Moving to Bend (Portland: real estate, new home, employment)

[fly mode]

Good day,
I have an offer of employment in Bend. I am looking for some help in determining where we want to live. I have kids in high school and middle school so I would like some input on the area schools. Also, cost of living is a consideration, are some areas more expensive than others? We are moving from Michigan and home prices seem a bit higher. If anyone has a realtor they would like to recommend I would appreciate that also. Any likes or dislikes, or any other comments are appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
Gary

[Bremenimp]

Northeastern part of Bend and parts of West Bend are the two newer areas in the City. Schools will be newer in these parts. Costs of homes are high, but there are deals everywhere right now as supply has outpaced demand. The cost of housing is always an issue, but there are many developers sitting on lots of inventory. I know someone that picked up a new home listed for $500K + a year ago for about $350K.

Good luck

[Bendite]

I'd try to focus first on the west side of Bend, even though a lot of the housing is more expensive than on the east side, there are deals to be found right now. Cascade Middle School in SW Bend is rated "strong" in academic achievement and "exceptional" in testing. It feeds into Summit High where recent ACT and SAT scores show students at higher levels than both average Oregon and National scoring for those tests. The school district is called Bend-LaPine, so you can find more information on their website, plus all schools are ranked by the state on the Dept. of Education website.

There is a website called centraloregonrealtors.com. You can fill in your price range and which schools you are interested in, and it will pull up what's available on the MLS. Be sure to read it from highest to lowest as the really low priced properties are often time ownership at Seventh Mountain Resort. A realtor we know has retired, but she was with Coldwell Banker Morris Real Estate for years and they always were professional and friendly. Another realty company we've worked with in the past was John L. Scott Realtors.

[Nell Plotts]

John L. Scott has a cool website that maps listings. I haven't tried it for Bend. I am watching for a family member in Portland where by using Scott's map, Google, and Zillow I learn a lot about a property.

[Cornerguy1]

Moderator Note:

Members wishing to make recomendations of specific realtor should contact the original poster through the Direct Message system rather than posting on the public board.

[mddd]

Under the central oregon realtors site - select Bend option and then you can go to specific options under "additions"

West Ridge, Parks at Broken Top, Fall Creek in Broken Top, Northwest Crossing Skyliner are all extremely close to schools (junior high and high school) and outdoor amenities. Several other areas there but can't remember the names of the subdivisions.