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While it's probably true that retirees coming from states with higher cost of living are a partial cause for higher real estate prices here, I don't think many of them are moving to NID to rent apartments. The cause of rents being unaffordable for some lies elsewhere.
Dave
You're right, they're not. But where do you think people on minimum wage in a tourist-based economy live? Not in homes, unless they were inherited.
Furthermore, the shoving of minimum wage people into apartments creates a demand that exacerbates rental rates. Especially if new rental units are not being built, which is almost always the case in NIMBY North Idaho.
Did I complain about it? No. I merely gave people a heads up so that they are prepared. I abhor more government control. But sadly too many people can't be trusted to act with honor, integrity, fairness or just plain common human decency.
A self-sustaining, self-governing society is by definition more civil and more advanced than another society where Govt has to regulate human behavior.
So, I absolutely think that Idaho’s self-governing communities are more advanced and more civil than in Park Ave, Manhattan or California’s zoos, although these have a better veneer. But deep down, it’s no question.
Although I agree with your premise --Govt's mandated rent control is bad -- saying that NYC's rents are sky-high because of rent-control -- that's an oversimplification. ..........
The point is that rent control does not provide a plethora of lovely low cost rentals that burger flippers can afford to rent. Which is what advocates of rent control are touting. "Rents are too high for minimum wage workers, so let's freeze rents". Rent control does not provide lots of low cost housing, it just greatly reduces the number of units available for rent. No one builds a nice new big apartment building in a jurisdiction under rent control. Existing apartment buildings go condo. Private landlIords leave the market.
So maybe rent is held artificially low, but there aren't any units available to rent . And what rental units there are get run down because there is no money to pay to fix them.
At any rate, I would prefer that the people who advocate rent control would move to a rent control area where they can enjoy rent control, instead of moving to Idaho and trying to change Idaho into the place they have just escaped from.
The point is that rent control does not provide a plethora of lovely low cost rentals that burger flippers can afford to rent. Which is what advocates of rent control are touting. "Rents are too high for minimum wage workers, so let's freeze rents". Rent control does not provide lots of low cost housing, it just greatly reduces the number of units available for rent. No one builds a nice new big apartment building in a jurisdiction under rent control. Existing apartment buildings go condo. Private landlIords leave the market.
So maybe rent is held artificially low, but there aren't any units available to rent . And what rental units there are get run down because there is no money to pay to fix them.
At any rate, I would prefer that the people who advocate rent control would move to a rent control area where they can enjoy rent control, instead of moving to Idaho and trying to change Idaho into the place they have just escaped from.
Yes. Absolutely rent control has contributed to the shortage. But there are other reasons. Limited land, zoning, politics, unions, strict building codes, high cost of construction, appeal to millennials, jobs, financial services etc. etc
Ooohh, the growing pains of N. Idaho. Or, is it the growing pains of a lot of this country ? Even where I am now, rents are going up. Locals can no longer afford in town living and are excepting the commute necessary.
Not fair, but those that stayed and worked in the cities, hating every moment, fighting traffic, looking forward to the day they can retire in a smaller, less congested area..... well, they paid their dues while those who grew up in the smaller areas enjoyed all it has to offer without the confines of being to old to climb that hill or hike down to that creek.
Those that know what Idaho has to offer, like it or not, have got to except that our N. Idaho is not in K. County anymore. Our past experiences can only be lived by letting the transplants have it and going, well North or South is about it. Above Sandpoint as it was had years ago or St Maries, Clarkia, or ? . But then those folks will be yelling at the locals from K. County for causing their rents to skyrocket. And so it goes.
Although I agree with your premise --Govt's mandated rent control is bad -- saying that NYC's rents are sky-high because of rent-control -- that's an oversimplification.
Wages / cost structure of NYC is very different from Boise (incl Meridian / Nampa) as the largest city for example, let along other small cities of Idaho. For example next biggest city -- Idaho Falls, 60k people roughly -- is the size of small neighborhood of NYC, population-wise.
To put in perspective, Astoria in Queens, which is not big -- that has about 80k people. And you don't want that many people in Idaho Falls, but using past growth rates -- Idaho Falls will reach 80k people sometime around 2030.
I would peel off 5 years or more from that 2030 date. I fully expect to see Idaho Falls hit 80,000 around 2025 or sooner.
But I also expect to see many more multi-unit housing developments being built between now and then. This is a new century, and I don't believe the practices of the 20th century in housing, will survive much longer. Newcomers don't want to move away from sprawl only to find it where they move to, and owning a McMansion has proven to be a bigger burden than a joy for many families.
I would peel off 5 years or more from that 2030 date. I fully expect to see Idaho Falls hit 80,000 around 2025 or sooner.
But I also expect to see many more multi-unit housing developments being built between now and then. This is a new century, and I don't believe the practices of the 20th century in housing, will survive much longer. Newcomers don't want to move away from sprawl only to find it where they move to, and owning a McMansion has proven to be a bigger burden than a joy for many families.
I agree that the trend is for less “overhead” when carrying a home. People now value town’s amenities more than before. Young or old. My cousin (2 parents, 2 kids) just sold their McMansion to move to an in-town townhouse. He says he feels liberated.
Plus I doubt many boomers remain keen on cutting the grass.
I'm always amazed when someone moves to achieve living in different type of environment (less government control), then complain about it when they arrive.
To be fair, it was also mostly Idaho natives that let those bs noncompete contracts get as bad as they are. It's hard to claim that you're all about freedom, liberty, and small government when you give employers total control over your future career and the future careers of others. Just because it's private business doing it and not the "government" doesn't mean it's not a screwed up pseudo-socialist overreach into the free market. That attitude is what drives me crazy about some Idahoans - they claim to be libertarian/conservative because they oppose all things government, then they expect everyone to just bend over and let private companies stick their power-hungry hands up in the parts of their business where the sun never shines.
The hypocrisy is mystifying. We could all be working as slave labor under the Great Pharoah Simplot (nothing against that family, just an example), and some Idahoans would still insist that we're more free than everyone else just because we've got a "small government".
Summary: just because you believe in small government doesn't mean you are free, if you let the private sector act like big government.
Idaho Falls avg home prices are also on the lower end of the spectrum for cities in the Mountain West of comparable size (50-80k population).
CDA homes are at least 50% more than Idaho Falls. Pocatello’s homes are a bit cheaper. Great Falls home prices are comparable to Idaho Falls, while cities like Grand Junction or Cheyenne are 20-30 percent more.
Comparable cities in Oregon (Bend, Corvallis) are almost double the average of Idaho Falls. But with pricing increasing at 9% annually like last year, Idaho Falls is going up fast.
A self-sustaining, self-governing society is by definition more civil and more advanced than another society where Govt has to regulate human behavior.
So, I absolutely think that Idaho’s self-governing communities are more advanced and more civil than in Park Ave, Manhattan or California’s zoos, although these have a better veneer. But deep down, it’s no question.
Oh, I agree with you, but there are some practices here that will come as a shock to many. At least they can know ahead of time what to expect. Plus, some small internal evil part of me hopes that the Californians I also escaped from will read and get scared off
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