Boise Real Estate
About Boise Idaho
Boise (pronounced boy-see) is the capital and largest city in Idaho. It is also the county seat of Ada county. Fort Boise was built up by the US Army in 1863 during the civil war because of its close proximity to the Oregon trail and the silver and gold mines in the Boise basin near Idaho City.
In the 1860′s, Boise was the largest city in the northwest and grew very rapidly due to successful mining in the area. The City of Boise was officially incorporated in 1864. The Boise metro area is now home to 585,207 inhabitants according to the 2008 census. It is the largest metro area between Portland and Salt Lake City.
Downtown Boise sits at an elevation of 2,704 feet above sea level, and is a gateway to world famous recreation including camping, skiing at nearby Bogus Basin resort, biking along the Boise River Greenbelt, and boating in several nearby reservoirs such as Lucky Peak. The area is also known for its close proximity to a variety of scenery such as deserts, mountains, and lakes.
Several regional, national, and international companies are based in Boise including Micron Technology, Simplot, Washington Group, Hewlett-Packard, Scensty, and Boise Cascade. Boise State University with its famous “smurf turf” and 20,000 students is also located near downtown Boise.
Boise Real Estate Highlights
| Quick Facts | Boise | Idaho | USA Average |
| Housing units, 2000 | 77,850 | 527,824 | 105,480,101 |
| Homeownership rate, 2000 | 64.0% | 72.4% | 66.2% |
| Median value, 2000 | $120,700 | $106,300 | $119,600 |
| Households, 2000 | 74,438 | 469,645 | 105,480,101 (2006) |
| Persons per household, 2000 | 2.44 | 2.69 | 2.59 |
| Median household income, 1999 | $42,432 | $37,572 | $52,029 (2008) |
| Per capita money income, 1999 | $22,696 | $17,841 | $21,587 |
| Persons below poverty, percent, 1999 | 8.4% | 11.8% | 13.2% |
| Land area, 2000, sq. miles | 63 | 82,747 | 3,537,438 |
| Persons per square mile, 2000 | 2,912.9 | 15.6 | 79.6 |
| Population, 2006 estimate | 198,638 | 1,466,465 | 307,006,550 |
| Population, 2000 | 185,787 | 1,293,953 | N/A |
| Population, percent change, 2000 to 2006 | 1.9% | 13.3% | N/A |
| Living in same house in 1995 and 2000 | 43.6% | 49.6% | 54.1% |
| High school graduates, 2000 | 91.1% | 84.7% | 80.4% |
| Bachelor’s degree or higher, 2000 | 33.6% | 21.7% | 24.4% |
| Mean travel to work, 2000, minutes | 18.0 | 20.0 | 25.5 |
