NEIGHBORHOOD OF THE WEEK: Cold cases — Established Rathdrum
Well, the weather seemed promising for a few days last week. Then came more snow. The bitter cold. The wind chill. The running and… and… screaming.
Since winter made a comeback, Neighborhood of the Week might as well explore another Cold Case.
A brief explainer: The winter season often serves as the quietest stretch of real estate activity each year. It’s cold and people don’t want to move a bunch of stuff in the snow! However, in one of the busiest real estate markets in the United States, inventory in North Idaho remains low and those well-priced homes are flying off the market, often after multiple offers.
While this column space typically focuses on neighborhoods and developments with at least some availability, the idea behind Cold Cases is to highlight routinely popular locations where so few homes become available (maybe because residents never want to leave such a cool spot).
So play the Neighborhood Cold Cases theme song and let’s hope the temperatures rise next week.
Case File No. 4: Established central Rathdrum
OK, so this is a little bit of a cheat. Rathdrum continues to grow, with new developments underway that will expand the imprint of the picturesque small town. With Coeur d’Alene filled to the brim and Post Falls expanding north, Rathdrum is now an essential component of North Idaho’s overall controlled growth and prosperity.
In mid-February, the Rathdrum City Council approved the Lakeland Landings project, which contains more than 17 acres east of the Westwood Pines subdivision, located east of the north Meyer Road and west Highway 53 intersection. The residential segment of the project includes plans to build single-family homes with minimum lot sizes of 7,500 square feet.
As for the well-established neighborhoods, particularly in the heart of town, availability is slim. It’s particularly noticeable in the residential areas south of Stub Myers Park, where sales are sparse on those state-named streets (Arizona Street, Oregon Street, etc.).
Only a handful of homes in this area hit the market and sold in 2021, at least in terms of what’s visible on public sites like Realtor.com and Zillow.com. On Nebraska Street, two three-bedroom homes were listed at $375,000 and $449,000, respectively (1,100 and 1,700ish square feet). On Colorado Street a four-bedroom, 1,600-square-foot home was listed at just under $380,000 last year, as well as a three-bedroom, 1,300-square-foot home listed at $349,000. Homes were built in the '90s and early 2000s.
South of Betty Kiefer Elementary School you’ll find a little more activity on a regular basis, including established properties in Golden Spike Estates, a 55+ community.
Actually, it might be best to talk about what’s actually available in central Rathdrum, which isn’t much. Neighborhoods south of Highway 41 and Lakeland Middle School are always lacking listings, though a three-bedroom home built in 2019 there is listed for just under $500,000. A new construction, three-bedroom home set for 2,400 square feet in nearby Timber Lane is listed at $745,000.
Keep going south to the always popular Radiant Lake neighborhood, and, well, you won’t find anything right now with that water view. East of that development surrounding Meyer Road are two active listings (for now) — two three-bedroom homes (1,500 and 2,000 square feet, respectively) listed at $565,000 and $570,000.
So there, we basically included an entire city for a Cold Case, even though it’s one of the hottest areas in all of North Idaho. Maybe this miniseries is officially dead. Oh well. Play that theme song one more time for old time sake.
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Let us know about more standout neighborhoods and developments that we may 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 normal confines of Coeur d’Alene, Post Falls and Hayden.
