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Written By Jenny Walton
What if home wasn’t defined by square footage, but by freedom? What if ownership didn’t require excess, and downsizing didn’t mean downgrading? Think of the word hiatus. It means a pause, a breath, a moment between what was and what’s next. In a world that pushes bigger, louder, and faster, what would it feel like to live inside a Hiatus? Not as an escape, but as a choice. To live lightly, purposefully, exactly as you are, and connected to a vibrant community.
“When we launched our first cottage development, we were overwhelmed by demand… People were reimagining what their homes could be. They wanted less square footage to maintain and less stuff to store, and more freedom and more community with like-minded people.”
–Jesse Russell, Founder & CEO, Hiatus Ninth
Hiatus Homes
In Bend, a small and inspired neighborhood development called Hiatus Ninth is reshaping the idea of home, one beautifully intentional residence at a time. In the heart of Midtown, just blocks from Pilot Butte and some of Bend’s beloved trails and taprooms, Hiatus Ninth is a community of nine Twinhomes (18 residences in total) that rethink what it means to live well. Purpose-built for one- to two-person households, these exceptionally designed homes offer both a primary dwelling and a separate ADU, creating options for homeowners, investors, and anyone craving more flexibility in where and how they live. These homes may have modest dimensions, but they’re made for those reimagining the notions of home and consciously choosing less.
For decades, the American housing market has catered to a single lifestyle: the nuclear family, living in the suburbs, with a two-car garage and too many rooms to maintain. But that model, once considered universal, no longer matches the realities of today’s living patterns. In fact, the fastest-growing household type in the U.S. is the one- to two-person household.
Hiatus Homes founder and CEO Jesse Russell recognized this shift. A Central Oregon native and former reality television producer with the network behind Tiny House Nation, Russell was exposed early to the values of small-footprint living: sustainability, affordability, intentionality. He knew it was not a trend, rather a major shift, because it was a reflection of how the nation’s socio-economic demographics and culture have transformed.
“When we launched our first cottage development, we were overwhelmed by demand,” he recalls. “We had retirees, single professionals, and investors. People were reimagining what their homes could be. They wanted less square footage to maintain and less stuff to store, and more freedom and more community with like-minded people.”
Hiatus Ninth is the next iteration of that vision. Each Twinhome includes a 675-square-foot, one-bedroom main residence paired with a 520-square-foot ADU above an oversized garage, perfect for storing the gear that comes with an active lifestyle. It’s a setup that invites flexibility. Live in one and rent the other. Invite your aging parent(s) to live close by without living with you. Create a home office, guest suite, or sanctuary for visiting family. Or simply savor the quiet ease of a turnkey second home—low-maintenance and ready to welcome you whenever travel calls. This is architecture that supports your life, not the other way around.
That versatility has sparked interest from buyers considering creative housing solutions. One buyer is exploring a Twinhome for their adult daughter—a nurse with long shifts at the local hospital—so she could live nearby, with the potential to rent the second unit for supplemental income in a high-demand neighborhood.
Step inside, and you’ll notice something immediately: these homes feel bigger than they are. That’s by design. With tall ceilings, abundant windows, and natural light from the south-facing great rooms, every inch is considered. There’s no wasted hallway, no catchall ‘extra’ room you never use. Instead, storage is discreetly built in with closets, laundry nooks, and generous cabinetry that nods to function and form.
Design Director and Architect Sean McKeever calls it “right-sized living.” Each home is a study in restraint and refinement, and details are given a subtle and deliberate presence. From the operable glass doors that connect indoors to the patio, to the clean lines and organic textures that complement Bend’s natural surroundings, the homes invite a kind of calm. The structure reveals a language of space and form, where soft morning sun traces the hickory floors and defines the atmosphere, reinforcing the continuity between interior space and the environment beyond.
“This isn’t a commuter neighborhood, it’s a connected one. You can grab coffee, hike before work, or head to hot yoga—it’s a natural part of life when you live this close to it all.”
–Jenn Redd, Community Agent, Hiatus Ninth
In the ADU, that ethos continues. With an open-plan living area, contemporary loft suite, and an optimized but complete kitchen, the second unit mirrors the main home’s sense of ease and livability, and is ready to adapt to your rhythm.
Location matters, and in Bend, location is everything. Yet too often, new construction is pushed to the outskirts of town, where larger tracts of land make building easier but leave homeowners cut off from the very things that make Bend so livable. Buyers searching for new construction are left choosing between longer commutes, food deserts, and outdated traffic routes that worsen congestion and strain daily routines, or older homes with aging systems, high utility bills, and weekends lost to renovation and yard work. If location wins, comfort is sacrificed. If performance wins, connection is lost.
Hiatus Ninth flips that script. Situated in a mature Midtown neighborhood, this small-scale, infill community offers the best of both: walkable, bikeable, modern living in one of Bend’s most beloved areas. Bruno’s Market—home to one of the best craft beer selections in town—is around the corner, Backporch Coffee is just down the hill, and Pilot Butte’s trailhead is only blocks away. A robust lineup of restaurants, parks, and neighborhood gems make daily life feel dynamic and close.
“This isn’t a commuter neighborhood, it’s a connected one,” says Jenn Redd, the community agent for Hiatus. “You can grab coffee, hike before work, or head to hot yoga—it’s a natural part of life when you live this close to it all.”
Hiatus Ninth flips that script. Situated in a mature Midtown neighborhood, this small-scale, infill community offers the best of both: walkable, bikeable, modern living in one of Bend’s most beloved areas.
For many owners, this combination of location and performance is what sets Hiatus apart. The homes are high-performance new construction, pairing energy efficiency with enduring materials and low-maintenance demands. Built to net-zero energy standards and solar-ready, they offer the potential for little to no utility costs. They’re even equipped for EV charging and designed to meet today’s demands and tomorrow’s expectations. It’s no surprise the design was recognized with this year’s Tour of Homes High Performance Building Award.
What also sets these homes apart is something less visible, but equally intentional. Though each Twin home may resemble a duplex in form, it’s legally defined as a single-family residence with an ADU. That choice was more than architectural—it was strategic because it allows for conventional lending, rather than requiring investment-purpose loans that often come with higher interest rates and fewer options. That difference is significant: making these homes not only more livable, but more attainable.
The result is a layered kind of ownership that’s both flexible and financially strategic. With a primary home and a rental-ready ADU on one property, buyers can access two distinct living spaces in a single transaction with each ready to support a variety of needs, from additional income to multi-generational living.
New lending rules from Freddie Mac allow buyers to use 75% of the projected rental income from the ADU to qualify for their mortgage. That equates to more purchasing power and smarter debt-to-income ratios, especially for owner-occupants who plan to live in one unit and rent the other.
“Our goal is to make housing that’s attainable by design. That means thoughtful architecture, sustainable construction, and locations that
let people actually live where they want to be.”–Jesse Russell, Founder & CEO, Hiatus Ninth
This financial structure opens doors for a variety of buyers—downsizers looking to simplify, first-time homeowners who have dreamt of a place to call home, and part-time residents who want a “lock-and-leave” option while still maintaining roots in Bend. These residences are the definition of empowered ownership, intuitive investment, and community without compromise.
“Our goal is to make housing that’s attainable by design,” says Russell. “That means thoughtful architecture, sustainable construction, and locations that let people actually live where they want to be.” It’s a mindset that has won Hiatus national attention and growing demand. As they expand into new markets, from Oregon to the Mountain West, they’re proving that great design can meet real need, and that modern life doesn’t require a McMansion.
Hiatus Ninth invites a different take with uncommon versatility. These residences offer a new path where home is an extension of your values and your vision. Designed and guided by a philosophy of integrated well-being (mental, physical, and financial), a Hiatus home is something quietly revolutionary: a home that nourishes, simplifies, and expands your sense of what’s possible.
With similar Hiatus homes renting for $2,200 to $4,000 a month—and with each Twin home at Ninth offering two fully equipped residences—the potential for offsetting or even exceeding monthly mortgage costs is compelling. It’s a rare financial advantage: a source of cash flow, a second home with tax benefits, or an appreciating asset as Bend continues to grow. Factor in their net-zero readiness, low operating expenses, and an address in one of Bend’s most desirable neighborhoods, and it becomes clear: these homes are a smart financial move. A $5,000 lender credit is available for qualified buyers using the preferred lender.
But more than that, Hiatus Ninth anticipates the needs of the future—as cities evolve, policies adapt, and individuals prioritize flexibility over permanence, and adaptability over accumulation. And as the housing market responds to new realities such as remote work and multigenerational living, developments like Hiatus Ninth set a precedent: composed, elegant, and built for the changing rhythms of modern life.
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