Boise Real Estate Blog

Newcomers to the Boise area often ask “what’s pressurized irrigation water?”, so here’s a brief explanation.
Before we had subdivisions in the Treasure Valley, three dams were built up in the mountains for flood control and irrigation purposes.
They are Arrow Rock, Anderson Ranch, and Lucky Peak.
Then, a network of open irrigation canals (ditches) were built to distribute the water to land owners in the valley with water rights.
Which begat us the term “ditch water”.
Back in the old days, the farmers used their water rights from the reservoirs to irrigate their crops in what was originally arid desert land.
As growth occurred in the Treasure Valley (Boise area), those farmers sold out to developers and their water rights went with their land.
Then, as the developers converted the farm land into subdivisions, they installed pumping/pressurization equipment in their new subdivisions and provided piped, untreated, pressurized irrigation water to each lot in their subdivisions.
Thus, the term “pressurized irrigation water” came into existence.
The advantage of watering landscaping with this water is that it’s cheaper than treated city water.
Ditch water delivery usually starts in April, and ends in the Fall, depending upon how much water is available in the reservoirs.
Some subdivisions provide pressurized irrigation water at no additional cost as part of their homeowner association dues.
Others assess an extra charge, often based upon lot size.
Sadly, several people drown in our irrigation canals each year.
It’s often small children, left unwatched for even a moment, but every now and then we lose an adult who has consumed an adult beverage or three and thinks it’s a terrific idea to go for a swim.
The current in those canals is often strong and the sides of the canals are slippery.
It’s best to keep your kids, pets, and your favorite squeeze away from those canals if you want to have them around in the future.
Now you know all about ditches and pressurized irrigation water.

In many ways, the Boise area still remains relatively undiscovered.
You can drive down Eagle Road, the main connector between I-84 and the community of Eagle, and still see open fields being under-utilized to grow sod.
In most other cities of Boise’s size, you would see a huge shopping center sitting on that dirt.
There’s still a lot of opportunity here for those with enough vision to see what is coming.
Just a few years ago, our residential real estate market consisted of entry-level homes starting around $100,000, a middle move-up market of about $200,000, and a few homes selling above $300,000.
Then, along came cheap mortgage money in the aftermath of 9-11 and the stock market collapse, as The Fed loosened up the money supply to reflate the economy and restore consumer confidence.
The Boise real estate market took off overnight and went from a steady 3-5% appreciation rate to a couple of years of mind-numbing  appreciation.
Now, we are returning to normal and prices have come down by 30% or more in many areas.
My crystal ball is a little cloudy, but I do have the advantage of a 37-year perspective in real estate.
I remember entering the real estate profession in San Jose in the mid-70s, when homes were selling for $40,000 to -$50,000.
I owned half a dozen rentals there at the time.
I wish I still had them, because even in a seriously-troubled California real estate market, they would be worth at least $400,000 each.
And, they would have been free/clear by now too.
Lessons learned.
If you consider what the Boise area offers and think ahead ten years, it’s pretty obvious that today’s prices will be the topic of many “I could’ve . . . .” conversations a few years from now.
The Boise area offers tremendous quality of life and our housing prices are very attractive when compared to other areas where homeowners are fleeing severe traffic problems, crime, illegal immigration, and high costs of living.