Land for Sale in Idaho
Idaho’s vast vistas of farm land, mountains, and riverlands have been drawing landowners to the state for centuries. If you’re interested in buying land for sale in Idaho, there are a few different ways you can go about it.
Land can be purchased in Idaho to build a home on or to invest in for development. There are tens of thousands of acres of land for sale in Idaho from fertile riverland farms to off-grid mountain plots. Land can be purchased either through online listings or through local connections.
Interested in finding land for sale in Idaho? Read on to find out more about the best places to look when you’re researching land to purchase in the state and some other handy ways to buy land there.
Finding Land for Sale in Idaho
There are multiple ways to find land for sale in Idaho if you’re in the market. Here are just a few of the searches you can try:
- Online land sales: Most property is bought and sold these days through large property databases such as Landwatch and com. Online land purchase databases are a great way to get a broad overview of the properties available in the area you want to buy land for.
- Unlisted properties: Not every piece of land for sale in Idaho is going to be listed with a realtor or property database. Some land and property sales may fly under the radar due to the circumstances of the sale. Check public records such as tax records and foreclosures to get some unexpected deals.
- Local networks: For people who already live in Idaho and want to purchase land there, checking around locally or regionally is a good bet on top of any online searches you may do. This is the best way to get an idea of what kind of land is for sale closest to your current location. It also gives you the opportunity to survey the land in person.
- Neighborhood scouting: If you aren’t shy and you’re interested in getting some land purchase opportunities you wouldn’t get otherwise, try just going around door to door in a neighborhood where you want to buy land. Unlike visiting salesmen, most homeowners don’t mind someone showing up at the front door ready to buy something.
- Hire a local realtor: Looking for land to buy yourself can be intimidating, especially if you’re trying to purchase land from out of state. Hiring a local realtor or property manager can go a long way towards helping you narrow down an otherwise daunting property list. Realtors may also have access to networks and deals you wouldn’t.
If you have the opportunity to check out the land you want to purchase in person before pulling the trigger, this is always the better option to purchasing a piece of property sight unseen. You might not be aware of downsides like noise pollution or an annoying commute without venturing out to the land yourself.
Farm Land for Sale in Idaho
Agriculture is a huge part of Idaho’s culture, and produce makes up 18% of Idaho’s economic output as the single largest contributor to the state economy. (Source: Idaho State Department of Agriculture) This means there is always plenty of good farm land for sale in all four corners of this Midwestern state.
Here are some of the most popular agricultural ventures for Idaho farms:
- Potatoes: Idaho as a state is best-known for its potato crop, and the fertile land available is perfect for growing these fluffy white spuds. Potatoes are grown on more than 300,000 acres of land in Idaho every year.
- Wheat: Idaho has a thriving wheat market, with over half of the wheat produced in the state shipped out to foreign countries. Idaho is one of the only places in the world where all five varieties of agricultural wheat can be successfully grown and harvested. This has helped lead to the Midwest’s reputation as the “breadbasket of America.”
- Barley: Barley is another grain crop that is popularly grown for use in both animal feed and alcoholic beverages. The majority of the barley grown in Idaho is malt barley grown for making beer.
- Beets: Idaho is America’s second-largest beet producer, with 20% of the nation’s sugarbeet production originating in the state. The beets grown on Idaho farm land are used for the production of brown sugar and are mostly grown in Idaho’s irrigated riverlands.
These are only a handful of the many types of crops that are produced in Idaho, and we haven’t even mentioned the livestock. Whether you are looking to retire on a small farm or start a vast sugarbeet empire, there’s farm land available for sale in Idaho to get you started.
Where Can You Buy Farm Land in Idaho?
One of the easiest ways to search farm land for sale in North Carolina is to do it on the Internet. These are some of the best places to buy land online for Idaho farms:
- Build Idaho: If you’re looking for property in Southern Idaho, the Build Idaho database is the perfect place to find the land you want. This website features plenty of buyer tools and representation as well as community tours.
- Land and Farm: No matter where in America you’re trying to buy farm land, Land and Farm is the best database to pull it off. This website allows you to narrow your land search based on filters such as pricing, plot size, and access to necessary utilities. You can also get access to photographs and videos of the land to get a better look.
- Zillow: Zillow is a great property database for buying land and also homes if you’re looking to buy land in an Idaho residential area. Each listing on this site features pretty much everything you need to put in a bid on a land purchase, including the contact information necessary to touch base with the current owners.
- LandWatch: LandWatch is a database that lists farm land properties all over the United States, including Idaho. With over twelve million buyers and sellers each month, this is one of the busiest websites for property sales in North America.
While these websites will give you several thousand listings for Idaho farm land for sale, they’re only a few of the most popular online databases available for property sales in the state. Check out all available online markets for the biggest selection of Idaho farms.
Land for Sale by Owner in Idaho
Online databases are the best way to search for land in Idaho if you live out of state, but if you’re already in Idaho it’s a good idea to start local. Check out which properties are being sold by the owner rather than realtors or property managers. In general, buying land directly from the owner is cheaper and less of a hassle since you’re not going through a third-party mediator.
Here are some choices to consider when you’re searching land for sale by owner in Idaho:
- Local newspapers: If you check the classifieds section of the newspaper, you’ll see a special section just for property sales. People selling property themselves will often place an ad to save money on a realtor. Go through the paper and circle any properties in your price range and acreage goals to investigate further.
- General online markets: While many landowners use major land databases to sell property, others may not be aware that these databases exist. These owners will be more likely to use general social media marketplaces like Facebook and Craigslist to advertise their property for sale.
- Cold calling: If you’re in love with a specific piece of property and it isn’t listed as being for sale, don’t be afraid to approach the landowner directly and put in an offer. Giving the landowner your contact number lets them make an easy sale if they ever decide to move somewhere else.
While some property investors feel more comfortable going through a realtor to seal the deal on their property sales, you can save thousands of dollars by making a deal directly with the landowner yourself. However, it would help if you researched purchasing land by owner in detail and read all paperwork thoroughly before committing to a land buy.
Where Is the Cheapest Land in Idaho?
The cheapest land in Idaho can be found in the rural Rocky Mountain ranges that run north and south along the edge of the state. The reason this land is considerably cheaper than land in other areas of Idaho is that it isn’t as useful as arable land for farming and much of it is undeveloped. It’s also further from city centers in the state, such as Boise.
How Much Does an Acre of Land Cost in Idaho?
An average acre of land in Idaho runs around $2,600. (Source: Pfister Land Company) This is less than you would pay for an acre of good fertile farm land in Idaho, which goes for as much as $3,400 in comparison.
There are several factors that influence how much any given piece of land in Idaho costs. Here are some of the things you’ll have to consider when you check the pricing of different properties against each other:
- Development: The more developed a piece of land is and ready to use, the more expensive it’ll be. The cheaper pieces of land you’ll find for sale in Idaho will be land that needs to be cleared of brush and timber before it can be used for either residential building or farming.
- Location: When you’re buying farmland, the more expensive pieces of farmland will be those situated closest to Idaho’s riverlands. That’s because these plots are more fertile and a better option for growing high-yield crops like barley and wheat.
- Access: Not only do you have to consider access to basic utilities when it comes to off-grid property plots, you also have to consider access to amenities such as good schools and entertainment venues for residential land. The more access a piece of property has, the more expensive it’s likely to be.
If you know the average price for an acre of land in Idaho is $2,600, it gives you a starting point to compare prices on properties around the area. It’s a good idea to make a list of all of the properties for sale in a neighborhood or town and list out the prices so you can get a broad overview of what land pricing looks like in the area.
What Is the Prettiest City in Idaho?
When it comes to the prettiest city in Idaho, there’s no contest – we’ve got to give the prize to the small town of Sandpoint. This city in the northernmost part of Idaho on the coast of Lake Pend Orielle isn’t just the prettiest city in Idaho, it was formally recognized in 2011 by a USA Today survey as the “Most Beautiful Small Town in America.”
It’s easy to see why this Idaho town has such a loyal following. Sandpoint is forty miles from the border of the Canadian wilderness and is framed by the Selkirk mountains. The vintage Northwestern village features charming attractions such as a winery, a vaudeville theater, an independently-owned bookshop, and the Schweitzer Mountain Ski Resort. (Source: World Property Journal)
Idaho Has Plenty of Great Property to Go Around
Whether you want to buy a potato farm or you just need a small plot of land to build your dream home, Idaho has lots of good land to spare. While the property value of the state has increased slightly over the past couple of years, you can still get a good deal if you know where to look.