Nestled in the secluded Emmett, Valley, and part of Gem County, Emmett, Idaho could be Idaho’s perfect small town. First and foremost, this valley is beautiful. Surrounded by large hills, the Payette River runs through the Emmett Valley, providing incredibly fertile ground so the valley stays green year-round. The hills are green in the spring and golden in the summer, and it’s just a slice of pastoral paradise.
With just under 8000 residents in 2022, Emmett has been largely protected from the massive growth the Boise area has seen. And that is largely due to the topography of the area. In order to get to Emmett, Idaho from Boise, you need to drive up Highway 16, heading North from the Star/Eagle border. It’s only about a 20-minute drive from there, but you go up a hill, through a little canyon, top over Freezeout Hill, and then down into the valley. This road can be sketchy in the winter. The story goes that’s it’s called Freezeout Hill because in 1864, a freighter and a wagon came to the top of the hill, and due to ice and freezing conditions, nearly froze to death, and said they “we nearly got froze out of the valley”. But the good news is today, that you can drive up and down the hill with your heater on and some good tires in the winter, and people regularly make the daily commute from Emmett over the hill into Ada County. And there are actually 3 other ways into Emmett as well.
There is Highway 52 heading East towards Horseshoe Bend and coming out on Highway 55, which you can then go north to the mountains or South to Boise, there is Highway 52 heading West towards Payette and Ontario Oregon, and another way I have taken quite a bit is to go on Emmett Road out towards Middleton and then Caldwell. It is important to note that there may be more growth coming to Emmett, as they are currently in the process of connecting Highway 16 to Highway 84, providing a direct route from the main freeway over to Star and then up to Emmett.
So where exactly, is Emmett Idaho? Well first, don’t forget that I have a downloadable custom Google map so you can see exactly where Emmett is and have that map for when you come for a visit.
Okay so Emmet is 31 miles, or about 45 mins from Downtown Boise. It’s 20 miles or about 26 minutes from Eagle. It’s 25 miles, or about 35 mins from Caldwell. It’s about 30 minutes over to Highway 55 to get up into the mountains, And it’s about 40 minutes from Payette, Idaho out towards Ontario, Oregon. So, it is a commutable distance from the major cities in the Boise area, and it’s about 45 minutes to the Boise Airport. Oh, and of course, there is no Costco in Emmett, Idaho, so, you’ll drive to the Meridian Costco, which is about a 30-minute drive. So, it’s a pretty good location to be under 45 minutes from all the things a major city has to offer while enjoying small town life.
And there is so much to enjoy doing here.
There is fishing in the Payette River and all the tributaries and ponds in the valley. There is bird hunting, BLM access, Little Gem Cycle Park for ATVs, dirt bikes, and it makes a great place for sledding in the winter, and you want to go boating? Well, there is Black Rock Reservoir, of which I have a video that I’ll link below, but it is fantastic for wake boarding, paddle boarding, and fishing on the East end. What about golf? There is even Emmett City Golf Course, a 9-hole course that offers 2 for $20 on Friday nights and an annual tournament.
You like hot springs? There is Roystone hot springs offering a family pool and private pool you can reserve for small groups.
There are several city parks, with the main park downtown having play equipment, tennis courts, and they will be putting in a splashpad in the future. There is also the Gem Island Sports Complex, which is along the Payette River, and has soccer fields, volleyball courts, baseball fields, and a nice, paved path around it along the river.
And if you are a car enthusiast, Emmett is the town for you. There are 3 racetracks in Emmett. Firebird Raceway, which is for drag racing, but they have other events there too. Black Canyon Speedway, which is at the fairgrounds and is for dirt go kart racing, and the new Blue Valor Motorplex, which is for go kart racing as well, but also has a multipurpose asphalt track.
And for concerts, dancing, and events, there is the new Stoney’s Roadhouse which will also feature drive in movies in the future.
One of my favorite things about Emmett, Idaho is that it is a self-contained town. What I mean by that is that you really have everything you need here and don’t have to travel out of the valley to get your daily needs met. It has its own City Hall, a Gem County Clerk’s Office, which, by the way, is the best place to go get a passport and not deal with the waits in Boise, grocery stores like Alberton’s and Bi-Mart, along with a ton of local fruit stands. For medical, there is Valor Hospital with emergency services, Primary Health, and many other medical and dental group options, there are a few chain restaurants like Jimmy Johns, McDonalds, and Idaho Pizza, but they have several local mom and pop restaurants that are fantastic, like Cowboys Chop House downtown.
Roe Ann’s is an Emmett original carhop. They still have the phones to order with, they have a great menu, and great prices.
So, if you wanted a small town in the Boise area, even places like Star and Middleton don’t offer a full-service city like Emmett does. But just like Star and Middleton, the one thing Emmett does not have much of is shopping for clothes or home goods. There are a few lovely local stores for decor and other things, but you’ll still need to make the 40-minute drive to Meridian or Nampa shopping for things like Target, Wal-Mart, or mall type shops. Or of course, use Amazon.
So, what is the Emmett economy like?
Emmett is largely founded on agriculture – but not like large scale farms like you’ll find in Kuna, Nampa, and Caldwell. It is beautiful peach, cherry, and apple orchards, especially on the slopes of the hills as the soil is perfect for these trees. Just like Gem Orchards, there are many you-pick orchards and fruit markets scattered throughout the valley. The agriculture here is also more pastoral in nature, scattered areas of people raising some cattle, maybe goats, sheep, or horses. The orchards and livestock are honored and celebrated here with community events like the rodeo, livestock shows at the fairgrounds, 4H is a big part of the valley, and of course, we cannot mention Emmett, Idaho without mentioning the Cherry Festival, which is THE biggest event for Emmett, and people come from all around for all things cherry. There is also a farmers market every Friday and Wednesday in the Summers, and the Harvest Festival Street Fair at the end of September. And for you motorsport fans, there is an annual dirt bike rodeo, Father’s Day demolition derby, and annual classic car cruise night. Where of course, you go to Roe Ann’s for a burger and a shake.
One more thing to talk about before we get to talking about where you will live in Emmett Idaho, let’s talk about the schools! Emmett School District has 3 elementary schools, with Carberry being a very highly rated school, and then Emmett Middle School and Emmett High, with the distinctive dome architecture. Football is huge in this valley and tackle football starts in 4th grade. There is also a large homeschooling population here, and I’ll put a link down below for my video all about school choices in Idaho, but you can also have your children do dual enrollment with homeschool and public school, as well as homeschool and have them participate in public school extracurricular activities.
Okay so where will you live in Emmett, Idaho? The housing in Emmett is quite mixed, from small, older homes downtown, to new custom homes on acreage, to more typical subdivisions, to homes on acre lots to some new construction subdivisions. The majority of Emmett is older homes on at least a half-acre lot, and for a long time, there was very little new construction other than the custom homes on acreage. So, there has been some growth from the pandemic housing market, and there is a certain section of the East side of town that is dedicated to more typical new construction subdivisions with an HOA. The largest is Highland, with a community pool and pickleball courts, I think it’s the only subdivision with a pool in Emmett. But there are other new construction subdivisions without pools.
Most areas of Emmett do not have HOAs, which is great for freedom, but it also means a hodgepodge of ages, types, and care of homes. The South Slope area of Emmett has some older homes on acreage. It also has many of the orchard properties, and heading southwest, this is a popular area for the custom homes. The Northeast side of the valley also has many custom homes but is more mixed with older homes as well. Up on the East rim are many custom homes that overlook the valley.
Downtown Emmett is mostly smaller, older homes, some needing work and others getting updated. And the rest of the valley is really a mix of a few older subdivisions, and lots of homes on some land.
In August of 2023, only 24 homes sold in Emmett. Year to date in September of 2023, there have been 194 homes sold, which is about 22 homes a month. So, you can see the turnover rate is not high here. Of those 194 homes sold this year, the least expensive was $100,000 for a run down, 760 square foot home that needed a complete overhaul, and the most expensive was $3.5 million for a 7000 square foot custom home on a working ranch with over 264 acres sitting with Payette River Frontage. So, for 2023 so far, the median sold price for a home in Emmett Idaho has been $440,682, which gets skewed greatly due to the variety of homes here with a variety of acreage sizes, but generally, homes in Emmett are more affordable than similar homes on the other side of the hills in the Boise/Nampa/Caldwell area.
So, does a self-contained small city offering tons of community events, all the great things for outdoor Idaho living, a quiet peaceful valley, seclusion from the rat race lifestyle, but still only a 45-minute drive to any big city amenity, and a chance to live a true country lifestyle sound good to you? Well, Emmett, Idaho may be calling your name.
Reach out to my team and I at the Summer Aston Real Estate group for a consultation on if Emmett, Idaho, or other places in the Boise, Idaho area may be the place for you to call home.
LINK FOR VIDEO ABOUT TOUR MAP: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-xWSra013U
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LINK TO VIDEO ABOUT LAKES: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Lb7mWEwc7Y
LINK TO VIDEO ABOUT SCHOOL CHOICES IN IDAHO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQA8oZN-s4k
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LINK TO GET BOISE MAP TOUR VIDEO: https://youtu.be/K-xWSra013U
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LINK FOR EAGLE IDAHO AREA COMMUNITY GUIDE: https://summerastonrealestate.com/eagle-area-comparison-guide/
