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It’s funny that you mention Sandpoint, I was on Zillow and saw a few houses in the area that were possible. Sandpoint is now on the radar as well!
Not sure about Boise, I’m trying to find an area to put the horses and appease my finicky spouse and still stay within visiting distance to his family in Seattle. He is not really into horses although he has always helped look after them if I was out of town or had the flu. He really likes an upscale area, North Scottsdale is hard to compete with, but I’ve heard good things about CDA, so that seemed like a good starting place.
I like CDA/Post Falls area better than Sandpoint for horse people. The acreage properties in Sandpoint are so interspersed with boggy wetlands that it is hard to find something good for pasture that the Woods family does not already own. LOL. No offense to the Woods because they are wonderful people. We have had a hard time finding anything for us and our horses up there.
It seems like you are looking for an upscale ccr planned community that allows horses. I don’t know if that exists here? We have upscale neighborhoods, and horse properties, but not combined to my knowledge. Traveling into the areas here of larger acreages for horses, you will find school buses welded together for housing, hoarders, trash, meth, flannel, and Confederate flags. I am thinking Bend or Redmond Oregon might fit your needs for housing, but you will give up proximity to a larger city. Bozeman would seem like an awesome option imo.
No, just nooooo. Been there, done that and it’s awful. I don’t understand this trashy living thing up here. North Scottsdale had nothing like it. It was a culture shock to move here and see all that. We lived in a regular neighborhood zoned for horses and most homes were very nice. This style of living seems to be pretty common in rural areas in the PNW, which is why I thought being closer to a city would weed out a lot of it. Dosen’t have to be a ccr community, but an area with nice homes would suffice. Not sure about Bozeman, it would probably work for me but it gets very cold there, and hubs would probably not like it.
No, just nooooo. Been there, done that and it’s awful. I don’t understand this trashy living thing up here. North Scottsdale had nothing like it. It was a culture shock to move here and see all that. We lived in a regular neighborhood zoned for horses and most homes were very nice. This style of living seems to be pretty common in rural areas in the PNW, which is why I thought being closer to a city would weed out a lot of it. Dosen’t have to be a ccr community, but an area with nice homes would suffice. Not sure about Bozeman, it would probably work for me but it gets very cold there, and hubs would probably not like it.
I have spent time in Olympia and would never live there because of what you are enduring. CDA and Post Falls are not like this for the most part. Of course you will have the odd place but it seems many of those are being sold and cleaned up. It's funny you mention that your spouse is not into horses because the house next door just sold and she has horses but he is not into them. She needed her own place rather than boarding. They gutted the house and it is all new inside as the previous owner was not into upkeep on the house. Not trashy but just not interested and too busy. Needless to say we are so happy they bought the place. We are down to two AQHA geldings on our 5 acres and we put a gate in at the back to access the since removed railroad bed for trail riding. There are many places to trailer to for rides as well. We love Heyburn State Park to the south the most. It has miles of trails that are hiking and equestrian only, no bicycles.
Last edited by redwood66; 06-12-2018 at 06:53 PM..
I wasn’t suggesting you try to find a horse property in Spokane, but outside in the rural areas. A lot more nicer horse properties. Buckeye Valley Estates in Colbert and the N. highland neighborhood also in Colbert is a lovely area with nicer, upscale homes and small acreages for horse owners. Deer Park is another option and Nine Mile Falls.
I totally get not wanting to be in Washington if you are set on Idaho but as a horseperson, just offering other options based on my long experience as a horse owner here.
I was a horse owner in Phoenix too. Boarded for a time on Dynamite in north Scottsdale and mostly in Waddell and Litchfield Park. Moving to the Priest Lake and Sandpoint area was a nice surprise for my horses. All the grass!
Sounds like you know the area well. I can look up Buckeye Valley and Deer Park, but Idaho is still in the lead. Washington scenery is beautiful, and the pasture is hilly so the horses are not in muddy areas. Aside from neighbors, it’s a good thing for the horses at least. I’ve never been to Idaho and am looking forward to checking it out.
Dynamite was maybe ten or fifteen minutes from my house, counting the traffic lights. Lots of horse areas out that way and Litchfield too. I feel bad for Phoenix horses though, most don’t get to eat grass and the heat is awful. Washington, even with the rain has been great for the horses, they have all put on weight and muscle. Glad to hear there is an abundance of grass around Sandpoint too!
If you are talking about CDA/Post Falls this is not true. Sure there are bad areas but none of my neighbors properties nor mine look like you describe.
Not in town, no. But she is wanting over 5 acres. So, I was thinking more of the rural horse property areas, like Athol or Worley or the other outlying areas.
My spouse and I moved to the Olympia area last year from Phoenix. To say this area has been a disappointment is an understatement. The rain is fine, but the area is far from any big city amenities that my spouse and I miss. The area we ended up in is sketchy and more than one neighbor throws trash in the yard including mattress, grills, every kind of junk. We needed a horse property and bought this one.
My spouse has a Masters in electrical engineering and works at home. I also work at home selling insurance. We had originally wanted to move close to Seattle, but the housing market is too crazy. This area is not what we like, my spouse really hates it here, although the house is beautiful and surrounded by fields. Big trees hide the awful houses.
Would Couer d’Alene be a better fit? The requirements would be a few acres for the horses, a fixer house, maybe somewhere between 400,000 to 500,000. It would have to be an area where professionals or people who take pride in their home live, a lot of our neighbors have poorly kept houses and seeing 800 square foot homes piled high with junk in the yard is awful. The nearest towns are depressing to look at and are noted for having a meth problem. No, we didn’t take more time and look around, but should have. We had to buy, since no landlord would rent to people with four dogs, the Phoenix house had closed and we needed something quick.
This is not the right place, hubs hates the rain, we both dislike the isolation, a lot of locals are either rude or surly, there are no good restaurants or shopping for many miles, Olympia has a bad homeless problem, meth seems to be everywhere. His siblings live closer to Seattle, although they bought homes years ago.
We definitely plan a move in 2019 and I’ve heard good things about CDA and living in a clean, upscale area not too far from a major city is important. It’s not far from Spokane which would be big city with the nice restaurants and shopping my spouse misses. Anyway, this town is on the radar along with a couple of other places, and I was hoping to pick up more information on the town and general area.
For part of your desires-CDA, or most any of N. Idaho, would be a good fit. Lots of horse property, and for the most part people take pride in their homes and keep them up and their property looking nice. In general there is a good work ethic. You'll find some of the "horse country" has actual working ranches. They are usually well kept up but aren't as "cute" as some of the hobby farms and gentrified horse country that some expect-they actually look like a WORKING ranch. And there is a LOT of horse property-in my neighborhood it seems like half the people own horses-though I nearly never see anyone actually riding them. Most anywhere outside of an incorporated area (aka City) is "horse property" here in NID. (I keep pointing out that motorcycles are better than horses because you only feed them when you ride them, but it has no effect ). The derogatory statements about ATVs are incorrect for the most part. A large number of people have them-many are used for work on the property and plowing snow. Many are just used for transportation (they are legal on most streets and roads, just not state highways) and for short hops are handier than a cage. You'll see them on main street in CDA all the time. The largest use is exploring the National Forests. Unless you have neighbors with kids racing around a track on a small lot, they typically aren't an issue. The national forest lands are amazing-you'll have plenty of great country to ride horses and get out and see some spectacular views.
CDA has some nice restaurants by smaller-town standards and is a good fit for MY desires (actually too big and too much traffic, with amenities I don't care about). But if you're looking for a large variety of "fine dining" and the culture and amenities of say Seattle, this really isn't a good fit. Spokane is a fair sized city, but much is pretty run down with a significant crime problem. I only go there when I "need" to (hey, they have some motorcycle brands that Idaho doesn't ). If you love the outdoors, enjoy spending time fishing, hunting, camping and in the backcountry and love seeing wildlife, lakes, rivers and mountains, this is a wonderful place to live-in fact one of the very best in the country. Also a great place if you want really nice neighbors. If you want the amenities of a big city-not so much.
Last edited by Toyman at Jewel Lake; 06-12-2018 at 09:40 PM..
I like CDA/Post Falls area better than Sandpoint for horse people. The acreage properties in Sandpoint are so interspersed with boggy wetlands that it is hard to find something good for pasture that the Woods family does not already own. LOL. No offense to the Woods because they are wonderful people. We have had a hard time finding anything for us and our horses up there.
Ok, thanks, boggy wetlands would be a problem. Definitely something to check out if we get to the point of buying around Sandpoint. I don’t know about the Woods family, I’m guessing they are ranchers.
I have spent time in Olympia and would never live there because of what you are enduring. CDA and Post Falls are not like this for the most part. Of course you will have the odd place but it seems many of those are being sold and cleaned up. It's funny you mention that your spouse is not into horses because the house next door just sold and she has horses but he is not into them. She needed her own place rather than boarding. They gutted the house and it is all new inside as the previous owner was not into upkeep on the house. Not trashy but just not interested and too busy. Needless to say we are so happy they bought the place. We are down to two AQHA geldings on our 5 acres and we put a gate in at the back to access the since removed railroad bed for trail riding. There are many places to trailer to for rides as well. We love Heyburn State Park to the south the most. It has miles of trails that are hiking and equestrian only, no bicycles.
Yes, Olympia was a disappointment and we live a few miles outside the town, where it gets worse. The news in your area sounds as though things are looking up and it’s sure nice to hear that! Gutting houses won’t happen here because there are a fair number of small houses, some only a few hundred sq ft and no one would buy and rebuild on those lots. No, these people will be here for years to come. Count your blessings that you got great neighbors to renovate like that. Wish I could say the same.
This neighbor of yours who is not into horses reminds me of my farrier. The first time he came out here, he already knew my spouse was not into horses. He says only two or three of his clients husbands are interested in horses, the rest just wave at him from the door. Sounds as though there are a lot of horse people around there and places to ride.
From Sandpoint itself to CdA is closer to 45 minutes and its all on a US Highway (US 95). A good bit of it is 4 lanes already, and the plan is that it all will be widened to 4 lanes at some point.
We are about 12 miles off US 95, and then 5 miles south of Sandpoint once we get there, so that adds to our drive time to CdA.
Dave
It sounds as though you live pretty far out and if you don’t have the issues with junk, meth and rusting cars in the yards, then that says good things about the whole area. 4 lanes are great, out here there is mostly two lanes until you get on I 5. Lots of pick ups with big tires who speed, driving on these back country roads can be a challenge sometimes.
For part of your desires-CDA, or most any of N. Idaho, would be a good fit. Lots of horse property, and for the most part people take pride in their homes and keep them up and their property looking nice. In general there is a good work ethic. You'll find some of the "horse country" has actual working ranches. They are usually well kept up but aren't as "cute" as some of the hobby farms and gentrified horse country that some expect-they actually look like a WORKING ranch. And there is a LOT of horse property-in my neighborhood it seems like half the people own horses-though I nearly never see anyone actually riding them. Most anywhere outside of an incorporated area (aka City) is "horse property" here in NID. (I keep pointing out that motorcycles are better than horses because you only feed them when you ride them, but it has no effect ). The derogatory statements about ATVs are incorrect for the most part. A large number of people have them-many are used for work on the property and plowing snow. Many are just used for transportation (they are legal on most streets and roads, just not state highways) and for short hops are handier than a cage. You'll see them on main street in CDA all the time. The largest use is exploring the National Forests. Unless you have neighbors with kids racing around a track on a small lot, they typically aren't an issue. The national forest lands are amazing-you'll have plenty of great country to ride horses and get out and see some spectacular views.
CDA has some nice restaurants by smaller-town standards and is a good fit for MY desires (actually too big and too much traffic, with amenities I don't care about). But if you're looking for a large variety of "fine dining" and the culture and amenities of say Seattle, this really isn't a good fit. Spokane is a fair sized city, but much is pretty run down with a significant crime problem. I only go there when I "need" to (hey, they have some motorcycle brands that Idaho doesn't ). If you love the outdoors, enjoy spending time fishing, hunting, camping and in the backcountry and love seeing wildlife, lakes, rivers and mountains, this is a wonderful place to live-in fact one of the very best in the country. Also a great place if you want really nice neighbors. If you want the amenities of a big city-not so much.
You bring up a lot of good points and I appreciate you taking the time to mention them! People who keep up their homes and have a good work ethic are important, and if I’d known there were so many in this area who didn’t care, I would have been on guard. No one mentioned the issues with rural Washington, not on the CD threads, friends or realtor. After buying the house, these things started to come to light. I’m fine with any type of neighbors but clean yards are a must, fortunately huge fir trees hide almost all the junky homes. ATV’s are fine, my nearby neighbors kids ride them, don’t have a problem with it, but he has turned his yard into a major trash dump, which is a big problem, since he lives across the road. The only good thing is, his cars that don’t run, along with rusted old farm equipment, are better than throwing mattresses out, like some of the other neighbors do. If the next neighborhood has clean yards, they can have a whole fleet of ATV’s.
I wanted to move closer in to a city area to weed out this penchant for yard trash dumping, but living near a city like Spokane that has a drug reputation wouldn’t work. My spouse misses the good restaurants in North Scottsdale, out here there is hardly anything. The views and country sound amazing, although we don’t hunt, fish or camp. We don’t ride motorcycles, because they don’t neigh when they see you or give you a nuzzle. Love hiking and nature and spouse likes an urban feel and having more to do. CDA sounds like a tourist town with nicer amenities for the tourists so maybe it would be a fit. From what I’ve read, lots of people with money are moving there and they will demand better restaurants, shopping, roads and so on. The area will evolve to accommodate them, like North Scottsdale did. The area outside Olympia is dotted with small, depressing towns, and some of them have a meth reputation. Seattle might be fine, but with the cost, we’d just end up moving to another drug infested area two hours north of the city. What’s the point of that.
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We are down to two AQHA geldings on our 5 acres and we put a gate in at the back to access the since removed railroad bed for trail riding. There are many places to trailer to for rides as well. We love Heyburn State Park to the south the most. It has miles of trails that are hiking and equestrian only, no bicycles.
). The derogatory statements about ATVs are incorrect for the most part. A large number of people have them-many are used for work on the property and plowing snow. Many are just used for transportation (they are legal on most streets and roads, just not state highways) and for short hops are handier than a cage. You'll see them on main street in CDA all the time. The largest use is exploring the National Forests. Unless you have neighbors with kids racing around a track on a small lot, they typically aren't an issue. The national forest lands are amazing-you'll have plenty of great country to ride horses and get out and see some spectacular views.
Love hiking and nature and spouse likes an urban feel and having more to do. CDA sounds like a tourist town with nicer amenities for the tourists so maybe it would be a fit. From what I’ve read, lots of people with money are moving there and they will demand better restaurants, shopping, roads and so on. The area will evolve to accommodate them, like North Scottsdale did. The area outside Olympia is dotted with small, depressing towns, and some of them have a meth reputation. Seattle might be fine, but with the cost, we’d just end up moving to another drug infested area two hours north of the city. What’s the point of that.
