Deschutes County homebuilding increases

New arrivals, mostly from Portland, along with a renewed interest in second homes contributed to an increase in home construction last year in Deschutes County, according to a county official and representatives of two resort communities.

The county issued 432 permits to build new single-family homes in its unincorporated areas in 2015, according to the county Community Development Department.

That’s a 35 percent increase over the 319 permits issued in 2014. By comparison, the county in 2010 issued 91 building permits for single-family homes in areas outside city limits.

Much of that growth is taking place at the destination resorts that dot the county, said Nick Lelack, community development director.

“The greater Bend area is the hottest housing market in Deschutes County, which certainly helps explain Tetherow,” he said Tuesday, referring to the resort just southwest of Bend. “Caldera Springs and Eagle Crest (Resort) are also experiencing significant growth.”

The trend continued this year, although the county permitted 26 new homes last month, seven fewer than January 2015, according to monthly statistics from the department. By comparison, the county issued seven permits for new homes in January 2010.

At Caldera Springs, part of the Sunriver Resort south of Bend, about half the lots available will be built out by the end of this year, if the building trend continues, said Steve Runner, vice president of development, planning and construction. A design committee reviews each building plan to ensure it holds to standards set by the resort.

“We’ve been pretty steady even through the recession,” Runner said. “From, say, 2007 to 2010, we were kind of averaging around the midteens” in the number of homes built each year. Since 2013, that number has risen by about 10, he said. This year, Runner said, he expects 24 homes will be built.

About 13 percent of Caldera Springs homeowners are full-time residents, he said. Twenty-five percent of resort homes are managed as vacation rentals, and the remaining 62 percent are second homes, he said.

At Tetherow, just southwest of Bend, about half the approximately 580 available lots have been sold, said Chris van der Velde, managing partner at the resort.

During the recession, the resort built several homes on speculation to attract buyers, he said. That’s no longer the case, as lots are selling again.

“It’s interesting, when we first started out, we assumed that more than 50 percent would be seasonal homes,” van der Velde said Tuesday. “As the economy turned, it went to 80 percent permanent residents. Now, we’re seeing a little more of second homebuyers. Tetherow has morphed into 50 to 70 percent that live there year-round.”

Most new property owners in Tetherow and Caldera Springs are Oregonians, and many of them from Portland, said Runner and van der Velde.

At Tetherow, about half the new residents arrived from Portland; another 30 percent came from elsewhere on the Interstate 5 corridor between San Francisco and Seattle, van der Velde said. Another 10 percent were from Southern California or Arizona, and the remainder from elsewhere in the country and the world.

“Bend and, in general, the Central Oregon area has rebounded quite well,” he said. “Tetherow is right at the forefront of that; Caldera Springs is as well. You want to see growth and accelerated growth, although too much velocity and you’re a little nervous. But these are sustainable numbers now, not like 2006 or 2007.”

— Reporter: 541-617-7815, jditzler@bendbulletin.com