Population:

39th largest U.S. State by population, with 1,545,801 people (2009 estimate).
14th largest state in the country by area, at 83,642 square miles.

Largest city: Boise

Median income:$47,576 (2008 estimate)

Climate:
Yearly rainfall: 11.7 inches per year
Yearly snowfall: 21 inches per year in Boise, but in some areas annual snowfall can approach 500 inches.
Temperatures (High/Low) in capital city of Boise:
January, 37/24; July, 89/60

Foreclosures:
Foreclosure activity for 2009 increased in Idaho over the prior year. There was a total of 17,161 properties with filings. That works out to a rate of one filing for every 37 households, which compares to the United States average of 45, and is a little less than three percent of the state’s housing units.

Those figures represent a 101 percent increase over 2008 and a 371 percent increase over 2007.

In 2008 there were about 26,500 existing homes (including condos, co-ops, and single-family homes but excluding new homes) sold in Idaho, compared to about 36,300 sold in 2007.

Economy:
Idaho potatoes account for about one-third of all the potatoes produced nationally every year, but despite what many might think, potatoes make up only about 5 percent of economic output. Nearly 25 percent of Idaho commerce comes instead from science and technology companies. Some prominent examples include Micron Technologies, Hewlett-Packard and Sun Microsystems.

Noteworthy:
As of 2005, Idaho was the sixth fastest-growing state in the country. Its largest city, Boise grew almost 50 percent between 1990 and 2000.