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Boise River Flows Increasing

April 8, 2011

If You Live Near The Boise River, Tributaries, or Flood Plain

The Bureau of Reclamation and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are advising people to exercise caution along the Boise River as stream flows are set to increase while flood control releases that began on March 21 continue.
Flows from Lucky Peak Dam will increase this week to about 5,800 cubic feet per second at the Glenwood Bridge gauging station by Wednesday, this is an increase of about 3,300 cfs.  Flows of 6,500 cfs is considered bank full, and 7,000 cfs is considered flood-stage at that location.
River flows have reached this level around this time in each of the last three years.
“Continuing precipitation and cool weather in March have resulted in an increase in mountain snowpack and raised the runoff forecast to slightly above normal,” said Brian Sauer, Reclamation hydraulic engineer.
“These releases will help reduce the risk of greater flooding impacts later in the spring which can occur with warm temperatures, rapidly melting snow, and precipitation.”
Officials will continue to advise people of the dangers associated with increased flows, such as rapidly moving deep water and cold temperatures near 45 degrees.
For further information contact: John Redding,  (208) 378-5212 or Brian Sauer, (208) 383-2282.  www.usbr.gov
If you need flood insurance, NOW is the time to get it ~ there’s a 30-day waiting period!
Credit: Ada County Sheriff’s Office

Boise Real Estate's Pressurized Irrigation

September 23, 2009

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.

The Future of Boise Real Estate

August 13, 2009

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.

How $4 Gas Is Changing Boise Real Estate

June 15, 2008

$4 a gallon gas is affecting the Boise real estate market.

I talk with a lot of buyers and sellers each week and I am hearing the same thing from many of them.

They are telling me that expensive gasoline is causing them to rethink where they want to live.

I recently showed a home in Eagle to prospective buyers from Horseshoe Bend who want to move to Eagle to be closer to work due to the cost of commuting.

The only thing holding them back is the home they must sell in Horseshoe Bend before they can buy here.

That could take awhile.

And, I am hearing similar comments from potential sellers who live in Star, Middleton, Kuna, and Nampa as they deal with the cost of commuting to jobs in Boise.

Makes you wonder what it’s like to live in Nampa, fight the traffic on I-84 in rush hour, and pay $4 a gallon for gas while working for $11/hour and paying for child care.

Renters Must Deal With A New Breed Of Investors

May 13, 2008

If you’re looking for a home to rent, be careful.

The rental market is full of homes owned by investors who never intended to be landlords.

Many of those owners live out-of-state and rushed in to buy homes on speculation during our formerly hot market, then failed to sell and get rich before things cooled down.

Now, they’re absentee landlords with little or no property management experience.

Some of them can’t afford to pay 8-10% of each month’s rent for professional property management, so they try to manage their rental properties from a distance.

That can lead to poor maintenance, lax tenant screening, and other problems.

And, many of those owners are still trying to sell their properties while renting them.

If you rent a home that’s for sale, you’ll have to deal with the intrusion of Realtors ® showing the home and you’ll have to move if the owner finds a buyer.

The worst case can occur when a rental home goes into foreclosure.

In some instances, the renter will not know the property is in foreclosure until they are evicted after the property has been foreclosed.

There are reputable investors and landlords out there.

It’s best to rent from them.

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Phil Hoover
Real Estate Broker
Phil Hoover, Inc

BoiseBlog.com


(208) 938-5533

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