Living in Dunes City, Oregon: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 1.6% above the U.S. average in the Eugene-Springfield metro area.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 8.2 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
A safer neighborhoodThe FBI has no 2025 figures for Dunes City itself. Many small towns are patrolled by the county sheriff, so call the sheriff's office and ask what calls they get most.
Schools in townNo public schools inside the town. The nearest high school is Ocean Dunes High School, about 3 miles away.
A hospital close byPeace Harbor Medical Center in Florence, about 5 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityPortland is about 133 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Dunes City meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $538,100U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 6.1%Lane County, 2022 to 2025
Typical household income: $65,313U.S.: $80,734
Typical property tax bill: $3,337 a yearOregon: $3,876
Homes built before 1940: 5%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 8%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 11%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 101.6U.S. average = 100 (the Eugene-Springfield metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 6.1% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Eugene-Springfield metro area, not Dunes City alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate: 1,4002020: 1,428
Median age: 64.5 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 49%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 9%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 27%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 7%U.S.: 6%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (15%); retail (14%); schools, health care and social services (13%)
Unemployment rate: 2%U.S.: 5%
Work from home: 19%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 10%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Peace Harbor Medical Center, Florence, OR, about 5 miles away. It's a critical access hospital (a small rural hospital with 25 or fewer beds). Medicare gives it 5 of 5 stars.

Nearest general hospital: Bay Area Hospital, Coos Bay, OR, about 37 miles away. Medicare gives it 2 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

There are no public schools inside Dunes City itself. The nearest public high school is Ocean Dunes High School, about 3 miles away.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Oregon's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet: 71%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription: 94%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low: 39°F
July average high: 67°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 0 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 28 a year
Rain and melted snow: 75.5 inches a year
Snow: 1 inches a year
Elevation: 175 feet

Weather stations: Honeyman Sp (1 mile away) and Florence #2 (6 miles away, rain and snow). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Peace Harbor Medical CenterEmergency room5

Eugene, ORCity of 179,00049

Portland, ORMetro of 2.5 million133

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Peace Harbor Medical Center, Eugene, Portland.

Lane County is in a metro area of 250,000 to 1 million people (USDA rural-urban code 2, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

Read about Dunes City's history on Wikipedia.

Know Dunes City?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Florence, OR9,500 people, 6 miles
Heceta Beach, OR2,700 people, 8 miles
Reedsport, OR4,300 people, 15 miles
Lakeside, OR1,900 people, 23 miles
Yachats, OR1,000 people, 28 miles
Waldport, OR2,300 people, 35 miles

Smaller places

Gardiner, OR (unincorporated)199 people, 12 miles
Mapleton, OR (unincorporated)503 people, 14 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.