Boise Area Relocation - 2 years in (house, buy, construction)
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I used this forum when we were considering our move so I wanted to also share our experience here. We live in a rural community in the Boise area. Here are some of the pros and cons we’ve encountered in the last 2 years:
PROS:
* Weather - when it’s beautiful it’s beautiful!
* Trails - great hiking, camping, lakes to swim/fish/recreate in
* People - the local Idahoans are some of the nicest people
* Food - some of the best farm to table food going. Do not miss the Boise Farmer’s Market and specifically seek out Volcanic Farms and ask about their pie! Also many local apiaries if you love honey
* Artsy community - downtown Boise has a lot to offer!
CONS:
* Weather - it is very unpredictable. You can have all 4 seasons appear in 1 day. The first year we were here was the worst winter in 30 years. It can be extremely windy. I’m not talking a nice breeze, I’m talking 40mph gusts, uncomfortable wind. The summers are triple digit HOT.
* Construction - with all the people moving here there is construction everywhere. Streets are congested, pastures/farm land are being turned into subdivisions, etc.
* Health care - a joke. To find a GP you must first locate someone accepting new patients...good luck. Specifically the mental health care of Idaho is awful. We have not been able to locate a therapist willing to work with my special needs brother.
* If you want rural living do your homework - many service workers from Boise will not travel to you or charge you an arm and a leg to do so. Service businesses near rural communities get to you when they can. I’ve requested 3 years in a row a service technician from a local company to come fix my pasture irrigation - yes, 3 years in a row and they have yet to show up but i’m at their mercy. If you purchase something in Boise for delivery, ie: appliance or furniture, make sure they will deliver to your rural address.
* People - many folks are moving here. That is bad news all the way around. The atmosphere is changing. I’ve been hearing more horns blowing on the roads, I’ve heard and seen increasing rude behavior, etc.
* Cost of living is high - specifically housing. The market is by far a seller’s market. We moved from an area that was supposed to have essentially the same cost of living - not so. We lucked out on our rural property but properties smaller than ours are currently selling for $200k over what we paid for ours in our general area. Groceries, medical, entertainment, etc seems to be equal or higher than the East Coast.
All in all we’ve enjoyed our time here but are moving on within the year. My comments are specific to my family’s experiences in the last 2+ years here. If I think of anything else I’ll update this post later..
Boise has been on my very short list of places to move, but the one item you listed as a con that I have previously read and am very concerned about is the physician shortage. I think it is a deal breaker for me, and am focusing elsewhere.
Thanks for taking the trouble to write your post. This forum can be awesome, and your post is an example of the most helpful kind of posts.
Boise has been on my very short list of places to move, but the one item you listed as a con that I have previously read and am very concerned about is the physician shortage. I think it is a deal breaker for me, and am focusing elsewhere.
if there is a physician shortage it's news to me - we've had absolutely no issue getting to see doctors
From what I've seen, we haven't had any problems finding a family doctor, where I had to jump through a hoop or two (seems to be a similar situation in other places I've lived also though) is getting in to see a specialist. I have two autoimmune diseases, which fortunately both are doing great, and when I tried to get in to see an internal specialist, I had to first find a general practitioner, meet with them, and then get a referral.
Being a smaller state, you can't find some of the more specialized doctors, like hepatologists, nearby. I was seeing one in CA, because my liver condition was acting up, and they are very specialized. My wife looked it up when we got here, and she said she couldn't find one in the state of Idaho or Utah. So, if you need someone very specialized, you could end up needing to be in a larger market.
I've been very pleased with our health care so far though. If I go in to see a doctor, I'm surprised to see them or someone from their office call me a few days later to see how things are going. That I did not see where I used to live.
I cannot say if there is a primary care physician shortage or not, but finding one who is willing to accept new Medicare patients is difficult. At least up here in the CdA area. Finally found one through a neighbor referral who is accepting new patients if they are diabetic.
Boise has been on my very short list of places to move, but the one item you listed as a con that I have previously read and am very concerned about is the physician shortage. I think it is a deal breaker for me, and am focusing elsewhere.
Thanks for taking the trouble to write your post. This forum can be awesome, and your post is an example of the most helpful kind of posts.
Please keep us informed of your next move.
We have 7 children. I have a combat related injury and use my primary care instead of the VA for my care. We had one child have a catastrophic injury soon after moving here. At no time have we had any issues getting treatment or getting it in a timely manner.
In my humble opinion, I think the OP had some unrealistic expectations about Boise. You're in a valley with one million other people. Yes, others are moving in at a rapid pace. In the year I have been here, I have seen traffic increase, and with it a change in behavior. But compared to Atlanta, GA I will take this any day.
I grew up on a farm in rural North Georgia. There are trade offs when you live out in the boonies. Services don't come to you, you have to go to them. As far as irrigation services, I have never hired anyone to do that stuff for me. I always did it myself. I'm wondering if you are one of those city people who got in over their heads when you bought your rural property. Just because you CAN buy a farm doesn't mean you SHOULD buy a farm.
I'm reminded of the city folks who bought the farm next to ours a few years back. One night, they called the police to come out because "some wild animals had surrounded their house and SOMEONE needed to come shoot them". A herd of deer was in their front yard eating their newly planted flowers. The local sheriff got a kick out of that. They packed up and moved shortly after, too.
* Weather - it is very unpredictable. You can have all 4 seasons appear in 1 day. The first year we were here was the worst winter in 30 years. It can be extremely windy. I’m not talking a nice breeze, I’m talking 40mph gusts, uncomfortable wind. The summers are triple digit HOT.
* Construction - with all the people moving here there is construction everywhere. Streets are congested, pastures/farm land are being turned into subdivisions, etc.
* Health care - a joke. To find a GP you must first locate someone accepting new patients...good luck. Specifically the mental health care of Idaho is awful. We have not been able to locate a therapist willing to work with my special needs brother.
* People - many folks are moving here. That is bad news all the way around. The atmosphere is changing. I’ve been hearing more horns blowing on the roads, I’ve heard and seen increasing rude behavior, etc.
* Cost of living is high - specifically housing. The market is by far a seller’s market. We moved from an area that was supposed to have essentially the same cost of living - not so. We lucked out on our rural property but properties smaller than ours are currently selling for $200k over what we paid for ours in our general area. Groceries, medical, entertainment, etc seems to be equal or higher than the East Coast.
I also lived in Boise for a short time and left after 2 years. I left in 2003 and moved to Denver, now San Diego. You were able to come up with more pros than what I could come up with, lol. The city is fine, it just wasn't a good fit for me...and I agree w/ what you stated as your cons. Although, I did not do the rural living thing, I was in suburbia. Where do you think you'll head off to next?
I also lived in Boise for a short time and left after 2 years. I left in 2003 and moved to Denver, now San Diego. You were able to come up with more pros than what I could come up with, lol. The city is fine, it just wasn't a good fit for me...and I agree w/ what you stated as your cons. Although, I did not do the rural living thing, I was in suburbia. Where do you think you'll head off to next?
Curious why it wasent a good fit for you? I live in Fallbrook San Diego and thinking about moving to eagle, scared of it will fit
Curious why it wasent a good fit for you? I live in Fallbrook San Diego and thinking about moving to eagle, scared of it will fit
To me, Fallbrook is one of the garden spots in CA and if I lived there, and could afford to do so, I would not be moving to Idaho. (Said by someone who owned a small vacant lot in Rainbow. This was before the freeway was built.)
Fallbrook is a really neat area. I spent some time there when I was younger, as my wife's mother lived there.
Neat place, lots of horse property (at least back then), and a beautiful area.
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