Interested in investing in Bend

Investor-friendly agents in Bend, OR

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Michael Eskenasy
Investor · Pacific Northwest · Member since 2026 · 538 posts · 313 votes
1mo

Sheila, Bend is one of those markets where I’d be very careful about what someone calls a “deal.”

Right now you’ve got expensive real estate sitting on top of a rental market with a lot more supply than it had a few years ago. Rents have been pretty flat, concessions have shown up, and there’s still new inventory working its way through the system.

That’s not necessarily bad.

It just means I wouldn’t buy somebody’s pro forma.

I’d want to know what comparable units are actually renting for today, how long they’re sitting, what concessions are being offered, and what happens to the deal if rent doesn’t grow for three years.

And if anyone pitches you a Bend property based on Airbnb income, slow way down.

Bend's STR rules are property-specific. Whole-house permits can be blocked by the 500-foot separation rule, and most permits issued after April 15, 2015 die when the property is sold. The old pre-2015 approvals are different — those can run with the land.

That one detail can completely change what a house is worth to an investor.

So for your first deal, I wouldn’t ask, “How far below asking can I buy this?”

I’d ask, “What does this property still do after I remove every assumption the seller needs me to believe?”

That’s usually where the real deal is hiding.

We spend a lot of time looking at properties exactly that way — separating what comes with the asset from what only exists in the sales story.

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  • Divin KanyamaBusiness Member
    Accountant · Seattle, WA · Member since 2025 · 600 posts · 252 votes
    1mo

    @Sheila Gayle Since you are looking in Bend, start by narrowing your target to a property type, neighborhood, and rental strategy. Bend is an expensive market, and recent apartment construction has increased competition, so verify achievable rents, vacancy, concessions, taxes, insurance, and maintenance costs with local property managers rather than relying on listing projections. If short-term rental income is part of the plan, confirm the property’s eligibility with the City before making an offer because permits, licensing, and location restrictions can materially affect the numbers.

    Build relationships with a local lender, investor-friendly agent, inspector, contractor, and property manager, then analyze enough deals to recognize value at the neighborhood level. Underwrite conservatively, keep strong reserves after closing, and make sure the property works as a long-term rental if your preferred strategy changes. Bend may require patience to find the right first deal, but disciplined local research will put you in a much better position than rushing into a property that depends on appreciation or perfect occupancy.

    [email protected]
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  • Ashish AcharyaBusiness Member
    CPA, CFP®, PFS · Sarasota, FL · Member since 2017 · 5k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    1mo

    Sheila, if this is your first rental, I’d focus less on finding a “steal” and more on finding a property where the numbers still work under conservative assumptions.

    Start by deciding what kind of rental you actually want to own and how hands-on you want to be. Then work backward from realistic rent, taxes, insurance, vacancy, repairs, CapEx, management, and financing rather than starting with the asking price.

    For a first deal, I’d also keep a healthy cash reserve after closing. A property can look great on paper and become stressful very quickly if the first vacancy, HVAC issue, or insurance bill wipes out your remaining cash.

    I’d spend some time underwriting actual Bend listings before making offers. After you analyze enough deals, you start recognizing what a good one looks like much faster.

    From the tax side, once the property is placed in service, depreciation begins. Cost segregation may also be worth evaluating depending on the property, but I’d first make sure the rental itself works and that any resulting tax losses would actually be usable in your situation.

    Feel free to DM me, I’d be happy to send over a few resources that might help with first-rental underwriting and getting the tax side set up correctly.

    [email protected]941-914-7779
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  • Stacy RaskinBusiness Member
    Lender · Member since 2022 · 1k+ posts · 521 votes
    1mo

    Financing the property will depend on whether you want to live in the property and do a house hack and rent out rooms or if you want to buy a non owner occupied investment property. If a house hack or a rental property you will be living in, you will qualify for the loan based on your personal income and debt to income (DTI) ratios.

    If you are buying a non owner occupy rental property, you can use a conventional loan or a DSCR loan. A conventional loan is structured in the same way as a conventional loan with your personal income and debt to income (DTI) ratios. A DSCR loan will use the actual or projected rental income of the rental property (projected income from the appraisal form) to structure the loan.

    More on DSCR loans. DSCR loans won't use your income to underwrite the loan. 

    DSCR loans are based off of down payment, credit score and either actual or market rents so it helps to supercharge an investor's real estate goals and net worth. 

    Here's a bit more in detail about how rates are calculated for DSCR loans:

    1. Credit score- the higher the best. 760-780+ generally gets best pricing for investment property loans with most lenders. From there every 20 point increment affect pricing differently. So for example, a 761 credit score will be in the 760-779 credit category, then going down to 740-759 and so on.


    2. Loan to value ratio: The higher the loan to value ratio (LTV) is, pricing takes a hit. So your pricing will be higher for a 80% LTV loan than for a 60% LTV loan.

    3. Prepayment penalties- usually 1-5 year terms. The shorter the prepayment term has an impact on increasing the rate.

    4. Are you cash flowing the property? More on how that is calculated below. Is your DSCR ratio greater than 1-meaning are you cash flowing (according to the lender's criteria of mortgage, property taxes and insurance (and HOA) if applicable). Many lenders will not do a DSCR loan unless cash flowing. If they will do a loan with less than 1, the pricing takes a hit. This criteria is for 1-4 and 5-8 unit programs. 

    I've included an example below to help illustrate this.

    So different lenders have different rates (which do vary even for DSCR loans) but these are factors they all consider.

    See example below:

    DSCR < 1

    Principal + Interest = $1,700

    Taxes = $350, Insurance = $100, Association Dues = $50

    Total PITIA = $2200

    Rent = $2000

    DSCR = Rent/PITIA = 2000/2200 = 0.91

    Since the DSCR is 0.91, we know the expenses are greater than the income of the property.

    DSCR >1

    Principal + Interest = $1,500

    Taxes = $250, Insurance = $100, Association Dues = $25

    Total PITIA = $1875 Rent = $2300

    DSCR = Rent/PITIA = 2300/1875 = 1.23

    If a purchase, you also generally need reserves / savings to show you have 3-6 month payments of PITIA (principal / interest (mortgage payment), property taxes and insurance and HOA (if applicable). If a cash out refinance, many lenders will allow the cash out to satisfy the reserves requirement.

    DSCR lenders generally let you vest either individually or as an LLC. It's a great way to increase your net worth and these loans can also be used to pull cash out of a property as it appreciates allowing you to reinvest money into new deals. Happy to connect to discuss further.

    [email protected]818-770-0340
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  • Jay HinrichsBusiness Member
    Real Estate Consultant · Summerlin, NV · Member since 2014 · 45k+ posts · 66k+ votes
    1mo

    there is a Bend agent who is active on the boards

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  • Denise SuppleeBusiness Member
    Realtor · Willow Grove, PA · Member since 2017 · 1k+ posts · 661 votes
    1mo

    Welcome. Start by picking a market and really get to know the numbers there. Look at properties that are for sale, what they actually rent for, taxes, insurance, repairs, and what similar properties have sold for. Do that for a while and you'll start to get a feel for what is and isn't a good deal.

    I'd also find a good investor-friendly agent and lender and start building your team. And don't feel like you have to rush into buying your first property. The goal isn't just to get a property, the goal is to get one that makes sense for you.

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  • Michael Eskenasy
    Investor · Pacific Northwest · Member since 2026 · 538 posts · 313 votes
    1mo

    Sheila, Bend is one of those markets where I’d be very careful about what someone calls a “deal.”

    Right now you’ve got expensive real estate sitting on top of a rental market with a lot more supply than it had a few years ago. Rents have been pretty flat, concessions have shown up, and there’s still new inventory working its way through the system.

    That’s not necessarily bad.

    It just means I wouldn’t buy somebody’s pro forma.

    I’d want to know what comparable units are actually renting for today, how long they’re sitting, what concessions are being offered, and what happens to the deal if rent doesn’t grow for three years.

    And if anyone pitches you a Bend property based on Airbnb income, slow way down.

    Bend's STR rules are property-specific. Whole-house permits can be blocked by the 500-foot separation rule, and most permits issued after April 15, 2015 die when the property is sold. The old pre-2015 approvals are different — those can run with the land.

    That one detail can completely change what a house is worth to an investor.

    So for your first deal, I wouldn’t ask, “How far below asking can I buy this?”

    I’d ask, “What does this property still do after I remove every assumption the seller needs me to believe?”

    That’s usually where the real deal is hiding.

    We spend a lot of time looking at properties exactly that way — separating what comes with the asset from what only exists in the sales story.

    1Reply
    • Chris Watkins
      Lender · Eugene, OR · Member since 2021 · 245 posts · 154 votes
      1mo

      Great response, lots of good stuff in there. If you're investing in Bend, you need to be thinking a 5+ year hold at minimum for a transaction to make sense. It is a boom/bust area that seems to be entering a bust phase, which means prices could be depressed for a while. Good time to get a deal, maybe, but be prepared to hold and potentially lose money for a couple of years. The PNW is an appreciation market, not a cash flow market, and prices make jumping in difficult. Reach out to @Corey Hanson for more in-depth market knowledge.

      0Reply
  • Wale LawalBusiness Member
    Real Estate Broker · Houston | Dallas | Austin, TX · Member since 2018 · 5k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    1mo

    @Sheila Gayle

    First of all, start off by learning how to do a deal analysis rather than looking for the perfect property; do some numbers on actual properties and learn about the rent, the taxes, the insurance, the vacancy rate, the maintenance, and the financing. Personally, I think that meeting up with a few local investors and lenders at the outset might be helpful as well; you will pick things up much faster.

    Good luck!

    [email protected]832-776-9582Podcast Guest on Show #469
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  • Arman AhmedPro Member
    Real Estate Agent · Columbus Cleveland Dayton, OH · Member since 2024 · 2k+ posts · 966 votes
    1mo
    Quote from @Sheila Gayle:

    Hi

    Im green about real estate investing. I want to learn how to purchase my first rental property at a deal. Any suggestions?

    For your first rental, I’d focus on learning how to analyze the numbers before getting too attached to Bend. Since you’re open to investing elsewhere, I’d also compare a few Midwest markets, where lower entry prices can give you more options.

    [email protected]614-418-6081
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  • Gregory AcsPro Member
    Lender · MD · Member since 2025 · 244 posts · 93 votes
    1mo

    Welcome to BiggerPockets, Sheila!

    The first thing I'd recommend is spending time learning how to analyze deals before worrying about finding the perfect property. A great deal isn't just about buying below market value—it's about making sure the numbers work after financing, repairs, vacancies, maintenance, and other expenses are factored in.

    I'd also suggest building a local team early, including an investor-friendly real estate agent, lender, and other experienced investors. Those relationships can save you a lot of time and help you avoid costly mistakes on your first purchase.

    Take your time, analyze plenty of properties, and don't feel pressured to buy the first deal you see. If you'd ever like to discuss financing options or walk through the numbers on a property you're considering, I'd be happy to help.

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