Foreclosures in Idaho increased in 2009 over the prior year. There was a total of 17,161 properties with foreclosure 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.
Idaho is the 39th largest U.S. state by population, with 1,545,801 people (in 2009). Its 83,642 square miles make it the 14th largest state by area. Median household income in 2008 was $54,124.
Each year, Idaho produces one-third of all the potatoes in the U.S. Despite that, potato production comprises only about 5 percent of the state's economic output. Almost 25 percent of Idaho's commerce comes instead from science and technology companies. Well-known examples include Micron Technologies, Hewlett-Packard and Sun Microsystems.