So many people dream of moving to Boise, of getting away from the tight quarters of their current living conditions of concrete walls and small yards, and stretching out on an acre in the wilds of Idaho….but can this dream become a reality?

Well, yes, and no…it all depends on setting correct expectations about what kind of acreage property is available in Boise ,Idaho, where it’s located, and what it will cost you. Homes on land are not as abundant in Boise as many people think, and if they are available, there are really only a few types from which to choose.

So, to help you make that dream of finding your own space and a home on an acre in Boise, Idaho a reality, let’s go over the basics so you know what to expect!

Types of Acreage Properties:

There are really three types of acreage properties in the Boise area: Utility Acreage, Luxury Acreage, and Mountain Acreage – all three terms I made up just for the blog post and video to make sense of what you can expect in land in Boise.

Utility Acreage
Utility Acreage is when you care more about the usage of the land than the house. You know what I mean- you don’t just want a house on an acre in the Boise area, you need it. You need to have a shop you can run a mechanics business out of, you need a place for your horse, you need chickens and a large garden. Maybe you need to have the ability to store whatever you want on your property without anyone complaining, etc. I know my client needs utility acreage when the home tour doesn’t actually start in the house…they want to look at the shop/pasture/space/land first. If that meets the needs of the client, then as long as the house is in budget, clean, and has the basics, it will do just fine.

Where are they located?
The majority of the homes on an acre in Boise and all the surrounding towns like Meridian, Eagle, Star, Middleton, Kuna, Nampa, Caldwell, and Emmett, are all utility acreage. They can be found scattered all throughout Boise and the surrounding towns, but the majority are found south of the freeway in South Boise, South Meridian, and South Nampa.

What are they like?
Utility Acreage has similar characteristics in all of the towns. First, they were almost all built in the 1970s, so you can expect to find a 1970s style home. It will be single level, split level, or tri-level, with a traditional two-story being very rare. They are all going to be between 1400-2800 sf, some may be larger or smaller, but rarely. Most of them will not be completely remodeled. If they are, you will pay much more for it. Most will have updates done by the homeowner throughout time here and there- maybe a new kitchen in the 90s, new bathrooms a few years ago, a new roof last year, etc… But the good news is, any work you do on these homes to bring it up to today’s standards will earn you good equity on reselling. These homes typically do not have an HOA, so you can do what you want, as long as it is legal and within city code. These homes will have an individual well for water and a septic tank for your sewage, and you are responsible for the cost and care of both. But it will save you hundreds of dollars a year compared to paying for city water and city sewer.

While many of these homes do exist in Boise and surrounding towns, they are hard to come by because most people do not move out of these homes very often. They bought it for the land or shop, it is hard to replace, and they don’t want to leave. So when utility acreage does come on the market, they sell very quickly.
 

What can you expect to pay?
In South Boise, an 1800 sf, 3bed 2 bath home built in 1975 with some updates here and there on a full acre will cost you right about $400,000-$425,000. (Update, at the end of 2021, that will cost you $600k or more).  And if that house has a large shop with power, expect to pay a minimum of $50,000 more. And of course it will cost more if it is professionally remodeled or has more square feet. If you are lucky, you can snatch up a house that has had no updates but was well taken care of, with those same parameters, for about $350,000 (update, in 2021 that would be minimum $450-$500k), and then update it to your personal taste.
This same home in West, East, or North Boise will cost you $450k-$500K (update for 2021: $650k and up) it will cost more in Eagle, and if you want this same home in Nampa, Caldwell, Kuna, or Middleton, then you can expect to pay closer to $300K-$350K (update for 2021: $450k or more).

Luxury Acreage
Luxury acreage in the Boise area is one of two types: Luxury Acreage for the Purpose of Space, and Utility Luxury Acreage.

Luxury Acreage for the Purpose of Space
This is acreage in the Boise area where you care more about the house than what you can do on the land, but you still want to feel like you have lots of space around you. This is for someone who wants a large, manicured lot with a pool, maybe a shop, large play area, or a tennis court, but no livestock, chickens, or no ability to have your own mechanics type business.
 

What can I expect of this property?
This type of property will have an HOA (Homeowners Association) with CC&R’s (Covenant, Codes, and Restrictions) with things like an architectural committee that tells you what you can or can’t build and what it has to look like, where to park your cars or toys, what you can do with your shop, and what you can do with your land. These will be custom homes, or semi-custom, and will typically be a minimum build of 2200 sf, although most are much larger.  This type or property may have a well or septic, but oftentimes is in a subdivision that is connected to city water and sewer. Most of the homes were built in the 90s all the way up to today.
 

Where can I find this?
You will find luxury acreage for the purpose of space scattered throughout all the towns too, but they are mostly found in Eagle, Star, Middleton, and a few areas of Nampa.

How much will it cost?
Let’s take an example of a 2500 sf custom home with a 3 car garage on an acre. It has a manicured yard and some other nice features like a fire pit, an outdoor kitchen, and a play area. And let’s say it was built in 2016, so it’s up to date. In Eagle, this will cost you around $650k-750K. (Update for 2021: it will be a minimum of $900k and up). In Star and Middleton, it will be slightly less, and in Nampa, you can find one for about $550k-650K (Update 2021: $800k and up). And of course you will pay more if it has a shop, a pool, or a feature like a mountain view or if it backs to a pond or water.
 

Luxury Utility Acreage
This type of acreage is for the person who needs to use the land for a purpose just as much as they need a custom home. They need to have a luxury home on a few acres with a new barn, shop, pool and fire pit area.

What can I expect of this property?
This type of property will most likely have HOA’s and CCR’s, so you can still have your livestock and shop, but you’ll have to follow the community rules on how things can look and where things can be located. It may or may not have a well or community well, and it may or may not have city water. If it is over an acre lot, it will most likely have a community irrigation system so you can water your land. It will have been built in the 90s up to today, and most of these homes are a minimum of 3000 sf. You can expect them to be custom built, so it will have things that were particular to the first owner, and you might want to change them .

Where can I find this type of property?
You can find luxury acreage for utility scattered all throughout the towns, but mostly they are in the Boise foothills, Eagle, Star, Middleton, with some in Nampa and Meridian.

How much will it cost me?
Let’s take an example of a 5000 sf custom built home in 2005. It has a shop, a barn, a pasture, a pool, and 2 acres. If that home is in Eagle, you will pay about $1mil-$1.5 mil. (Update 2021: minimum $1.5 mil and up). It will cost slightly less in Star and Middleton. It will cost closer to $750k-$900K (Update 2021: minimum $900k and up) in Nampa, and it will cost well over $1mil in the Boise Foothills. Of course it will cost more for more custom features, or more land, or if it has a pond or access to the river, you can expect to pay closer to $2million for something that has all the bells and whistles, it’s own lake, shop, etc. (In 2021, we have seen prices on very custom estates upwards of $3-4 million).

Mountain Acreage

This is for the homesteader at heart. The person who wants mountain acreage wants to be about an hour from downtown Boise. They need space from society, connection with the mountains, and they want to come to the city just once or twice a month to get food and run errands. They can deal with the snow, the wildlife, and they are tough…or they’re gonna be made tough, or they won’t last!

Where can I find mountain acreage around Boise?
You can find mountain acreage outside of Boise on the North. The closest mountain towns are Horseshoe Bend and Idaho City. You can also look into towns like Sweet, Banks and Crouch or Garden Valley.

What can I expect in a mountain acreage house?
First off, you need to know that these mountain towns are very, very small. They have no grocery stores, a tiny post office (actually, the DMV in Horseshoe Bend is my favorite, and I go there for any of my DMV needs to avoid the crowds in Boise), and the schools are K-12 in one school with very, very small classes.
 

The types of houses here vary widely.  You’ll have trailers, manufactured homes, typical homes, and luxury homes. These homes will have a well, a septic, and they will most likely be off of a dirt road that you are responsible to maintain. (Or responsible to build if you are building your own home in the mountains). You are responsible for taking care of the weeds on the road for fire code, and snow removal, and proper grading for these roads – either you share that with other homeowners  who use the road, too, or by yourself if it is your own, long driveway. And you can expect much more snow than in the valley, or the Boise area.

How much will a house on mountain acreage cost me?
This varies widely since the land size and type of home vary widely. But you can find about 5 acres in Horseshoe Bend of bare land for around $150,000 and up. You can expect to find a home, of course depending on the type and land size, for anywhere from $400,000 to over a million.

Take-aways from all this info!
Once you start looking for acreage property in Boise, you’ll realize there is a huge gap – either you can find a home for under $450K on Utility Acreage that was built in the 1970s, or you can find a luxury acreage type home that is custom and large for at least $650K (Update 2021: $800k).  There are very few options in between. And, you’ll realize that if you want acreage, you’ll really narrow down your specific location choices. So you’ll have to choose between an ideal location, if you want land, or if you can afford to “have it all”…and you’d still have to want that “have it all” location. And when you can afford to “have it all”, you may not need “it all”, so then you have to decide if you really want to be paying extra for a massive shop or a beautiful barn that maybe you didn’t need but is on the property and adds value to the price point.
 

As always in a house hunt, there’s compromise…but I hope you can now set correct expectations when coming to Boise to find a house on an acreage!