8773 W Banjo Dr

Run June 10, 2026 · via boise-home-eval skill · rate 6.55% (Bankrate 6.55% 6/10/2026, Freddie 6.48% 6/4) · cash fund $105k

Listing facts (per Eric)

• Source: https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/8773-W-Banjo-Dr-Boise-ID-83709/79656832_zpid/
• List price: ~$399,000 (per Eric)
• 3 bd / 2 ba · ~1,200 sqft · built 2002 · lot 0.14 ac · ~$333/sqft
• Single Family · single story (all main floor, no basement/attic) · has A/C · 594 sqft garage · 240 sqft porch · 96 sqft patio (county characteristics)

County record — Ada County Assessor (the truth)

• Parcel: R2814140850 · Subdivision: FIDDLER’S GLEN SUB · LOT 05 BLK 07 · Zone R8 · 0.140 ac · Tax Code Area 57
• Owner of record: STERNBERG ROBERT S (a person; Instrument #2017019473 — held since 2017)
• 2026 assessed value: $364,100 — land $153,000 (MARKET) + dwelling $211,100 (COST)
• List (~$399k) is ~$34,900 / ~9.6% ABOVE the 2026 assessed value of $364,100. A meaningful premium over the county’s market figure — not egregious, but you’re paying ~10% over assessed. Confirm the live list price and ask what justifies it (updates? location within the sub?).

Valuation history by year (no Idaho assessment cap — taxes drift with these)

Up ~52% in six years (2020 → 2026); 2022 was a local peak, and 2026 actually ticked down from the 2025 high. Budget for continued tax drift regardless.

Actual property tax history (Total Taxes billed)

Read this carefully — the low bill is real, not a relief trick, but it’s also NOT exemption-adjusted. Tax Code Area 57 runs a notably LOW total levy: 0.003537825 (~0.354%) — roughly a third of the ~0.92% levy in many other Boise areas (e.g. Post St). That low levy is the main reason the bill looks small. The 2025 bill of $1,308.32 = exactly $369,800 (full assessed) × 0.003537825 — meaning the current owner’s bill has NO homeowner’s exemption applied (he may not occupy it as a primary residence, or never filed). The county’s “Taxes Paid” footnote about circuit-breaker / veteran / homeowner’s-relief credits does NOT apply here — Taxes Paid equals Total Taxes exactly, so there’s no hidden relief inflating the gap. Eric as an owner-occupant who files for the homeowner’s exemption would pay LESS than the current owner, not more. (Note the year-to-year bounce — 2021 $2,343 → 2025 $1,308 — driven by levy and assessment swings; budget conservatively.)

Affordability — VERDICT: FITS comfortably (~$2,209/mo, ~$291 under $2,500)

The combination of the low TCA-57 levy and the homeowner’s exemption makes the tax line the cheapest of the batch — that’s what keeps this house comfortably under target despite the highest price.

20% down (no PMI) — the only structure needed

• 20% down = $79,800 → loan $319,200
• P&I at 6.55%: ~$2,028/mo
• Property tax — Eric’s real bill (exemption applied): assessed $364,100 − $125k homeowner’s exemption = ~$239,100 taxable × 0.003537825 (TCA 57) ≈ ~$846/yr ≈ ~$70/mo. (Even with NO exemption it’s only ~$1,288/yr ≈ ~$107/mo — the levy here is just low.)
• Insurance: ~$110/mo
• HOA: $0
• PMI: $0
• All-in: ~$2,209/mo → ~$291/mo UNDER $2,500. Clears it. ✓ (Over the old $2,000 target, driven by the $399k price and 6.55% rate, but the cheap tax pulls it back under the current ceiling.)

Cash. $79,800 down + ~$11,970 closing (3%) ≈ $91,770 — inside the $105k fund, but leaving only ~$13.2k of cushion. This is the tightest cash position of the batch (highest list price → biggest down + closing). Workable, but thin; the separate emergency fund stays untouched.

Flags

• Highest cash-in of the batch (~$92k), thinnest cushion (~$13k left). The $399k list pushes 20% down
  • closing to ~$92k — inside the $105k fund but with the least margin of any candidate. If anything in diligence demands cash (repairs, rate buydown, higher closing), this gets uncomfortable fast.
• List ~9.6% OVER assessed (~$35k premium). You’re paying ~10% above the county’s market figure. Not a dealbreaker, but the weakest list-vs-assessed gap among the lower-priced candidates — push on why.
• The tax is genuinely low (TCA 57 ~0.354% levy) AND the current bill is un-exempted. Good news for once: Eric’s filed-exemption bill (~$846/yr) lands below what the current owner pays. Don’t model this house off some other area’s ~0.9% levy — it’s a third of that here.
• FILE FOR THE HOMEOWNER’S EXEMPTION after closing — not automatic. The current owner doesn’t have it; filing roughly halves the taxable value and takes the bill from ~$1,288/yr to ~$846/yr.
• Genuine pluses: a 2002 build (newest of the small-house batch — far fewer systems-age worries than the 1939/1974 candidates), full 2 bathrooms, A/C, single-story, no HOA, and the cheapest property-tax line on the board.
• Condition still TBD: at ~1,200 sqft on a small 0.14-ac lot, it’s compact. Inspect normally (roof, HVAC, sewer scope), but a 2002 house is the easy end of the inspection spectrum here.

Bottom line

Fits comfortably and is the best house of the small-home batch — but it’s the most expensive to buy into. At 20% down on ~$399k it runs ~$2,209/mo all-in (~$291 under the $2,500 ceiling), helped a lot by an unusually low Tax Code Area 57 levy (~0.354%) that, with the homeowner’s exemption, drops the tax to ~$846/yr (~$70/mo) — the cheapest tax on the board. The catch is cash and price: ~$92k in (highest of the batch) leaves only ~$13.2k of the fund, and the list sits ~9.6% over the $364,100 assessed value. On the flip side, this is a 2002, 3bd / 2ba, ~1,200 sqft single-story — newer and with a second bathroom, so far less systems risk than the 1939 (Post) or 1974 (Valley Heights) candidates. Net: the cleanest house quality and the cheapest carrying cost, paid for with the thinnest cash cushion. If the ~$399k holds, negotiate toward assessed and it’s a strong, low-maintenance pick. FILE FOR THE EXEMPTION.