Less stress! (Missoula, Great Falls: for sale, houses, crime)

[beesweet]

Lately I've been wanting to live with less stress in my life. Although I live in a rural part of PA, I can see change coming - and FAST. Before reading many posts on this site over the past week I'd been thinking a change to Montana might be what I was looking for. I'd really appreciate some input from people about what they expect for the future in Montana. A lot of the posts that I've read make it sound amazingly similar to what's happening in the area of PA that I live in - I hope that someone can tell me I'm mistaken.
The taxes here in Pennsylvania are rising every year, we have fewer and fewer farms and crime is increasing.
Is there a place in Montana where a family can live simply and not have to worry about a home invasion or wonder if the taxes will go up so high that you won't be able to afford to keep your property?

[Elkman]

BeeSweet, even Montana is having this problem or will be very shortly. It's an increasing problem in every state and it's not going to end soon. The invasion continues and the middle class WILL be poor. Just like our government wanted this to happen. Blame them.

[jimj]

Yes there are places like the Yaak, Phillipsburg etc. Montana is growing like everywhere else but thankfully crime hasn't gotten crazy yet but it's growing in the bigger cities like Missoula and Great Falls etc. I don't know if we've had any home invasions yet. Take a look at the local papers from the areas that you might like to go to, most all crime is printed in them.

[beesweet]

Thanks for the replies.
Elkman - I do blame my government for some of the problems that are going on. What it eventually comes down to is how much the people will allow the "authorities" to push them around. I guess I was hoping that someone would tell me that there was still a little pioneer spirit left in Montana where people enjoyed being responsible for themselves rather than let the powers that be make all of their decisions for them.
jimj - I have been browsing some of the small town newspapers, but I'll keep looking and take a closer look around the areas that you've suggested. We live just outside a small town with a population of about 3000 right now. The local police authorities turn a blind eye to the raising crime rate, and we have been starting to have some home invasions. I'm just afraid that it's going to get a lot worse before it gets better here.
Thanks again and take care.

[jimj]

We currently live just outside a city of 3000 that has 5 cops at this point and they are mostly bored to death. I would say that outside of the big cities most people here have the "pioneer" spirit. Many of the ones I know hunt and fish for their food, chop wood for their heat and try to stay to themselves and avoid controversy. The farther out you get the more on your own you get to the point of being off the grid and really taking care of yourself. If that's what you're looking for it's here, you just have to look.

[beesweet]

jimj - you're making Montana sound more and more appealing! It sounds a lot like what it used to be here. Please don't misunderstand though...I'm not looking to become a hermit. We'd really like to find a place that has a sense of community - where peoples priorities haven't gotten out of kilter because of the almighty dollar. We do have a large garden that feeds us year round, and we'd like to continue with that wherever we end up.
We've already decided to make a few trips out there to see what we can see. Thanks for your advice...it's very much appreciated!

[laid-back-montanan]

Montana is a great place to live. I used to live on the east coast and what a change! Great place to raise kids too. Every state has its problems with the sprawling suburban areas, yes, but Montana's growth seems to be quite slow in comparison to most states. My family moved here years ago outside of town about 10 minutes and even now, we have found out that our private oasis will in 10 yrs or less be changed to accomodate a new highway. It's sad, but really considering that it's taken more than 10 yrs of living there and another 10 yrs for them to start and finish the project, you can live in peace much longer here than the states that are growing in population by 10-50% in only a few short years.

[jimj]

Bee,
Just keep in mind if you want a veggie garden you will need a hot house to do it. Quite a lot of people have small to medium hot houses in their yards to grow stuff, pretty much the only way to get tomatoes in any volume.

[beesweet]

laid-back-montanan - thanks for your opinion. I'm quite interested in people's thoughts on what the future holds for Montana. I know it's really a guessing game, but I figured that the people that live there know what's going on know and are the best judges on what the future holds for the state. I'm sorry to hear that progress is reaching your little corner...I guess it catches up everywhere eventually.
jimj - thanks for the advice on the gardening. I've noticed that many of the places listed for sale have greenhouses and guessed that one would be needed to grow all that I'd like. How do root crops do out there? We generally grow a lot of potatoes and beets.

[jimj]

There are tons of potatoes and such grown here, along with mint and cherries.