Total new-home closings: 2,487
Population: 664,422
The good: The market has proved it can withstand losing entry-level buyers and increasing prices.
The bad: A year-over-year drop occurred in the average unit size in March 2015. (And that’s about it.)
The bottom line: With a little help from an outstandingly low unemployment rate and gentle REO/foreclosure markets, builders have proved they can’t lose in Boise.
Builders in Boise City might feel cocky coming out of early 2015, having proved they can’t lose, even under conditions that impede other markets. Second quarter 2014 data showed that—unlike some areas—Boise’s new-home market can grow even as prices have risen, squeezing entry-level buyers out of the new-home marketplace. In February 2015, the market showed that wasn’t a one-time victory when—yet again—closings increased year over year by 13.1% despite a 3.5% increase in the average sale price. March followed with a more modest 4.3% increase in closings, but nonetheless paralleling a 2.5% increase in prices. There also were signs of stabilization in March. Relatively benign REO and foreclosure markets along with unemployment rates that clocked in at 1.6% below the national average in March 2015 certainly don’t hurt this market’s near future.
