Questions for Idaho people!!

[KellyHill]

Dh and I are selling our place and moving to the Newport Wa/old town Id area. We are also thinking about the northern Idaho area. What are the building requirements? Are they really restrictive? (Here in Whatcom County you can't sneeze with out a permit and a lot of money!!) What about the property taxes? And the growing season? Can I raise most of my own food? We have looked around Newport, But are starting to expand our search into Idaho!

Thanks for any info!!

[chamoisee]

That's more or less where I live. I'll tell you right now: land in Idaho is a LOT more expensive than land in Washington, a lot more. Prices are very high right now.

Permits- are more lenient in Bonner county than in Washington. I expect this will change as we becoem ever more of a resort/retirement community sort of place....

Growing season: Don't count on anythign requiring more than 90 forst free days of growing time. I'm not sayign you can't grow squash that requires 120 days, because you can. I've done it. With a greenhouse, you can even manage peppers and eggplants and perhaps a melon if you're especially good and everyhting cooperates. It's just, figure that 90 days is all you have for the staples that you're going to rely on for your food. In other words, yeah, you can grow brandywine tomato, but don't plant a whole row of them and nothign else. Plant one or two Brandywines and the rest Kootenai or Early Girl or so0emthign short season (about 70-80 days or less). We do have enough frost free days, but the nights are cool and that makes things take longer than they would in a locale with warmer nights.

Property taxes...I think (don't quote me on this) that for a place near the road, with a house under construction and off the grid, on 5 acres, soemoen I know was payign in the vicinity of 1,000 a year. I do know that taxes have skyrocketed in the past year, so it may be more than that now. Best bet is to ask the sellers or realtors or look at records, etc.

[Bresias]

We just moved to north central ID this summer, and chose the Clearwater Valley area over the very-north ID area because as Chamoisse says, the prices are going through the roof up there. It is VERY beautiful up there, but it may be going "Aspen", some say.

Along highway 12 beginning in Lewiston (just east of Walla Walla), land is less expensive, the farther out you go, but expect 2 - 3 K per acre or more if you want a house, well, etc. The land in WA just west of Lewiston is slightly less expensive than ID. This is a pretty depressed area, economically, which is sad to see, but it isn't much different than it was 20 years ago.

If you want a longer growing season, stay out of the higher altitudes. Orofino (largest town near us, about 3100) is at 1200 ft, and has well over 120 days, while up on the hill where we are at 3200 ft, we get about 80 days. I've seen them grow corn, tomatos and grapes down there. Up here, we have to do greenhouses or get really creative. I am not familiar with the types of best growing strains as others on this board are.

Oh the weather. We have 12 inches of snow, which for this area is not much, and the temp right now is -2, which is colder than usual, usually it is in the teens. Orofino has the state record with Mountain Home for highest mean temps in the summer, and I guess it hit 118 F some time in the 1950s (??). Very dry in late summer, dust clouds galore.

I am literally watching the housing prices go up week to week. I'm glad I got in when I did, and I got a good deal. Locals would disagree, but that is how fast prices are climbing even in this poor little place.

[LisaInN.Idaho]

We live near Priest River, right next to Oldtown. Bonner County is making noises about starting a building department (heaven help us all!) so hurry if you're going to build. We've built our own place and it's wonderful from that standpoint. I think anything in WA is going to be more highly regulated. Prices have risen dramatically just in the 5 years since we bought our land, and look to keep on rising.

[KellyHill]

Thanks everyone!!
That answers some of our questions! land seemed to cost a little more in Id. But it sure is beautiful!
We are still looking, and love that area. We would like a house with some property, but are willing to start from scratch on a bare piece of land. When we sell this place we will be able to buy a place over there and not have any debt, Which will be a huge blessing! Dh is going over to that area next weekend to look around, We have a pile of propertys printed out for him to look at!

[chamoisee]

The other thing is, you want to have a secure source of income, because employment can be hard to find here. My bf has training in several areas, but after looking for months and putting out a LOT of resumes between Newport and Sandpoint, he was finally able to get a job in fast food. Not the most prestigious job, and not his ideal (or mine, either, I work in a grocery store), but it was the best he could get at the time. Even if you do move to Idaho rather than WA, I do recommend trying to get the job in WA if possible- minimum wage is quite a bit higher there- here it's only $5.15.

[ThreeJane]

Originally Posted by LisaInN.Idaho

We live near Priest River, right next to Oldtown. Bonner County is making noises about starting a building department (heaven help us all!) so hurry if you're going to build. We've built our own place and it's wonderful from that standpoint. I think anything in WA is going to be more highly regulated. Prices have risen dramatically just in the 5 years since we bought our land, and look to keep on rising.

Man, I heard about that "building planning department" too, made me feel like going shooting in the backyard (at TARGETS, TARGETS, mind you), Right now, all we have to fool with is a $125 building placement permit, to make sure you ain't building on your neighbor's land. YOu wanna build out of egg crates, go ahead...although that's apparently going to change too. AND State of Idaho is kicking around making ALL contractors be licensed, carry bonds, etc.

If you want to live "far out", i.e., Naples, or north of Bonners Ferry, Boundary County, etc., the work will be few and far between. Land in Laclede is cheap for a reason...it's a ways from "major" cities (Laclede is between Priest River and Sandpoint, using as an example). "Major" cities being Spokane, Coeur d'Alene, Sadnpoint, etc. Hubby has an hour one way commute to Spokane Valley every day, but makes excellent money doing so. Were he to lose that job, he'd be hard-pressed to find something comparable up here.

My house has probably tripled in value since I moved here in April of 2004. TRIPLED. Yeah. However, if this winter is as "good" as they say it will be, I'd be willing to bet a lot of moving vans will be rumbling down Highways 95 / 2 / 90 come next spring...with hopefully a concomitant DROP in house prices.

Could be apocrypha, but I understand that Oldtown/Newport is kind of a "rough" area...you may want to look a bit further into Idaho, like Priest River. PR properties aren't terribly overpriced, as long as you're not wanting 30 acres with riverfront and views for $120k!

Another note: in northern Idaho, the railroad is king. Check very carefully on MapBlast or other mapping site where the railroads are located, if sound bothers you. Also, living on one side of the RR may require a long wait for the freight trains to go by (and some of them are very long indeed) and they do go by every single day, regularly. Some are stock and some are boxes and some are just regular old cars, but they can take FOREVER.

Taxes, compared to WA and CA, are pretty cheap. Mine are just about $1100 this year, compared to $2800 in SoCal when I left. Sales tax depends on where you live...CdA is at 6.5%, Post Falls is at 5.5%, and I forget what Sandpoint is at.

Lots of Humvees and yuppies around the lakes and rivers (Priest Lake, Pend Oreille lake, Pend Oreille river, Clark Fork river, etc.)

What do you all do for a living?

[SquashNut]

The problem with this area is people from other areas are coming in and uping the amount they will pay for land. It was not that long ago you could get good land for $1000 an acre but no more. We were very lucky to buy in 1989. Then places were empty for quite a while at a time. Now land goes fast. i don't uderstand that, as there is little to no jobs. Fortunately we are self employed.
The more people will pay for the land the more the taxes go up. What was that song about turning paradise into a parking lot?
It takes alot to grow enough food for me and my husband. You learn what will grow even in the coldest weather. I put out cabbage transplants in April this year. The last of the veggies were done in November.(mostly broccolli) . I find that to get enough tomatoes we need many more plants than usual. And as said before a small green house is almost a requirement. The plant suppliers here do have the plants at the times I need them to push the limits of gardening. You will need to have some cold frames and simalar items for this.
If you know how to can it will come in handy. The local grocery stores are very expensive, so we go into Spokane , Wa every once in a while to the resturant supply to buy in bulk. I also order once a year from Azurestandard for grains and flours.

[Bresias]

Originally Posted by KellyHill

What are the building requirements? Are they really restrictive? (Here in Whatcom County you can't sneeze with out a permit and a lot of money!!) What about the property taxes?

I missed this part. In Clearwater county, and Idaho county directly south, there are no building permits. Well, Clearwater county is starting to get more strict here, like in town you need permits.

Our yearly taxes for 20 acres, house, three outbuildings is $426 for the year.

[ThreeJane]

Something I have to warn you about (and Bresias will back me up on this one):

When you move from the big city to a small town in Idaho, your butt will get big. There's scientific evidence somewhere around that attests to this fact.

My butt got big from yet another kid (making it three), learning how to bake my own bread (and having to eat my failures, what, give it to the chickens after all that hard work?) and eating many egg dishes, most with a surfeit of sugar in them.

Hope ya like big butts.

[chamoisee]

Heh. My butt isn't big...I run it all off working at the grocery store (and before that, chasing all the kids and goats around the farm)! My hands are rough from lots of manual labor though. I see girls with long or fake fingernails and wonder how in the heck they can keep them that way or actually *do* anything with 'em....

As for land, geez...Laclede would be fine! Here in Priest River owuld be fine. Oldtown, even. Blachard (Blanchard is another affordable area) would be alright. Just so long as it's well under 100K and I can get financing or an owner contract...how can any local possibly pay cash outright or even as much as a third down on these places?

My house has probably tripled in value since I moved here in April of 2004. TRIPLED. Yeah. However, if this winter is as "good" as they say it will be, I'd be willing to bet a lot of moving vans will be rumbling down Highways 95 / 2 / 90 come next spring...with hopefully a concomitant DROP in house prices.

Yeah, that's been my fervent desire for a few years now. I have noticed that prices are lower now than they were in the summer.

As for veggies, it can be done, but you have to plan, you can't waste time waiting until you feel like planting (so the spring is sometimes a mad rush), and it really helps a lot to grow the right varieties:

Tomatoes: Kootenai is my mainstay. I don't count on anything else. The others grow, but they're for fun, not as staples. Silvery Fir Tree and Angora also did well. Stupice, Siberian, and even the popular Early Girl have all been soemwhat disappointing in my opinion. Th egreat thign about Kootenai is that even if it gets frosted down to the ground in the spring, it will still grow back and manage to fruit! Amazing...

Squash: Acron, buttercup, most of them, but Butternut is a waste of tiem and space IMHO.

Corn: for fun or thrills, not as a staple.

Peppers? Greenhouse, or just a few for a whim, not to count on.

Eggplants, okra, melon: if you can grow these here, without a fancy heated greenhouse, you have my utmost respect!!! I haven't had much luck with them even with a passive solar greenhouse.

Spinach, Kale, all cole crops, Beans, Onions, Garlic, Poatoes, Carrots, Beets, these are the sort of things you can rely upon. In many ways, our garden based diet began to resemble that of northern European countries such as Poland, Russia, Germany....we ate a lot of stuff like borscht, carrot soup, potato dishes....stick to your ribs food...It isn't hard to grow your food supply here, but you do have to make adjustments because some things can't be grown and others just aren't worth the hassle based on the small amount they produce.

[Bresias]

Originally Posted by ThreeJane

Something I have to warn you about (and Bresias will back me up on this one):

When you move from the big city to a small town in Idaho, your butt will get big. There's scientific evidence somewhere around that attests to this fact.

My butt got big from yet another kid (making it three), learning how to bake my own bread (and having to eat my failures, what, give it to the chickens after all that hard work?) and eating many egg dishes, most with a surfeit of sugar in them.

Hope ya like big butts.

I heard it is a requirement for immigration to the Idaho Panhandle for women to have big butts. There is a minimum butt to waist ratio, but I didn't have time to look it up on the internet, something like 3:1. It helps with the cold, gives the dogs something soft to lean on, keeps a larger portion of the couch warm, you know.

Funny though, it's cold enough up here to freeze your fanny off. Maybe only if you have a small one. I think I'll have another slice of that bread . . .

[LisaInN.Idaho]

So true..the dreaded BBS (Big Butt Syndrome)! What IS it about this wonderful, incredibly gorgeous place? I'm thinking it is the way our bodies prepare for a long cold winter. Camels have humps, I'll live off my backside. Chamoisee, are you a native? If so, you must be acclimated. I spent 9 years in the desert and maybe it'll take 9 years here before my body decides it isn't going to have to hibernate.
I work outside too (7 horses!) and it doesn't matter. BBS. It doesn't seem to affect the male gender however.

[seedspreader]

hmmm...

BBS.

Who'd a thunk it.

[SquashNut]

I've grown parsnips here in Priest river and banana squash,
Broccolli is my main crop. I am struggling with cauliflower.
I grew the best Wisconsin 55 tomatoes last year. I still have to buy cans of tomato paste though. I also have to buy salsa cause as was said it is tough to grow any peppers her. I tossed out my melon seeds. couldn't even get them to grow in my green house.

[whodunit]

Originally Posted by Bresias

We just moved to north central ID this summer, and chose the Clearwater Valley area over the very-north ID area because as Chamoisse says, the prices are going through the roof up there. It is VERY beautiful up there, but it may be going "Aspen", some say.

Along highway 12 beginning in Lewiston (just east of Walla Walla), land is less expensive, the farther out you go, but expect 2 - 3 K per acre or more if you want a house, well, etc. The land in WA just west of Lewiston is slightly less expensive than ID. This is a pretty depressed area, economically, which is sad to see, but it isn't much different than it was 20 years ago.

If you want a longer growing season, stay out of the higher altitudes. Orofino (largest town near us, about 3100) is at 1200 ft, and has well over 120 days, while up on the hill where we are at 3200 ft, we get about 80 days. I've seen them grow corn, tomatos and grapes down there. Up here, we have to do greenhouses or get really creative. I am not familiar with the types of best growing strains as others on this board are.

Oh the weather. We have 12 inches of snow, which for this area is not much, and the temp right now is -2, which is colder than usual, usually it is in the teens. Orofino has the state record with Mountain Home for highest mean temps in the summer, and I guess it hit 118 F some time in the 1950s (??). Very dry in late summer, dust clouds galore.

I am literally watching the housing prices go up week to week. I'm glad I got in when I did, and I got a good deal. Locals would disagree, but that is how fast prices are climbing even in this poor little place.

It sounds like we are really close to one another. We live between Grangeville and Kooskia. Nice to meet you!

I agree the areas north of us are "going Aspen", but it's also "going Aspen" south od us in the Donnelly/McCall area. I haven't been there lately, but have friends who say the place is exploding with housing developments.

We are down lower in elevation (1700-1800), so we have a longer growing season. We didn't plant much this year; just tomatoes and squash in our drafty greenhouse. We had tomatoes until November. We heard the guy who built this palce used to grow everything including watermelons, which some say nobody else in the area could seem to grow.

I'm not too sure what land prices are doing here. We bought our place two years ago for $71,000. It's a stick-built, 1000 square foot house on almost 2 1/2 acres. I'm curious what it would sell for now.

Jobs here are scarce, but starting wages are normally in the $6-6.50 an hour area. It seems many people who migrate here have pensions they bring with them and then work at part-time jobs. Some have sold houses in CA for astronomical prices and come here and buy something one-thrid the price.

The Lewiston area is called "the banana belt" and has plenty of employment opportunities. The only drawback of Lewiston is the occasional odor from the Potlach paper mill.

[whodunit]

Originally Posted by KellyHill

Dh and I are selling our place and moving to the Newport Wa/old town Id area. We are also thinking about the northern Idaho area. What are the building requirements? Are they really restrictive? (Here in Whatcom County you can't sneeze with out a permit and a lot of money!!) What about the property taxes? And the growing season? Can I raise most of my own food? We have looked around Newport, But are starting to expand our search into Idaho!

Thanks for any info!!

Are you looking for bare land ot build on, a house in town or something in the country ready to move into?

I have the local rag here and can give you a few ideas from it that might help you see what the prices are like in our area.

[KellyHill]

WOW!! So many questions!

Dh works in the medical records field. He has also done construction and is willing to do whatever it takes, if he has to commute to spokane for a while he will! I am a stay at home wife (raising dairy goats, chickens, sheep, gardening, canning, etc...)

We already raise and can most of our own food and do all our own butchering. I usually grow a lot of beans, carrots, cabbage, chard, lettuce, zuccinni, cucumbers(if its a good year), beets. I've never been able to grow melons and tomatoes are a hit and miss thing over here, mostly miss! peppers seem to do ok though. so it sounds like gardening wont be a problem for us. we'll just adjust our menu to what grows there!

Idealy we would like a house with at least 5 acres. We are willing to buy bare land and build if we really like the property, area and its the right price. Living in town is not an option!

BBS...Wow!! I"ve been preparing to live in the panhandle for years now! people will think I'm a native!!

You guys have been great! lots of info! very helpful! Thanks!

[SquashNut]

Be prepared to build a tall fence all around your garden. The deer are thick here.

[Bresias]

Originally Posted by whodunit

It sounds like we are really close to one another. We live between Grangeville and Kooskia. Nice to meet you!

Hey Whodunit, nice to meet you too. We looked at land in and around Kooskia and Kamiah, too. That is a beautiful area, and we esp liked the casino's meal specials, we drive out there and have a dollar cheeseburger now and then. We were surprised how expensive land has become there. We went to Kamiah for a real estate agent and dumped him b/c he pushed us hard to spend 300K which even if we had it to spend would be immoral. We were esp entertained by the pronunciations of Kooskia and Kamiah.

We pronounced them phonetically, and looked blankly at folks who said "Kooskee" and "Kammy Eye", and asked them where those places were!

We live between Weippe and Pierce, mainly chosen because we made it to Kamiah in late June, when it was 100 F, 100% humidity, and 100% mosquitos. My right eye swelled shut. Even though we came from so CA, I'd never felt heat like that! Not the best reason to not choose, but land/housing up in Weippe is just now getting out of control, so we bought up here. The people are salt of the earth, a little scary but loving and generous.

Originally Posted by whodunit

I agree the areas north of us are "going Aspen", but it's also "going Aspen" south od us in the Donnelly/McCall area. I haven't been there lately, but have friends who say the place is exploding with housing developments.

I heard New Meadows is being destroyed by major subdivisions, mostly Californian companies. Very sad.

Originally Posted by whodunit

The Lewiston area is called "the banana belt" and has plenty of employment opportunities. The only drawback of Lewiston is the occasional odor from the Potlach paper mill.

Okay, admit it, Lewiston sometimes STINKS BAD. I lived in Tacoma, WA (and survived!) for a few years, and they have a similar paper mill, and the same exact odor. It was known affectionately as "the Tacoma Aroma".