When it comes to million-dollar homes, Central Oregon definitely has its share. Whether it’s a contemporary estate on Awbrey Butte in Bend, a scenic riverfront home in Redmond, a log home on acreage outside Sisters or a top-of-the-line horse-boarding facility in Tumalo, high-end buyers have plenty to choose from in Deschutes County.
Once upon a time, million-dollar sales in Central Oregon were fairly commonplace, too. In 2007, Sisters, Redmond and Bend (including Tumalo) had an impressive 118 million-dollar sales –- for a total sales volume of $170,258,266. By contrast, last year Bend and Sisters had just 20 million-dollar sales combined, for a total sales volume of $25,639,499. Redmond didn’t have a single million-dollar sale in 2011 — or 2010, for that matter.
So what happened? After several years of a buying frenzy in Central Oregon, when property values skyrocketed (at one point, it was tough to find a single stick-built home on the market in Bend or Sisters below $300,000), the real estate market cooled and property values plummeted. With the shift in the market, the number of high-end buyers in Central Oregon also dropped dramatically. You can get a pretty good sense of the shift by studying the chart below.
Without a doubt, the most active year overall for million-dollar sales was 2007, while 2006 was the most active year for both Sisters and Redmond. Overall, 2010 was the weakest year, although Sisters had fewer sales in 2011.
As for 2012, we got off to a rather slow start, with just five million-dollar sales by mid-June (two in Bend, one in Redmond and two in Sisters). But, as often is the case here with high-end sales (which typically pick up in May), there are currently four more million-dollar sales pending (two in Bend, two in Sisters).
If you’re in the market for a million-dollar home in Bend, Redmond or Sisters, you’re in luck. There are plenty of million-dollar homes out there just waiting for high-end buyers to snap them up. To be exact, there are currently 93 active million-dollar listings in Bend, Redmond and Sisters. On average, they’ve been on the market for 262 days.
Here are just a few of the wide-ranging options:
- 4,400-square-foot custom home on the 8th fairway of Broken Top Golf Course;
- 3,800-square-foot Swiss-scribed log home on 40 wooded acres not far from Bend’s Shevlin Park;
- 5,000-square-foot contemporary home in the scenic gated community of Cascade Meadow Ranch just outside Sisters;
- 5,000-square-foot executive home on Awbrey Butte with professional kitchen, media room, exercise room, elevator and three-car garage;
- historic hand-crafted 19th-century ranch in Tumalo on 40 acres with both indoor and outdoor arenas;
- 6,000-square-foot Asian-influenced home on Awbrey Butte with five master suites, a theater room and full outdoor kitchen with fireplace and hot tub;
- and a 228-acre working ranch near Sisters with custom log home, eight-stall Barnmaster barn, two-acre stocked pond, turn-key horse setup and direct access to public lands.
The most expensive Active listing? The 11,000-square-foot Timber Bridge Manor in Bend, which is currently listed for $5.9 million. Included in the expansive estate (which is located in the Highlands at Broken Top) are five master suites, movie theater, nanny quarters and wine cellar with tasting bar, on 11 acres bordering the Deschutes National Forest. It’s been on the market since November of 2009 and was originally listed for $7.9 million. A bargain, no?
If you’d like more information about the million-dollar market in Central Oregon, feel free to call or text me directly. I’d love to help you find the perfect Central Oregon property.
About the Author
Lisa Broadwater, GRI, CDPE, is a Central Oregon-based real estate professional who specializes in listing and selling homes, especially in Sisters, Tumalo, Bend and Redmond.