Boise area real estate and rental management blog
According to a recent economic forum hosted by TitleOne that I attended, the forecast for Idaho is looking good. Idaho has experienced a significant increase in its median income rankings, jumping from 45th place in 2012 to 26th in 2021. This is due, in part, to the growing number of affluent individuals migrating to the state who hold higher paid jobs. As a result, these individuals are able to stimulate business and income to the communities in which they move to.
Idaho has also emerged as the fastest-growing state this decade and the 2nd fastest in the last decade. Idaho continues to lead the nation in employment growth, with the Boise MSA seeing an annual employment growth rate of 3.4% compared to just 0.5% nationally. Of those migrating to Idaho, 67% are from CA, and 74% of these individual are under the age of 50.
However, there is one concern that was highlighted by the economist who spoke at the forum. Over 50% of the counties in Idaho have a higher death rate than births, which means that the state may continue to experience a shortage of workers. Despite this, the economic forecast for Idaho is looking very positive.
Tony A Drost, Associate Broker
Swope Investment Properties
Your Boise Investment Properties Team
Understanding the assessment process and its implications is important for homeowners as it affects their Idaho property values and the real estate market. Ada County, which includes the cities of Boise, Meridian, Kuna, Eagle, and Star, property tax assessments are based on factors like location, size, condition and comparable sales for residential while also taking into account rents and operating expenses on the commercial and residential income side.
Assessors, located in Boise, take data and apply a time adjustment to the property in order to get the assessed value as accurate as possible to a Jan 1 date with an error margin of +/- 10%. Based on their data, it was seen that values went up the first quarter and into the second quarter of 2022. As May came along, those values started to soften and then decreased throughout the last half of the year with the increase of interest rates. On the commercial side (anything over 4 units), rates are increasing, vacancies seem to be holding around 4% and cap rates are staying on the low side at 4.7% for 2022 and 4.5% for the first part of this year. On the residential side (4 units or below including single family homes), we can expect to see anywhere from a -12% to a +20% change in the assessed value based on where the home was previously valued.
Idaho has a few programs to help homeowners with their property taxes. The homeowners exemption program applies to any owner occupied properties and reduces the value you're taxed on by $125,000. It is applied for once at the time of ownership. The circuit breaker and tax deferral program are a few others that you have to qualify.
If you feel your assessed value isn't accurate and is off by more than +/- 10%, you have a right to appeal. Your assessors name and phone number are on the bottom of the statement and you can contact them directly, or ask one of us and we can assist you. The last date to appeal is June 26th but it's advised to do so sooner than later. Reach out to your trusted Swope agent for help with this as we have relationships with the assessors and understand the appeal process. We are always here as a resource and to help!
Paige Brown, Associate Broker
Swope Investment Properties
For decades, Tony Drost has tracked four plex metrics monthly for Ada County which includes Boise, Meridian, Star, and Kuna cities. With short supply, the longer-running average trends in Ada County fourplex data are more telling than a look at October's metrics, as we only had one fourplex sell in October.
Average Days on Market (DOM) for 2022 is 19 days, which is over double from 2021 but still considered to be very good.
The Trailing 6 Month Average Cap Rate is 4.64%. This is based on actual rents, not market or projected rents. Cap rates appear to be creeping up a bit, which is good news for buyers. Sellers are still seeing good prices, which means rents are supporting the higher cap rates.
Gross Rent Multipler (GRM or Price/monthly rents) was 182 in October. With prices not dipping, the lower GRM suggests that rents are improving. The trailing 6 month average is 195 and is more indicative to where the market is. GRPM had been over 200 from August 2021 through July of 2022.
With inventory being so low, we would think that any fourplex listing with a price based on the numbers above, and presenterd itself well, would probably sell. To date, multifamily data has not presented the same as single family home trends, where inventory has climbed. There is still cash and 1031 money in the marketplace. Cash buyers want discounts and financed buyers in search of cash flow are putting more money down. We are interested in helping sellers facilitate owner-carry purchases, if there is interest, and we have experience in this arena. Contact us if you'd lioke to discuss that creative option or a more trandional purchase or sale.
Your Boise Investment Properties Team
Tony Drost and Stacy McBain
Associate Brokers
Swope Investment Properties
Every year, all of the brokers and agents at Swope Investment Properties choose a charity to support. A majority of our charities have been local, and include the Idaho Human Society, The Idaho Food Bank, and Camp Rainbow Gold, to name a few from the past. This year, with a donor match, we were able to contribute $15,500 to the Alzheimer's Association in honor of my mother, Jackie Drost, who passed earlier this year from dementia and Alzheimer's.
Early on, Dementia is one of those diseases that can go unnoticed and easily dismissed as "old age". We all forget things. but with dementia, the brain slowly shuts down. All life threatening illnesses, to include dementia, are hard on those with the disease as well as their freinds and family. It was the hardest six years of my life, so I can't even imagine how hard it was on my mother. I am grateful for the generosity of our brokerage team and hopeful that our contribution goes to good use, and perhaps someday helps to determine the cause, a treatment, or maybe even a cure.
Thank you all! This was a very touching gesture!
Tony Drost
Association Broker
Swope Investment Properties
Your Boise Investment Properties Team
