A celebration of home, sweet home
Caroline Lobsinger
Home, sweet home.
Whether you're looking for a place to hang your hat, either to rent or to purchase; or you're looking to spruce up the place you're already in, "homes" means many things to many people.
As noted by the Silver Valley's Juli Zook, Shoshone County's real estate market brings its own benefits and challenges. As a bedroom community to the Spokane-Coeur d’Alene metropolitan area, people come to Shoshone County looking for a reprieve from the bustling city, but they also don’t want to be too far from it.
The area's easy commute to nearby Coeur d'Alene and Spokane have created a "new normal" for the community's real estate market.
Coeur d’Alene, Sandpoint, and Bonners Ferry — which, respectively, anchor Kootenai, Bonner and Boundary counties — are all pursuing strategies to meet the persistent demand for affordable living in North Idaho.
High-density housing has consistently emerged as a solution to ease the pressure of accommodating growth.
Among those potential solutions in The Village at River View housing project in Priest River, which blends land held in trust and private home ownership. Because land costs are removed from the prices, the homes are less expensive — and more affordable for the community's workforce.
Buying a home is no small feat, and involving a real estate agent in the process early on can mean the difference between signing closing papers and missing out on your dream home.
Talking to an agent can give potential homebuyers practical information on what their budget can buy and how much they will need for a down payment. Agents can also help connect homebuyers with lenders — ones best suited to their particular situation and circumstances.
"Fin-tech" sites like Zillow and Redfin, which financial technology and apply real estate elements for accessibility, are a good source for a "vision board" of what is available in the market. While they offer "one-stop shopping," local real estate officials don't provide all of the options or the customized service that an in-person, local agent can give.
And who is buying these homes?
Local and state data shows that many are couple and families, with a fair smattering of retirees moving to North Idaho for the region's quality of life and outdoor recreation opportunities. According to data from the Department of Motor Vehicles provided by Jared Janke with Alliance Title and Escrow in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho registered 14,976 new residents from California, 10,023 from Washington, and 4,867 from Oregon.
— Caroline Lobsinger, NIBJ Editor
