Walking Friendly Communities May Drive Housing Markets In Idaho

BUENA VISTA, Colo. (AP) — Researchers say homes within walking distance of shops and restaurants will drive the housing markets in mountain communities of the interior West as the economy continues to recover.

The Sonoran Institute, a nonprofit that calls for better management of growth in the West, studied high-country housing trends from 2000 to 2010. The study found homebuyers are willing to pay an average of 18.5 percent more for a house in a walkable mountain neighborhood in the Rocky Mountains, but the supply of homes in or near downtown commercial areas is too small.

Clark Anderson, director of the institute's Western Colorado Program, tells The Denver Post "it's an untapped market opportunity." The study focused on six communities, including Carbondale, Eagle and Buena Vista, as well as Bozeman, Mont., Teton Valley, Idaho, and Boise, Idaho.