Passing the wintertime tests
Photos by TYLER WILSON Consider winter driving conditions in neighborhoods you’re interested in while hunting the local real estate market.
Living on a hill or below it? Maybe try your driving skills out now if you’re thinking about buying on the hill. Drive slow!
Photo by TYLER WILSON Look into “hi-low” energy costs when considering an older home.
Back in July, a Neighborhood of the Week feature focused on “thinking cold while it’s hot.” It was about shopping the real estate market in the summertime while still considering winter consequences. As we all well know, North Idaho isn’t all sunshine, rainbows and warm weather.
Though this season has been milder than many, we did get a good taste of winter consequences this week — school closures, crummy road conditions and tedious snow shoveling.
Sure, many people thinking about buying in 2019 will wait for spring and warmer weather to begin their serious shopping. More homes typically hit the market as the weather improves anyway, but there’s no easier time than now to “think cold” and consider the winter conditions of some of your targeted neighborhoods.
Eyes on the road!
In general, our local communities do an excellent job of clearing snow and ice from the roads when possible. In fact, I always thought they did too good of a job when I was a kid, because it seemed like we never had a decent number of snow days in a given year. Even during Ice Storm ’96 (™), I remember only missing like one day of school, and there were trees falling everywhere!
Anyway, even with an excellent snow removal plan in place, some neighborhoods get more attention faster, or the design of the roads themselves result in additional challenges in the winter time. Narrower neighborhood roads means less space for maneuvering, especially if the street in question already includes a number of curbside-parked cars clogging up the space. Throw in garbage day, and you might need the Batmobile’s “alleyway” mode to get out of your driveway (That’s a reference to 1992’s “Batman Returns,” which is the BEST Batman movie. Prove me wrong).
If you’re thinking about buying in a certain neighborhood, it might be a good idea to check it out a couple days after a solid snowstorm. This is especially true of neighborhoods that take a little bit of trekking to get to in the first place. See how your car handles driving up that mountain now before you get excited about that potential lakeview property.
It’s going down,
I’m yelling ‘Timber’
Living in or near the woods is appealing for a lot of buyers here (except those who still can’t shake “The Blair Witch Project”), and many neighborhoods in the area incorporate towering mature trees. Even in new construction situations, builders in the area are trying to keep as much of the forest setting as possible.
Just remember what that means about maintenance. Wind and ice storms take out branches and even full trees. You’ve got more landscaping responsibilities in more wooded neighborhoods, and there isn’t as many neighborhood kids around willing to rake the pine needles for just a few measly bucks.
Maybe none of this seems like a big deal, but I’ve lived in both tree-heavy neighborhoods and “nature minimalist” communities, and one always required considerable more work.
Do the home research
No matter the time of year, it’s worth looking at the full spectrum of required upkeep on a property. Large front yards take longer to mow. Large driveways take longer to shovel.
Energy costs are a big consideration too, and the heating costs can be extremely variable depending on age of home and the efficiency of a heating system. You can request a “hi-low” average of a property from the power provider (Avista, Kootenai Electric) to get a better idea of typical energy consumption for a given home. A house with unusually high costs could be an indication of poor insulation or drafty doors and windows.
Homes with older furnaces and water heaters of course might need replacement sooner, but even the newer ones require regular care. At a home inspection stage, make sure to pay special attention to energy considerations, even if it happens sometime in May. Winter will return with a vengeance around here, because it always does.
Oh, and if you’re looking to hunt the real estate market now, take it easy out there. Slow down and let a passenger handle the Zillow or Realtor app. All us North Idahoans think we drive on snow and ice with precision, but I’ve seen some of y’all out there this week, and you’re suspect.
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Let us know about standout neighborhoods and developments to feature in an upcoming Neighborhood of the Week. Contact Tyler Wilson at twilson@cdapress.com.
Real Estate Agents, take advantage of Neighborhood of the Week by sending in your suggestions for featured areas, including sites outside the confines of Coeur d’Alene, Post Falls, Rathdrum and Hayden.