Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Many of my neighbors don't work for local companies. They work from home and travel a lot for better paying out of state companies. Others work for St. Lukes, tech companies, the state government, real estate. Others are retirees. Everyone seems to be doing just fine or at least they vacation like they are doing fine. I have never lived anywhere else, where people traveled and vacationed so much.
Are the salaries really supporting this or is it some kind of Silicon Valley where even the highly paid engineers have to eat Ramon noodles to afford to live near work?
The economy is expanding and diversifying in Boise (and most of the rest of the state), the states income tax and state tax revenues continue to come in higher than forecasted and earlier this year Idaho led the nation in personal income growth.
But, even with all of the good news, Boise mirrors most other cities in that the cost of living is outpacing income growth. Even though wages are obviously higher in Seattle and the Silicon Valley, it is common to hear about people having difficulties affording homes etc. in those cities. I hear the same thing from relatives down in Salt Lake City...the wages are not keeping up with the housing price increases.
I will say that the retail scene in Boise has exploded recently with more high end stores and restaurants and they seem to do well. It is pretty common to see expensive restaurants downtown busy for dinner with waiting lines.
Maybe Idahoan's/Boisean's are smart with their finances.
Another sign of the times is Boise is getting a Maserati dealership.
We bought an inexpensive 3/2 in a nice area for 187K. (Smallest house in the development). But in two months Zillow/Realtor.com etc are saying it is worth $213 to $215K. In two months?
DH
I'd be curious to know if the Zillow price was fairly accurate on what the price was when you bought your home. I've seen Zillow $100k too high or two low, depending on the area. People say it should just be used as a ballpark, but it seems, at times, to be too inconsistent to be used for accurate pricing information.
The economy is expanding and diversifying in Boise (and most of the rest of the state), the states income tax and state tax revenues continue to come in higher than forecasted and earlier this year Idaho led the nation in personal income growth.
But, even with all of the good news, Boise mirrors most other cities in that the cost of living is outpacing income growth. Even though wages are obviously higher in Seattle and the Silicon Valley, it is common to hear about people having difficulties affording homes etc. in those cities. I hear the same thing from relatives down in Salt Lake City...the wages are not keeping up with the housing price increases.
I will say that the retail scene in Boise has exploded recently with more high end stores and restaurants and they seem to do well. It is pretty common to see expensive restaurants downtown busy for dinner with waiting lines.
Maybe Idahoan's/Boisean's are smart with their finances.
Another sign of the times is Boise is getting a Maserati dealership.
What types of upscale stores? Where are they located?
Sorry, I used to work in retail, that's why I'm asking.
Many thanks.
These stores are mainly downtown, the mall and the new shopping center in Meridian and are various types of retail.
LOL. No, but it just happened to be the first one I read.
I read about the stores that are there now and didn't read about any upscale ones. I thought when you said upscale you meant like Saks, Neiman's, Bloomies, Nordies.
LOL. No, but it just happened to be the first one I read.
I read about the stores that are there now and didn't read about any upscale ones. I thought when you said upscale you meant like Saks, Neiman's, Bloomies, Nordies.
Sorry, my bad.
Yeah, I don't think those chains are doing much expansion because of falling sales nationwide. Luxury department chains are struggling. Saks closed its Portland store. Boise has seen more growth in smaller chains and local boutiques.
Yeah, I don't think those chains are doing much expansion because of falling sales nationwide. Luxury department chains are struggling. Saks closed its Portland store. Boise has seen more growth in smaller chains and local boutiques.
Actually, that is not quite true. The high end stores have done quite well during the turndown of the economy. In fact, they did better than then the average joe store. Several have taken a little hit because of the downturn in tourism. Trump's travel ban has not helped. Also, now that China has come into it's own, the extreme expansion had to slow down somewhat, which has given some of the designer's a little slow down. The peak of the largest nationality wave ever to benefit luxury goods is behind us: There is not going to be another China. So once the stores make balances for the lack of NEW customers, they will lower expected quarterly earnings and once again begin to show more profit. It's the natural cycle of those types of stores.
I've always been a big proponent of smaller and fewer stores. It never made sense to me to oversaturate a market just to end up closing stores a few years later. I don't think it makes sense to have a mall or 'lifestyle center' every 15 miles as is common in larger cities.
Anyway, thank you for answering my original question.
We have to live in Nampa and commute in just so we can afford rent. We make about $15 per hour both of us, but between food, child care, and other expenses there isn't much left for rent. Certainly can't afford a 300,000 house or more. I remember just a few years ago houses we around 200,000 or less but even then it was going to be tight. Boise is going to be just like other places where the middle class gets pushed father away while investors and out of state people come in a buy everything up. But then when the economy falls they are the first to get bailed out!
I have seen a couple of trends in the last few years.
More people are going out further from Boise if they cant afford to buy in close. Lots of homes under 300k in Canyon County. Canyon county had some really inexpensive homes a few years ago, but as more demand for housing pushed more people to buy further out and commute into Boise.
Secondly, I have had several clients move her from out of state and bring their job with them. Someone making 45k a year in CA moves here; gets an instant lifestyle improvement and finds they can actually buy a home.
As the rest of the west gets more expensive, the Treasure Valley benefits with the migration from higher cost areas.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
