Teton Valley vs. CDA/Sandpoint for part time outdoorsman retirement

[blockzilla]

Sorry, by flying up I meant flying commercial, not flying my own plane! I'd fly to Spokane for NID, or either Idaho Falls or Jackson for Teton Valley.

NW Crow, it'd sort of be a transition period to eventually spend about 9 months in Idaho, 3 in SoCal. For the first 4 years it would be about 12 weeks a year (likely spend 2 weeks out of every 8 up north, with 4-6 weeks consecutive in the summer), then the next 5 years about 4-5 months total, then up to 9 months after that.

We've been doing the vacation rentals over the last couple of years to each place to test the waters, and are heading to Teton Valley for a couple weeks next month to hopefully finalize the decision. I'm okay with another year or so of renting places, but I really want something that can be "home" to me. I've never liked SoCal at all, I'm just here for work, coming from a very rural Michigan upbringing, and have been waiting and saving for 20 years to finally have someplace I think of as "home".

I want to have a property with some space to breathe, I'd say 2 acres minimum. I know the smart, practical decision for a 2nd home would be to get a low maintenance house/condo on a small lot, but I've been living that way in SoCal for 20 years so I want something different and will accept the extra work of property maintenance (or paying for it when I'm not there). Ideally I'd like smaller 3 bedroom home (~1500sqft?) on a minimum of 2 acres, situated with some privacy. I want it to be dark and quiet at night, if that makes sense. Price range could go up to about $600K, though it'd be great if I could get something in the 400-500 range.

[nm9stheham]

Originally Posted by blockzilla

Sorry, by flying up I meant flying commercial, not flying my own plane! I'd fly to Spokane for NID, or either Idaho Falls or Jackson for Teton Valley.

LOL... got it! We've looked at the same thing.... flying in commericially.



Being a 2nd home, the matter of having transportation when you get there takes some thought. In our planning, having a vehicle full time at a 2nd home makes the most sense. But that involves renting a car for a day to get 'home' and then bring the rental car back the next day.... and then reversing the process for departure. Or finding something like a taxi or another ride service (Uber, Lyft) that is reasonably priced for where you want to go.


If you do that for the Jackson airport (which is a reeeealy nice, small airport IMHO, with more flights than average for the local population size), be aware that some of the ride fares out of that airport are regulated. But probably not for all the way over to the Teton Valley.



And IMHO, FWIW, and all that.... things are 'hot' all over in the realty markets. That may be slowing down a bit in some markets, but it will take a while for sellers to adjust the prices downward that they just jacked up in the last 2-3 months. I think patience right now will pay off, especially with the traditionally slower winter season approaching.



And I am totally with you on the home vs rental....and ditto with the 'dark & quiet'. We rented for a couple of decades, then got a place where we mostly went, for the last 9 years. It has been a lot of work to keep up (especially with it being a part-time vacation rental in a harsh environment), but it sure is nice to to arrive at 'home'.

[banjomike]

A friend here in I.F. had unused space in his garage, which is separate from his house.
He made a little extra money for years renting that space to a family who had a summer home in Teton, just down the road from Driggs.
The family (or one member) would fly in and then pick up his car from the garage instead of leaving the car in Teton. When they left, the car went back into the garage. The garage was kept locked, and the family had their on key to the locks, so they could get the car at any time.

I don't know any of the particulars as to what their deal was, but it worked out well for everyone for a long time. My buddy used the other stall in the garage for an old vintage truck that was his parade baby. Eventually, either the vacation home was sold or some other arrangement was made, but the deal lasted for over a decade.

I think this could be a viable alternative for someone else; all it would take is some searching I think. There are quite a few private garages that become larger than their need once the kids are grown and gone around here.

[nowhereman427]

Originally Posted by NW Crow

CDA salmon info

https://fins1.com/chinook-salmon/

[NW Crow]

Ok, blockzilla. Hard to know where people are at in planning until they say.

Part of the choice is what size community you prefer to be in / near. Is Idaho Falls big enough? Is CDA / Spokane too crowded? Do you think your answer might be different in 10 years because of the places or you?

Not sure how real estate pricing stands relatively in the 2 areas. It could push one over other but the comparison needs to be for your specifications.

To be clear, by Teton Valley you mean around Driggs / Victor? Or Jackson Hole?

How often and far are you willing to drive to big box stores or other city stuff?

[blockzilla]

Thanks for all the help so far! To answer NW Crow's questions, I prefer either a smaller community, or to live out of town a bit if near bigger cities like CDA. Idaho Falls is plenty big, but it seemed hotter in the summer and more barren. Didn't seem for me. I wouldn't live in Spokane or any other big city like that, but I have no problem doing commerce when needed in larger places, going to the airport, etc.. I'm not scared of traffic and crowds as long as I don't have to deal with it daily. A good example would be Athol. I liked that area, far enough away from town to not be crazy but also not a huge drive to get in for what you need.

By Teton Valley I mean the Driggs/Victor corridor. I know they don't have the big stores but I don't mind that either. If there is a hardware store and a grocery store I'm mostly covered. I don't really "shop for clothes" or other "in town" things that many people seem to enjoy (eating out, other paid entertainment, etc.). I know sometimes you need to go to the bigger stores though, so I can deal with an hour drive to them if needed.

The answers could be different in 10 years, it's hard to say for sure. I'm 41 now, so I'm hoping for at least good 30 years of living out of town. It's all but certain both of those parts of Idaho will look entirely different in 30 years, so I'll just try to outrun progress as long as I can :-)

[NW Crow]

Didn't remember your earlier Driggs / Victor thread. But now it should be clear.

Driggs to Idaho Falls is 73 miles. Two estimates of driving times are 1:15 and 1:30. 32 miles to Jackson WY.

Victor is about 8 miles closer to both.

[NW Crow]

Other comparisons possible but Athol vs. Driggs:

Athol median home sales price about 5% higher than Driggs. What is generally on the market is not the cheaper stuff. But should be plenty to consider in your target range.

Driggs pretty close to national average on family income. Athol barely above half.

Driggs 43% of adults with 4 year degrees. Athol, 8%. If the data is right.

Teton County 43% voted Democratic for President in 2016. Kootenai County, 25%.

Athol slightly older than national average, Driggs slightly younger.


North Idaho 3-5 degrees warmer on warm month highs and about 5 degrees warmer for nights. Both have 7 months that average 50 or higher for highs.



Did you have interest in and opinions yet about Rathdrum, Hayden, Sagle, Sandpoint?

[Clark Fork Fantast]

Originally Posted by nm9stheham

If you like vintage warplanes, there is a very active group at the airport at Driggs. My wife and I arrived one evening on a trip and watched an F-86 and a MIG-15 take off and form up on their way to Las Vegas for a show.

Don't know what airplane you have but.... Be aware of the altitude at the Driggs airport; at over 6000', it will challenge many small aircraft on a warm day. You have some fair distance for climbout off of either end of the airport but it is still something to consider. The airports around the CdA area are many thousands of feet lower.

As for tourists, it may be a tie. The traffic up and down ID33 through the Teton Valley in the tourist season is pretty steady. The good thing is that once you get off of ID33, it dies off; it's not like Jackson WY.

As for the hunting, again IDK about larger game up in NID, but I would guess that you would be closer to more varied few-hour-drive hunting by heading east into WY, or north into MT, or south towards Soda Springs (Caribou Mtns) and the mountains east of Star Valley (Wyoming Range) from the Teton Valley. IDK about land permissions in either area, and there lots of non-wilderness NF areas around both choices.

There is large-game hunting in the Selkirks and the Cabinets. I'm not a hunter myself, but I do know that much. We just like to watch them wander through our meadow at dawn .

[banjomike]

Originally Posted by Clark Fork Fantast

There is large-game hunting in the Selkirks and the Cabinets. I'm not a hunter myself, but I do know that much. We just like to watch them wander through our meadow at dawn .

Yup. NID is under-valued as a place for hunting. That may be due to the fact it's harder to hunt there than in other areas of the state, but the game is there, for sure.