Best values and resale value - Boise or Eagle? (Nampa: big house, neighborhoods)

[sailme01]

Hoping to relocate to Boise and am researching where to buy. I would be commuting to Nampa. My wife and I have visited several times and have found a few areas we like. We fell in love with the character and charm of the North End and East End. However, we didn't love the prices and realize that we like the idea of a 1910 Bungalow, but want the modern amenities of a remodel or newer construction.

We are both very into the outdoors and would love to have either easy access to the foothills or easy access to the Greenbelt. Our ideal home - 2,000 sf, 3-4 bed, 2 bath. (We don't have any kids but plan to have a couple in the next few years). Our price range is $225,000 to $300,000. We are very opposed to cookie cutter construction. We definitely don't want to be in a big house in a neighborhood filled with 3 different models. That said, we don't mind some of the 1990's neighborhoods, where the houses are newer but don't look identical.

We were wondering:

1) What areas have the best resale values? Obviously the North and East Ends are safe bets because of the proximity to downtown Boise. But, the prices still seem pretty high. What about Eagle? What about the bench? We'd love to be near downtown Boise, but wonder if there are houses in Eagle that have big yards and are a steal right now.

2) Are there any areas that are hidden gems? I visited an area around Castle Hills off of Hill Road that seemed really nice. I liked how the prices were a lot lower, and there was easy access to the foothills. However, it seemed kind of far from downtown Boise.

3) How is the commute from Boise to Nampa in rush hour? Some people have told me that its a reverse and isn't bad. Google tells me it is roughly 20-25 minutes from the East End - does this sound right at 8:00am?

4) I understand that Eagle sends its kids to Meridian for school. How do the public schools compare - Boise v. Eagle/Meridian?

5) Is Warm Springs Mesa or Harris Ranch worth a look? The prices seem high, but maybe there are some good deals in this economy? Kind of defeats the character/charm/proximity to downtown ideal, but we're weighing a lot of different options!

Any input would be greatly appreciated! We're told its a buyer's market, but didn't think prices were as low as expected. Thanks!

[MrGrumpy]

Given your price range I would definitely go with the East side of Boise. East Boise values will always be higher due to their location and now is the time to buy due to values in general being on the downside (due to the current state of the economy). The Bench would be good as well but many of the houses on the Bench are small sized houses for the price. If you are looking at the Bench I would strongly recommend houses up in the Sunrise Rim area as it is easy access to the Freeway and only a drive straight down Vista to downtown. The houses definitely aren't cookie-cutter (ie no corey barton or hubble homes) and are older but well maintained. My other recommendations would be either the Warm Springs or Park Center areas. Lots of nice homes that should be well within your price-range in that area and you have the value of some of the better schools in the area (ie Les Bois, Timberline). As far as Hidden Gems go there are some but as you discovered there are still comprimises to deal with. Warm Springs and Park Center area are within a quick drive to downtown. As you pointed out Harris Ranch and the Mesa are a bit further out and would be a little more of a drive/hassle as Warm Springs can become quite congested during rush hour traffic hours. Boise and Meridian School districts will both offer a decent education so that is pretty much a draw on that front.

Now for the Big Question. The commute during 8-9AM on 84 can be congested but most of the traffic is heading from Meridian/Nampa to Boise and from about 4-6PM is congested once again but the traffic is headed out to the Meridian/Nampa area. As far as Eagle goes it is a very nice community, but In My Honest Opinion the location is one of the worst in the treasure valley. Your only two real options for getting anywhere from Eagle to somewhere else in the treasure valley are State Street and Eagle Road, neither of which are attractive options for the congestion factor. State Street would be the route downtown and the street gets more congested every year with no real prospects for expanding the road. Eagle Road takes you down through Meridian and down to the interstate but once again you go through one of the most congested areas in the treasure valley to get there. Either the Parkcenter or Sunrise Rim locations would be infinitely preferrable to Eagle if access to the freeway or being close to downtown is a concern for you and IMHO (In My Honest Opinion) would give you the best options in terms of being easy access to everything.

Just a few things to think about.