Aerostars are great airplanes. I had one for several years. I would only consider getting one with the 350hp engines.
They are small, so for you and one or two people, it's okay-- more than that, it's pretty tight. Not a whole lot of baggage space, either.
Aerostars are also harder to fly than a Turbo Commander, in my opinion-- and less safe. Single engine performance, while pretty good for a piston, is not in the same league as a Commander, and the engines are less reliable. They also only have one engine driven hydraulic pump, plus an optional electric pump (although every one I've seen had the electric pump).
I would run some flight plans to see if they can make it from Bend to the LA area nonstop against a headwind. I found that HIO-PSP was marginal unless the winds were good.
The long and short of it is I'd get a Dash 5 690A before an Aerostar. The difference in price won't be that much, and the 690A is just a much better airplane for that mission.