IntelliMoveTake the quiz →Living in Fossil, OR
Fossil is a tiny town of 535 people in Wheeler County, Oregon. It's about 84 miles from Bend, OR and 124 miles from Portland, OR, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 85°F and winter highs 42°F, with about 20 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $211k and rent runs about $754 a month.
535people
$211kTypical home
$754/moRent
85° / 42°Summer / winter
20"Snow
234Sunny days
52Rain/snow days
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Size & setting
- Tiny town of 535
- A standalone small town, not a suburb
- About 683 people per sq mi
- 124 mi to Portland, OR
- 84 mi to Bend, OR
- 58 mi to the nearest town of 10k+
Money
- Typical home $211k (≈$1,327/mo)
- Median rent $754/mo
- Median household income $54k
- Property tax about 0.7% of value
- 4.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 85°F
- Winter highs around 42°F
- Dry summers (dew point 45°F)
- 234 sunny days a year (107 totally clear)
- 131 cloudy days a year
- 52 of 90 winter days are gray
- 52 days a year with rain or snow
- 20" of snow a year
- 8 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- 3 days a year over 100°F
- 7 nights a year below 10°F
- Breezy
People
- Median age 48
- 23% of households have kids
- 35% are 65 or older
- 19% have a college degree
- Not very diverse
- 1% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 20 min
- 14% walk or take transit to work
- 69 mi to RDM airport
- 123 mi to PDX (major hub)
- 58 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
- 87% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1957
- 77% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Hilly terrain
- Elevation 2,651 ft
- 165 mi to the ocean
- 126 mi to a big lake
- 20 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 74 mi to the nearest ski area
- 6 mi to the nearest campground
- No golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- Few or no sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- Few or no bars within 25 mi
- Few or no coffee shops within 25 mi
- No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 1 museum within 25 mi
- No breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
- 44 mi to the nearest farmers market
Everyday
- Schools in the top 2% of Oregon districts (reading)
- Grocery store in town
- 42 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 60 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
- 56 mi to the nearest vet
- 52 mi to the nearest dog park
- 72 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Wheeler County: R+47 in 2024
- Oregon: D+14 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- Very low tornado risk
- High wildfire risk
- Moderate earthquake risk
- Very low flood risk
- High drought risk
- Moderate winter storm risk
- Low heat wave risk
- Low volcano risk