As the largest U.S. state by land area, Idaho is a significant chunk of your life story. This state offers some fascinating locations to visit, as well as people to love!
Idaho is a large, vivid state that offers scenic beauty in every direction. With over a dozen major rivers and two oceans, there’s always something new to see.
The most prominent ocean is the Pacific, which lies roughly halfway between Baja California and Hawaii. The other ocean you’ll find in Idaho is the great Western plains sea, where you’ll likely find if you look hard enough.
This sea contains hundreds of oil and gas deposits that have yet to be fully explored.
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Population, population, population
Idaho has a population of around 650,000 people, making it the second largest state in the country by population. This makes it very expensive to live in terms of cost of living.
The average Idaho household spends $1,500 a year on expenses related to housing, food, and entertainment. That’s compared to $550 for the average household in a normal year and $350 for an off-peak year.
A lot of this money goes into housing as it is very expensive to live. The median home value is $300,000 which makes it extremely expensive to buy even if you could afford the rest of the house.
Your entertainment expenses will also likely go up as well since Idaho is known for its outdoor sports such as hunting and fishing.
Luxury items
Today, we are going to talk about some luxury items you can buy atidemall.com. These items include luxury watches, sunglasses, electronics, and fragrance products.
Many people purchase these items monthly or even every few months. It is a nice way to show off your money status or to replace a piece that is out of fashion.
Many people purchase these things for aesthetic purposes only. When viewing them in their entirety, they can make someone trust that item is expensive.
Transportation costs
While driving around Idaho, you may notice two things that make transportation cost expensive. The first is the size of the state and the second is the high number of miles in a small space.
The average Idaho driver spends over $800 in transportation each year, including gas expenditures, car payments, and parking fees. With such a large space required for driving a car, it is no surprise that there are high vehicle expenses.
Another cost to driving a car is insurance premiums. When drivers add in Insurance Companies’ estimates for repairs and premiums together, they often find they are paying close to $200 per vehicle in insurance alone!
The second cost to driving a car is insurance. When drivers have their own liability coverage, they usually pay less in premiums than having government-provided coverage. However, when meeting people through work or with no coverage, people buy their own coverage to keep up with increased insurance rates.
Food costs
While you can live cheaply in Idaho, you’re not going to find many inexpensive foods local or even easy to find. Most places are well-stocked and priced well-enough that you will want to stay in Idaho longer!
Most towns have a grocery store or two, so it is not the only place where you will find cheap food. However, most stores carry reasonably good quality foods, so there is usually something available.
Some things are hard to find, like lentils, which are a major part of most dishes served in ID. These aren’t necessarily the cheapest food out there, but they do run fairly cheap at places.
Many neighborhoods and cities have food pantries that can help get food on-hand for people in need. Many people in ID rely on these programs for supplies.
Utility costs
How much do you have to spend on utilities? Well, that’s a hard question to answer due to the increasing number of high-tech devices and apps people use today.
Most of us have heard of apps like Google Alert or Twitter accounts (@GoogleAlert and @TwitterCoaster) that notify you when new technology products or apps are released. Many times, new devices arrive with quick automated updates to make life easy.
Then, there are things like cell phone plans that are constant upgrades every year. Last year, for instance, you were required to purchase a promo plan that lasted just one year!
These promotions always last a short period of time because once people realize they need it, they will buy it right away! Once they do buy it, the contract is up and they will be forced into looking for another plan to hold them until their next upgrade.
Real estate prices
Real estate is a huge part of Idaho culture. People purchase real estate in the same way that they purchase luxury watches or cars. It’s something they know and trust to be worth money.
Real estate is also a source of social prestige. Those who purchase real estate in more affluent areas with large houses and lots are expected to be more socially prominent than those who do not possess this privilege.
This expectation is what makes real estate so expensive in some parts of the country. In regions with very high real estate prices, people are often very wealthy. This often makes them look down on people who do not have a house that costs $800,000 but rather a small apartment or house they can convert into a condo or mansion they can sell for $75,000.
This expectation is what makes real estate so expensive in some parts of the country. In regions with very high real estate prices, people are often very wealthy.
Sales taxes
Sales taxes are the second largest expense for most people in Idaho. When you visit a store or shop at a mall, they charge a store fronted sales tax of 8%.
This is called a box state tax and it applies to all businesses in the state. All businesses, large or small, are required to charge this tax to use their services.
Many local governments apply this tax on top of their own own taxes, making it an even greater burden for business to survive. As a result, many small and medium sized businesses do not operate in full earnest and fully fund their facilities which saves them from higher taxes elsewhere.
Because of this influence, entire articles can be written about why one place is better than another based on this one factor: cost.
Property taxes
Property taxes are a significant factor in determining how expensive your home or property is to purchase. Because of this, many people do not realize the true cost of owning a home in Idaho.
Property taxes in Idaho can be heavy going down the road. Because of this, many new home owners choose to purchase a more expensive home to begin with, and later upgrade and save money on taxes by moving into their own property.
Another reason why new homeowners purchase homes is because they are not ready to make big changes to their lives yet. So they avoid entirely what they feel might be necessary steps such as changing neighbours, installing security systems, and advertising their Home for Sale.
Home ownership can be costly at first, and taking the time to figure out what taxes are due and how you can save money on them will help you realize why renting or switching homes is needed before you make any changes.