Frequently Asked Questions:
Buying a New Construction Home
in Boise, Idaho
What to expect, what to watch for, and how to protect yourself when you buy a newly built home anywhere in the Treasure Valley.
New construction is a big part of the Boise market. Builders are active across Meridian, Eagle, Star, Kuna, Nampa, and Boise itself, and for many buyers a new home is the right call: modern floor plans, current energy codes, a warranty, and no bidding war over a 1970s roof.
It is also a different transaction than buying a resale home. The contract is written by the builder. The friendly person in the model home works for the builder. The timeline, the deposits, and the inspection points all work differently. I put this guide together to answer the questions I hear most from buyers, so you can walk into a sales office knowing how the process actually works.
The process
How is buying new construction different from buying a resale home?
Three big differences. First, the paperwork: builders use their own purchase agreements instead of the standard Idaho REALTOR forms, and those contracts are written to protect the builder. Second, the timeline: instead of a 30 to 45 day escrow, you may be waiting five to ten months for a home to be built, with decisions due at specific points along the way. Third, the negotiation: builders rarely cut the base price, because every discount resets the comparable sales for their whole community. They negotiate through incentives, upgrades, lot premiums, and closing costs instead.
None of that makes new construction a bad deal. It just means the leverage points are in different places, and you want someone on your side who knows where they are.
What types of new homes can I buy in the Boise area?
There are four flavors. A spec or inventory home is already built or nearly built; you pick from what exists and can often close in 30 to 60 days. A to-be-built production home means you choose a floor plan and a lot in a builder's community, then select finishes from their design options. A semi-custom build starts from a builder's plan but allows structural changes. A full custom home is designed from scratch on a lot you control, usually with a construction loan.
Each one has a different risk profile, deposit structure, and timeline. Part of my first conversation with any buyer is figuring out which of the four actually fits their situation, because the right answer is not always the one the sales office is selling that weekend.
How long does a new build take in the Treasure Valley?
For a production home, plan on roughly five to eight months from contract to closing, depending on the builder, the season, and where the community sits in its development cycle. Semi-custom and custom homes commonly run nine to fourteen months or longer. Weather matters here: foundations and framing move fast in summer and slow down when the valley gets its winter inversion stretch.
Builders give estimated completion dates, not guaranteed ones, and most contracts let them extend. I keep clients grounded on realistic timing so lease endings, school calendars, and moving plans do not collide with a foundation that poured three weeks late.
Where is most of the new construction happening around Boise?
The heaviest activity is west and south of Boise proper. Meridian has been one of the fastest growing cities in the country for years and is still adding communities. Eagle and Star are where most of the higher-end and semi-custom building is concentrated. Kuna, Nampa, and Caldwell carry a lot of the attainable new construction. Inside Boise city limits, new homes tend to be infill projects, townhomes, or view lots in the foothills.
I work with buyers across all of it, and I represent several respected builders in Eagle, Meridian, and Star, including Maybon Homes, Greystone Homes, Oakmont Homes, Hallmark Homes, and Highland Homes. That builder-side work means I usually know which communities have lots releasing, which are almost sold out, and which have inventory homes the public has not seen yet.
Do I need to bring my agent to the model home on my first visit?
Yes, and this one trips up more buyers than anything else in this guide. Most builders require your agent to accompany you or be registered on your first visit. If you walk in alone, sign the guest sheet, and come back later with an agent, the builder can refuse to recognize that agent, which means you lose your representation for that community entirely.
It costs you nothing to do this right. Text me before you go tour models on a Saturday. I will register with the community, and often I can tell you things about that builder or that phase before you ever walk in the door.
"Sign the model home guest sheet without an agent, and you may have just given up your right to representation in that community. Register your agent first. It takes one text."
Financing
Should I use the builder's preferred lender or my own?
Run both and compare. Builders often tie their best incentives, like closing cost credits or rate buydowns, to using their in-house or preferred lender. Sometimes that package genuinely beats an outside lender. Sometimes the incentive is quietly offset by a higher rate or heavier fees, and your own lender wins once you do the math on the full loan estimate.
I ask buyers to get a loan estimate from both and put them side by side. It is a 20 minute exercise that regularly saves thousands, and it keeps the builder's lender honest even if you end up using them.
How do rate locks work when my home won't be done for eight months?
A standard rate lock runs 30 to 60 days, which does not help you in March when your home closes in October. For new construction, lenders offer extended locks, commonly 90 to 360 days, sometimes with a float-down option that lets you take a lower rate if the market improves before closing. Extended locks cost more, either in fees or a slightly higher rate, so the question is whether that insurance is worth it for your budget.
The trap to avoid is having no plan at all and simply hoping rates cooperate in month seven. I make sure the rate strategy is part of the conversation on day one, not a scramble at the end.
What incentives are builders actually offering right now?
It changes month to month and community to community, which is exactly why current information matters. In recent Boise-area cycles, the common levers have been closing cost credits, interest rate buydowns through the preferred lender, design center credits, discounted lot premiums, and price flexibility on standing inventory homes that the builder wants off the books before quarter end.
Inventory homes are usually where the real movement is. Because I talk to builder sales teams every week, I often know which specific addresses a builder is motivated on. That is not something a public listing site will tell you.
How much do I put down, and when? Is my deposit refundable?
Expect an earnest money deposit at contract, often larger than resale norms, plus additional deposits for design center selections or structural options on to-be-built homes. Builders vary widely on refundability. Some deposits are credited at closing; some become nonrefundable the moment your selections are ordered.
Before you sign anything, you should know exactly which dollars are at risk, and under what conditions you could walk away and keep them. I read those provisions in every builder contract my clients sign, because "deposit" does not mean the same thing from one builder to the next.
Contracts, upgrades & the design center
What's different about a builder's purchase contract?
Almost everything. Builder contracts are drafted by the builder's attorneys, and compared to the standard Idaho forms they typically give the builder more room to extend deadlines, substitute materials of "equal or better" quality, adjust for field conditions, and limit your remedies if something goes wrong. Some include provisions most buyers have never seen, like the builder's right to repurchase or restrictions on reselling within the first year.
You can rarely rewrite a builder's contract, but you can understand it, negotiate addenda where the builder has flexibility, and decline terms that are actually optional. That review is one of the most valuable things I do for a new construction buyer.
How should I handle the design center without blowing my budget?
Go in with a number and a hierarchy. Design centers are built to be exciting, and the markup on finishes is where builders recover margin. My rule of thumb: put your money into things that are expensive or disruptive to change later, like cabinets, the kitchen layout, plumbing rough-ins, and electrical runs. Flooring, lighting fixtures, and paint can all be upgraded down the road, often for less than the builder charges.
Also ask what the standard inclusion actually is before paying for the upgrade. Some builders' base finishes are respectable; others are priced assuming everyone upgrades. I go through the options list with clients before the appointment so the decisions are made calmly, not under the design center lights.
What is actually negotiable with a builder?
Base price, sometimes, on inventory homes and end-of-phase lots. Beyond that: closing costs, rate buydown contributions, design center credits, lot premiums, included upgrades like landscaping or fencing or window coverings, appliance packages, and timing terms. On semi-custom builds, structural options are often negotiable in ways the price sheet does not advertise.
What buyers get wrong is asking for a price cut the builder will never give while leaving thousands in incentives unclaimed. Knowing each builder's habits is the whole game, and it is a game I play on both sides of the table.
Can the price change after I sign? What about allowances?
On a fixed-price production contract, the base price is generally locked at signing, though change orders, lot premium adjustments, and selection upgrades will move your final number. Custom and semi-custom contracts sometimes use allowances, a budgeted amount for items like countertops or lighting, and if your choices exceed the allowance, you pay the difference. A few contracts include escalation language for material costs; that is worth catching before you sign, not after.
I keep a running tally of every change order and credit so my clients always know their true final price. Surprises at the closing table are avoidable, and they should be.
"The builder's contract was written by the builder's attorneys, for the builder's benefit. Signing it without your own representative reviewing it is the single most avoidable mistake in new construction."
Inspections & warranties
The city inspects the home during construction. Do I really need my own inspector?
Yes. City and county inspections verify code minimums at specific milestones. They are not a quality review, they do not work for you, and code minimum is exactly that: the minimum. Independent inspectors on new builds routinely find missing insulation, HVAC ducts crushed behind drywall, plumbing left unconnected, flashing errors, and grading that drains toward the foundation.
A few hundred dollars per inspection against the price of a new home is the easiest insurance you will ever buy. Every buyer I represent gets independent inspections, and the builders I work with expect it.
What is a pre-drywall inspection and why does it matter?
It is an inspection done after framing, plumbing, electrical, and HVAC are roughed in, but before insulation and drywall cover everything up. This is your one chance to see the guts of the house. Once the drywall goes on, problems in the walls become invisible until they become expensive.
I schedule and attend pre-drywall inspections with my clients, walk the findings with the construction superintendent, and follow up in writing until each item is corrected. Builders fix things much faster when the request comes from an agent they will see again on the next deal.
How does the final walkthrough and punch list work?
Shortly before closing, you walk the finished home with the builder's representative and document everything that needs correction: paint touch-ups, misaligned doors, scratched glass, a garage opener that does not work. That list is the punch list. Some items get fixed before closing; others are scheduled after, in writing.
The key word is "in writing." A verbal promise from a superintendent who gets reassigned next month is worth nothing. I bring my own checklist to walkthroughs, and I make sure the punch list, the deadlines, and the responsible party are all documented before my client signs anything at closing.
What warranties come with a new home, and what is the 11-month inspection?
Most Boise-area builders provide a one-year workmanship warranty, a two-year warranty on major systems like plumbing, electrical, and HVAC, and structural coverage that can run up to ten years, often through a third-party warranty company. The exact terms vary by builder, and they matter.
The 11-month inspection is an independent inspection you order just before the one-year workmanship warranty expires. The house has now been through a full cycle of Idaho seasons: summer heat, winter cold, settling, drywall cracks, doors that no longer latch. Everything found goes to the builder as a warranty claim while it is still their responsibility. I put the 11-month inspection on the calendar for every client the day they close, because almost nobody remembers it on their own.
Idaho-specific questions
How do property taxes work on a brand-new home in Idaho?
Two things surprise buyers. First, Idaho applies an occupancy tax to newly constructed homes for the partial year you occupy them, prorated in place of a regular property tax bill for that stretch. Second, your first full-year tax bill may be based on an assessment that reflected a vacant lot or a partially built home, so the following year's bill can jump when the county assesses the completed house. Budget for the real number, not the teaser year.
The good news: Idaho's homeowner's exemption removes 50 percent of your primary residence's assessed value from taxation, up to a cap set by the state, and effective tax rates in Ada and Canyon counties typically land around or under one percent. File for the exemption promptly after closing; it is not automatic. I walk every client through it.
What should I know about HOAs and CC&Rs in new communities?
Nearly every new community in the Treasure Valley has a homeowners association and recorded covenants, conditions, and restrictions. While the builder is still selling homes, the builder usually controls the HOA board, and dues can change once the community turns over to residents. The CC&Rs govern things buyers care about: RV parking, fences, shops and outbuildings, rentals, paint colors, landscaping deadlines.
Read them before you sign, not after. If a future shop or the ability to park a trailer matters to you, I check the CC&Rs for that community first, so you do not fall in love with a lot in a neighborhood that prohibits your plans.
What is pressurized irrigation, and do water rights ever matter?
Much of the Treasure Valley sits on a canal system that predates the subdivisions, and many new communities deliver untreated irrigation water to your yard through a separate pressurized system. You pay a modest annual assessment to an irrigation district, and in exchange you water your lawn without running treated city water through your sprinklers. It is one of the quiet perks of this valley, and buyers from out of state have usually never heard of it.
Full water rights questions mostly come up on acreage and custom lots, where wells, surface water rights, and irrigation delivery can affect what the land is really worth and what you can do with it. That is specialty territory, and it is part of the land and acreage work I do regularly.
Does the builder have to give me a seller's disclosure?
Generally, no. Idaho's property condition disclosure law exempts newly built homes that have never been occupied, so you will not receive the disclosure form a resale seller provides. The builder is not hiding anything by omitting it; the law simply treats a never-lived-in home differently.
Practically, that puts more weight on your independent inspections, your warranty terms, and your own due diligence on the lot, the soils, the drainage, and the surrounding development plans. Those are exactly the areas where having your own agent doing the digging pays off.
Boise has grown fast. How does that affect what I should buy?
Growth cuts both ways. It has supported values and brought amenities, but it also means the empty field behind a new community may not stay empty. Road expansions, school rezoning, future commercial parcels, and later phases of the same development can all change what you thought you bought.
Before my clients commit to a lot, I look at the area's comprehensive plan, platted future phases, and what is entitled on the neighboring ground. A lot backing to a protected common area and a lot backing to a future collector road can be priced identically today and be worth very different amounts in five years.
"The field behind the model home will not necessarily stay a field. Knowing what is platted and entitled around a community is worth more than any finish upgrade in the design center."
Working with an agent
The builder's sales rep is friendly and helpful. Why isn't that enough?
Because of who they work for. The on-site sales representative is the builder's employee or licensed agent. They can be genuinely pleasant, genuinely knowledgeable, and genuinely helpful, and their legal duty still runs to the builder. When a question comes down to your money versus the builder's margin, their job description answers it for them.
That is not a criticism of sales reps. It is just how representation works. You would not use the other side's attorney in a lawsuit because she was friendly. A buyer's agent owes those duties to you: loyalty, disclosure, confidentiality, and advocacy through every phase of the build.
What does a buyer's agent actually do on a new build?
Before contract: identify the right builders and communities, pull the sales history so you know what others actually paid, review the contract and addenda, and negotiate price, incentives, and terms. During construction: attend the pre-construction meeting, coordinate independent inspections including pre-drywall, monitor progress, document change orders, and push corrections through in writing. At the end: run the final walkthrough, verify the punch list, review closing figures line by line, and calendar the 11-month warranty inspection.
Buyers who go it alone usually discover the value of all that at the exact moment it is too late to get it.
Does hiring my own agent cost me anything?
In most Boise-area new construction, the builder pays the buyer's agent's compensation, and builders build that into their business model whether or not you bring an agent. Skipping representation almost never earns you a discount; it usually just means nobody at the table is working for you.
Since the 2024 industry changes, you will sign a written buyer representation agreement before touring homes, which spells out exactly what your agent is paid and by whom. I confirm the builder's compensation in writing for every community before my clients commit, so there are no surprises. In the rare case a builder offers nothing, you will know up front and we will decide together how to handle it.
When should I bring an agent into the process?
Before your first model home visit. Not after you have signed a guest registry, not after you have "just looked" at three communities, and definitely not after you have a contract in hand and something feels off. Builder registration policies make the first visit the moment that decides whether you get representation at all.
Reaching out early costs nothing and closes no doors. A ten minute call before your Saturday of touring can protect your options in every community you visit.
Why Brent Dildine
What makes you different from any other agent I could bring?
I have spent 32 years in this market, and I work the new construction side of it every week. I represent respected builders in Eagle, Meridian, and Star, including Maybon Homes, Greystone Homes, Oakmont Homes, Hallmark Homes, and Highland Homes, which means I know how builder sales offices actually operate: how they price, when they discount, which superintendents run tight job sites, and which communities have lots or inventory homes coming before they are public.
When I represent you as a buyer, that inside knowledge works for you. My specialty runs from luxury homes and acreage estates to production builds, roughly $500K to multi-million-dollar properties, and my approach is the same at every price: concierge-level attention, straight answers, and advocacy at every phase from lot selection to the 11-month warranty claim.
What if I'm relocating and can't be in Boise during the build?
A large share of my clients buy from out of state. I handle it with video walkthroughs at each construction milestone, photo documentation, attendance at inspections on your behalf, and electronic signing for everything that allows it. You will know more about your build from another time zone than most local buyers know standing in their own framing.
I also help with the parts that are not strictly real estate: which areas fit your commute and lifestyle, what the seasons are really like, and what to expect from Idaho utilities, irrigation, and taxes. Moving here is a bigger decision than the house alone, and I treat it that way.
Building, buying, or selling?
Let's talk before you sign anything.
A short conversation before your first model home visit costs you nothing and protects your representation in every community you tour. Call, text, or email, and I will respond quickly.
Buyer's agent compensation is paid by the builder in most Boise-area new construction communities. Representation terms are confirmed in writing before you commit. Tax figures, warranty terms, and builder incentives change; current details are verified for every client and every community.