Bend, Oregon -- population 67,000 -- led the nation in home appreciation last year, and has become a symbol of the booming market in picturesque western towns.
"From September 2005 to September 2006, home prices in Bend leaped 30.4%, the highest rate in the country, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, which regulates the government-sponsored lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac."
"Why the increase? Bend's appealingly dry climate (it lies east of the Cascade Mountains, which catch most of the rain clouds sweeping in from the Pacific), its small-town feel and its mix of leisure activities (skiing, golf, tennis, mountain-biking) have made it a magnet for California residents fed up with traffic. Bend's median home price of $350,000 is still a bargain compared with price-tags in the Golden State of $550,000 and more. Baby boomers snapping up second homes also added to the land rush, as did refugees from larger, wetter Pacific north-west cities such as Portland and Seattle."
FULL STORY: Booming Bend
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