Reality Check (Billings, Missoula, Bozeman: sales, insurance, crime)

[ladyflyfsh]

For all of those who are looking into moving to Montana, there are many things that you need to consider that will be very different from where you are coming from.

For one thing, you will be living at high elevation. Anywhere from 3,000 feet and up for the most part. That means snow and cold in the winter, mountain passes, short garden growing season (we've already had killer frosts for 4 nights that did in most of the garden) and long distances to get most anywhere unless you live right in a city. Where I live which is an affordable area still, I have to drive 60 miles round trip to the grocery store. Gas prices here in MT right now are much higher than the national average. We only just dropped down to $2.99 where the national average is now $2.72. We even have our own oil refinery in Billings so figure that one out.

Housing is on the rise in cost and areas like Bozeman are busting at the seams with new growth and urban sprawl...almost too much to handle. It has become necessary for locals who lived in Bozeman before the boom, to leave and move to areas less expensive as the property taxes and housing costs...rents etc. have become way too much for them to afford. With magazine articles naming Bozeman the best small town in America for small businesses and recreation, the place has gone nuts. Along with all the new people arriving in town comes crime that has worked it's way in to these newly discovered "cool towns" and of course traffic jams, not enough schools and fire departments, waste management systems, police etc.

Now, that said, if you understand what Montana is really about you will love it here if you are an outdoor enthusiast and love to ski, hunt, fish, hike, bike etc. Just understand when you all come bringing in the big city problems from where you came, you will have to deal with it here as well. Montana is not immuned to these problems. There has been a meth problem here for a long time as well. So, all the questions I read on this forum, you all need to realize Montana is a huge state with fewer than one million people living here and that means higher costs for phones, insurance in some cases, gas prices and keeping in mind you will put many more miles on your vehicle here, heating costs, etc. You won't have to pay sales tax but you will pay state income tax. We just don't have the popluation to help share the costs.

Montana is a beautiful state but you need to come prepared. You will probably pay more for some things at the store and won't have access to much in the way of fresh produce in the winter. Places like Bozeman have a Coop but the prices are very high there by comparison. So, if you can prepare to come here and pay more for some things and accept the fact you live at a high elevation in the Rocky Moutains and we have cold weather, forest fires, snow and long winters....the saying goes "Montanan's have 9 months of winter and three months of company" so true. I'm not saying that is all a bad thing, but just preparing you for the reality of it all. Fewer people than LA? You bet. High percentage of college graduates? Only in places like Bozeman and Missoula which are college towns. Four seasons? Well sort of ....we usually go right from winter to summer overnight with cold rainy springs. Clean air? The cleanest when the state isn't burning up like it is right now. Cell phone service? Pretty much Verizon or local little companies like 3 Rivers. High speed wireless? Only in the larger towns...forget about out in the country...you will be stuck in dial up Hell once you get out of town. So you see, there are toss ups and pros and cons to everything so think carefully and do your research.

Good luck to each and every one of you. Just take your time and make wise choices.

[odiebear]

What a thoughtful message to share, Ladyflyfsh! As someone who has never been there, it gives me lots to ponder. I guess the major down-side for me would be lack of highspeed internet service in the country...or is it just high speed wireless? I'm not looking for a job (I'll be pretty much self-employed via the internet), just a retirement spot in the country. I'll be spending a month there next summer and can hardly wait. Anyway, I really appreciate your insight - thanks so much!

[Montanaman1]

Ladyflyfsh is spot on. Folks, do your homework. Study the internet, get books, magazines and newspapers. The more information you have, the better decision you will make. Bear in mind that as of the most recent census the population of Montana is declining. There must be a reason(s) for the decline.

[KatWrangler]

Excellent points! We have been doing our research and tomorrow we leave to visit Bozeman. So we will see.

[ladyflyfsh]

Well good luck to you KatWrangler and I hope it goes well for you. Keep us informed.

[rambrush]

Very well put, I have saw the weather in Butte the other day was 38 degrees can only imagine our property up at 7500' elevation. Had a inch of snow fall there June 1st and had over 4' of snow on the ground this last winter only way out was by snow cat or snowmobile.
Anaconda is a cold area as is Butte.

[MHT]

Originally Posted by odiebear

What a thoughtful message to share, Ladyflyfsh! As someone who has never been there, it gives me lots to ponder. I guess the major down-side for me would be lack of highspeed internet service in the country...or is it just high speed wireless? I'm not looking for a job (I'll be pretty much self-employed via the internet), just a retirement spot in the country. I'll be spending a month there next summer and can hardly wait. Anyway, I really appreciate your insight - thanks so much!

Many small towns also have high speed internet. I lived in Fairfield (pop 800) and they have high speed internet. Moved to Minneapolis and only had dial-up - very slow dial up at that!

[MTer]

Great comments again by Ladyflyfish (sorry I forgot the fly part earlier!).

One correction, though. In some parts of MT you won't even get dial-up Internet. It's very possible to move to locations that are totally off-the-grid, meaning no public utilities at all (thus solar or wind power, cell phone if even that, one's own propane tank(s), and satellite Internet as the only option for Internet). Areas in the mountains, e.g., in mountain draws (narrow valleys) don't necessarily receive air signals, thus may not have cell coverage, may have minimal radio and TV coverage (without a satellite dish), and, again, may have satellite Internet as the only option. No public utilities are a separate issue (but also making properties off-the-grid). Cities don't just expand power, phone, and gas lines to every property in their regions. If you buy a place without lines already, the cost to bring them in--unless a very short distance--is very high.

Also one quick comment on gasoline prices--while now MT is 20 cents or so higher than much of the country, many times (I travel by vehicle frequently) Montana gas prices are lower than those in the midwest, back east, etc. One can monitor national gas prices quite easily by checking the gas price "temperature" map on www.gasbuddy.com (which does show Montana prices as very high these days, as Ladyflyfish pointed out).

Originally Posted by ladyflyfsh

For all of those who are looking into moving to Montana, there are many things that you need to consider that will be very different from where you are coming from.

For one thing, you will be living at high elevation. Anywhere from 3,000 feet and up for the most part. That means snow and cold in the winter, mountain passes, short garden growing season (we've already had killer frosts for 4 nights that did in most of the garden) and long distances to get most anywhere unless you live right in a city. Where I live which is an affordable area still, I have to drive 60 miles round trip to the grocery store. Gas prices here in MT right now are much higher than the national average. We only just dropped down to $2.99 where the national average is now $2.72. We even have our own oil refinery in Billings so figure that one out.

[cut]

So you see, there are toss ups and pros and cons to everything so think carefully and do your research.

Good luck to each and every one of you. Just take your time and make wise choices.

[New York]

I very much appreciated this candid appraisal of life in Montana. Twenty years ago the small town we came from in New York was laid back and affordable. Not so anymore. Doing ones homework involves more than looking at statistics and reading a few articles. Although it is quite beautiful here, if I had read your remarks a month ago, I might have urged my husband to make a different decision. As far as the gas proces go, Montana might be above the national avearge but they are quite a bit lower than they were at the pump in NY 10 days ago.

[odiebear]

Thanks for the information on high speed internet service...or lack of any service at all. Definitely something to consider. Sometimes I take what I have where I am for granted because I'm so used to it. All of this information is a healthy wake-up call for me - and is much appreciated!