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For many months now, we’ve heard how competitive the real estate market is in Boise, Idaho.
A massive influx of home buyers from other parts of the country drove prices up and sent inventory levels to record lows. This transformed Boise into one of the most challenging real estate markets in the country, from a home buyer’s perspective.
But like many cities across the country, this real estate market is finally starting to cool down. So the rest of 2022 and 2023 could be a very good time to buy a house in the Boise area.
The Boise real estate market has experienced significant inventory growth in recent months, along with price reductions from sellers. These and other changes have made the local housing scene more “friendly” toward buyers.
Here are three reasons why late 2022 and 2023 could be a good time to buy in the Boise area.
The inventory situation within the Boise real estate market has improved greatly over the past few months. Housing market supply levels bottomed out at the end of 2021, but have risen rising steadily since then.
Consider the evidence. At the end of 2021, the Boise-Nampa metropolitan area had about a 0.8-month supply of homes for sale. But more homes are coming onto the market lately. As of summer 2022, this market was approaching a 3-month supply of homes for sale.
The bottom line is that home buyers in the Boise area should have an easier time finding a property these days, compared to those who purchased in 2021. If inventory continues to increase, the real estate market could become even more buyer friendly in 2023.
According to a July 2022 report from the national real estate brokerage Redfin, the Boise metro area had the highest percentage of price reductions in June. During that month, a whopping 61% of home sellers reduced their sale prices.
That means they initially came onto the market at a higher price, but later lowered their prices in order to attract offers from buyers. A year ago, price reductions were a lot more rare within the Boise real estate market.
To quote the company’s July 2022 report:
“Nearly two-thirds (61.5%) of homes for sale in Boise, ID had a price drop in June, the highest share of the 97 metros in this analysis. Next came Denver (55.1%) and Salt Lake City (51.6%), each metros where more than half of for-sale homes had a price drop … Boise also had the biggest increase in the share of listings with price drops from a year earlier, when 25.7% of sellers cut their price.”
This trend bodes well for home buyers planning to make a purchase in the Boise area during the latter part of 2022 or in 2023. It’s another sign that the market is starting to shift in a way that favors buyers. Going forward, house hunters could enjoy more negotiating.
When the Boise real estate market went into “turbo mode” during the second half of 2020, home buyers had to rely on a variety of strategies to outfox other buyers. They were making offers above the list price, waving their purchase contract contingencies, and generally scrambling to get their offers accepted.
But as the real estate market continues to downshift, Boise-area home buyers might not have to resort to such tactics. They could enjoy greater negotiating leverage when compared to the past two years.
Will the fall and winter of 2022 be a good time to buy a home in Boise? It’s sure looking that way. In fact, it could be the best time to buy a house since before the pandemic.
With all of these reports about a “cooling” real estate market, home buyers might question whether or not it makes sense to buy a house right now. Anytime the market decelerates, there’s a concern among some that house values begin to drop.
But the Boise real estate scene still has strong fundamentals that could put upward pressure on prices for the foreseeable future.
The supply situation has improved, as mentioned above. But even so, this housing market will probably continue to have a shortage of homes relative to demand for a while longer. Those kinds of conditions tend to support house values.
Despite the rapid rise of home prices over the past couple of years, Boise is still more affordable when compared to other West Coast metros. The median price in Boise is roughly one-third what it is in the San Francisco Bay Area.
As a result, Idaho’s capital city will probably continue to attract buyers from more expensive cities. So the Boise real estate market should continue to benefit from strong demand, going forward.
Disclaimer: This report makes general predictions about future real estate conditions. They are the equivalent of an educated guess and should be viewed as such.
Do you have questions about rates this week and home loans? Or are you ready to apply for a mortgage to buy a home? If so, Sammamish Mortgage can help. We are a local mortgage company from Bellevue, Washington, serving the entire state, as well as Oregon, Idaho, and Colorado. We offer many mortgage programs to buyers all over the Pacific Northwest and have been doing so since 1992. Among our programs includes the Diamond Homebuyer Program, Cash Buyer Program, and Bridge Loans. Contact us today with any questions you have about mortgages.
Whether you’re buying a home or ready to refinance, our professionals can help.
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No Obligation and transparency 24/7. Instantly compare live rates and costs from our network of lenders across the country. Real-time accurate rates and closing costs for a variety of loan programs custom to your specific situation.