaper state to live in. We were
thinking about Bend Oregon.my Husband is a disable Vet. with a 100% pay, and he has his
SSD. So money is not a issue. I was wondering about the weather. I use to live in Portland
and they had a lot of rain, and grey days. 3 year of that and I had enough. so now I thinking of Bend
is it as rainy and grey as Portland. I need to have sun. I suffer from S.A.D. I really love Oregon. I miss the
beauty. where is the best area to live around Bend. do they have 55 community. our the property tax high there. also we were going to check out Releigh North Carolina. but now I think I wont be able to handle the Humid Summer. and I never live on the east side. always live on the westside.
any advise would be welcome.

You might try Southern Oregon, from Roseburg to Ashland. Not as damp and dark as the Willamette Valley and more sun than the Bend area with a much shorter winter. It does have a hot (for Oregon) summer. Roseburg has a full VA hospital/clinic.

While the area has more sun than most places in Oregon, it is still going to be less sun than Southern California.

Steve Pickering · 06-02-2014, 11:25 AM

With Bend you have less rain but somewhat hard winters with long periods of snow cover. Not sure what Volosong is talking about.

oregonwoodsmoke · 06-03-2014, 12:30 AM

If you are retired and don't need to drive to work every day, take a look at Crooked River Ranch. It is a bit north of Bend, slightly lower in elevation, drier, sunnier, warmer. Although "warm" in Central Oregon is a relative term.

There is a lovely golf course and a huge swimming pool for residents. Bend is close enough to go for a major shopping trip or for the fun activities that are always going on in Bend.

Crooked River Ranch has a website. Crooked River Realty also has a website with a lot of local information.

We aren't so keen on 55 communities. Our retirees are very active in this area. You might have better luck finding a senior mountain biking group than a shuffle board club.

Wisewoman59 · 06-03-2014, 03:38 AM

thanks oregonwood smoke I will check it out

Coniferian · 06-03-2014, 08:05 AM

We retired here to Redmond from Colorado about six months ago and were also concerned about the amount of sunshine. So far we haven't been disappointed, although I read here on this forum that this spring has been warmer and drier than usual. No sales tax is great for a fixed budget, but property taxes in Redmond are higher than we're used to. We only considered a handful of places to retire and have been pleased with our choice of central Oregon.