Remote Surveillance Trailer in Bend, OR

If you have $500,000 to spend on a home in Central Oregon, the biggest question may not be whether you can afford to live here. It may be where you want to live. The same $500,000 budget can buy dramatically different properties—and lifestyles—depending on which community you choose.

Using year-to-date data from local FlexMLS, including single-family homes, condominiums and townhomes, here’s a look at what that budget represents across six Central Oregon communities.

Bend: Buy Location

$399 per square foot | $500K ≈ 1,253 sq. ft.

Bend offers the region’s largest mix of restaurants, shopping, entertainment, employment and recreation. But its popularity comes at a premium. At $399 per square foot, $500,000 represents roughly 1,253 square feet. Buyers may need to compromise on size, condition or location to stay within budget. The trade-off: less house, but more amenities.

Redmond: Buy More Room

$324 per square foot | $500K ≈ 1,543 sq. ft.

Just north of Bend, Redmond offers more space for the same money while maintaining easy access to Central Oregon’s outdoor recreation. Its growing downtown, airport access and proximity to Bend make it an increasingly popular alternative for buyers looking for value. The trade-off: more house, with a little more distance from Bend.

Sisters: Buy Character

$403 per square foot | $500K ≈ 1,241 sq. ft.

Sisters commands one of the highest price-per-square-foot figures in the region. But buyers aren’t necessarily paying for square footage. They’re paying for a distinctive mountain-town atmosphere, Western character, community events and proximity to the Cascades. The trade-off: less space, but a lifestyle that’s difficult to replicate.

Prineville: Buy Space

$287 per square foot | $500K ≈ 1,742 sq. ft.

Prineville offers some of the most square footage for the money in this comparison. Surrounded by high-desert landscapes and outdoor recreation, it provides a quieter, small-town lifestyle with plenty of room to spread out. The trade-off: more space, but fewer of Bend’s amenities.

La Pine: Buy the Outdoors

$287 per square foot | $500K ≈ 1,742 sq. ft.

La Pine offers similar value to Prineville, with the added appeal of easy access to the Cascade Lakes, Newberry National Volcanic Monument and extensive outdoor recreation. For buyers who prioritize space and the outdoors, it’s an appealing option. The trade-off: rural living and a longer trip to Bend.

Sunriver: Buy the Experience

$432 per square foot | $500K ≈ 1,157 sq. ft.

Sunriver has the highest price per square foot in this comparison. But its value extends beyond the home itself. Miles of paved paths, recreational amenities, golf and its resort-oriented atmosphere make the community unique. The trade-off: the least square footage, but a built-in recreational lifestyle.

So, Where Does $500,000 Go Furthest?

Community Median $/Sq. Ft. $500K ≈

Sunriver $432 1,157 sq. ft.

Sisters $403 1,241 sq. ft.

Bend $399 1,253 sq. ft.

Redmond $324 1,543 sq. ft.

Prineville $287 1,742 sq. ft.

La Pine $287 1,742 sq. ft.

The numbers make one thing clear: $500,000 buys very different versions of Central Oregon. The best value isn’t necessarily the home with the most square feet. If you want restaurants and amenities outside your front door, Bend may be worth the premium. If space is the priority, Prineville or La Pine may win. If you’re looking for a small-town character, Sisters offers something different. And if recreation is the priority, Sunriver makes a compelling case. Six communities. Six lifestyles. One $500,000 budget.

The question isn’t simply what house you can afford. It’s what kind of life you want that house to support.

LOW/MEDIUM/HIGH homes this week:

Low:

19717 SW Mount Bachelor Drive UNIT 248, Bend

2 bed, 2 bath, 840 square feet

Built in 1981

$550,000

Listed by Colleen Peterson of Engel & Völkers Bend | Sisters

Medium:

56556 Caldera Springs Court Lot #40, Bend

3 bed, 4 bath, 1,809 square feet, .25 acres lot

Built in 2009

$999,900

Listed by Shannon McNeil and Michelle Rea of Engel & Völkers Bend | Sisters

High:

62677 NW Mehama Court, Bend

7 bed, 4 bath, 3,222 square feet, .18 acres lot

Built in 2020

$1,490,000

Listed by Natalie Nolte of Engel & Völkers Bend | Sisters

One of the most famous meteor showers, the Perseid, is making its annual journey through the skies over Central Oregon. Perseid meteors are unique in that they are very small (the size of a grain of sand or small pebble), very fast and very, very bright. The showers occur in August, making them easy to watch in warm weather and clear, dark skies. Under favorable conditions, the Perseids can produce around 50-100 meteors per hour, though the exact rate year to year can vary. The shower peaks on the night of Aug. 12 and into the morning of Aug. 13 but continues through Aug. 24.

The Source talked with Alex Yeager, assistant manager at the Sunriver Nature Center & Observatory, about the meteor shower. Yeager helps lead the nighttime and solar-viewing programs, operates and maintains the telescopes, trains SNCO staff and helps visitors understand what they are seeing, regardless of their experience level.

the Source: How did the Perseid Meteor Shower get its name?

Alex Yeager: Most meteor showers get their names from the constellation they appear to emerge from. If you traced all of the shooting stars in a meteor shower backward, they would appear to lead to a point in the constellation they are named after. So the Perseid meteor shower appears to originate from the constellation Perseus.

tS: What causes meteor showers and when do they occur?

AY: Meteor showers are caused by leftover particles from a celestial body, typically a comet, along its path around the Sun. This meteor shower comes from Comet Swift-Tuttle, which was last visible in 1992 and will not return until 2126. Earth passes through this trail of debris, and the particles collide with our atmosphere at extremely high speeds.

tS: How are Perseid meteors different from others, and where do they come from?

AY: Perseid meteors come from debris left behind by Comet Swift-Tuttle. They enter Earth’s atmosphere at about 37 miles per second, making them some of the fastest meteors we see. Because of their speed, they often produce bright streaks and glowing trails that can linger briefly. Other meteor showers can come from different objects, including asteroid-like bodies such as 3200 Phaethon, which produces the Geminids in December.

tS: How many meteors can people typically see during the peak?

AY: Here in Central Oregon, you can expect to see 20 to 50 meteors per hour, with higher numbers the farther away from light pollution you go.

tS: What are the best conditions for seeing the meteor shower?

AY: You cannot beat this year’s viewing conditions. We will have a new moon, meaning the moon will not brighten the night sky. A full moon can drastically reduce the number of shooting stars you are able to see. In fact, the meteor shower this year occurs on the same day as a solar eclipse traveling across Europe.

tS: What common misconceptions do people have about meteor showers?

AY: People often expect to see multiple meteors per minute. There may be periods when you see a few in one minute, but especially if you are viewing from within a city, you should expect to see one every few minutes.

tS: What’s the best way to see the meteor shower?

AY: The best way to view a meteor shower is to lie on a blanket around midnight and look up.

tS: What excites you most about this event?

AY: This is typically one of the best meteor showers of the year, and the new moon makes this event one of the best opportunities for someone to see a shooting star.

tS: What would you like readers to know about this event and other happenings at SNCO?

AY: We have public programs Tuesday through Sunday, and tickets can be reserved at SNCO.org. We have also just started our Field Trip Fund for the 2026–27 school year. This fund provides field trip scholarships to schools that cannot afford to visit us.

BEND, Ore. -- Back in the day, nobody in Bend built guitars. Jim Ariail changed that.

Nearly 60 years later, he is still at it.

"I told one of my friends that I'm going to make a guitar," Jim said. "He kinda gave me a hoarse laugh cause nobody makes guitars. As far as I know it, at that time, there was nobody in Bend doing that sort of work. So far, I was the first guitar maker in Bend. It's been quite a ride since 1967, when I built my first one"

What started as a curiosity became a lifetime of craftsmanship. His first guitar took nearly two years to finish. Today, Jim is working on number 61.

"Not all of those 61 have been guitars," Jim said. "There have been other fretted instruments like banjos and mandolins and zithers and ukuleles and that sort of thing."

Building instruments was never how Jim made a living. For more than 30 years, he taught middle school. The wood shop was where he came before school, after school, and long after retirement.

"I started teaching in La Pine in 1962 and came to Bend in 1965 and started teaching," Jim said.

Now at 87 years old, Jim's routine hasn't changed much.

Almost every morning, you'll find Jim near his guitars, for anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours.

"I usually make one guitar at a time. Sometimes I get ahead of myself and start others before I finish," Jim said. "But over the years it's been one at a time sort of thing."

There's no assembly line here, no shortcuts. Every piece is shaped, fitted, and finished by hand. After six decades, Jim still enjoys watching someone else make music with something he built.

"When they first pick up my instrument and start playing, it makes me feel good," Jim said. "Especially if they're good players. A good guitar plays easily and produces a sound that is pleasant to you."

Jim says the secret is simple: find something you love and keep doing it.

"I encourage folks to follow their passion, whatever it might be," Jim said. "Making little pieces of wood out of big pieces of wood seems to be mine."

As for when he'll finally put away the tools, Jim already has a number in mind.

"I think Stradivari was 94 when he built his last violin, so I'm going to be him," Jim said. "I'll be 95 before I throw away my chisels."

Some people count the years; Jim counts the guitars.