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What do you do for a living? I know you say in your first post that budget is not an issue, but do you have the financial resources to spend $400,000 to $600,000 or more buying land, putting in utilities and building a house? Montana is an expensive place to live especially taking into account local salaries are lower than average and jobs not plentiful.
Consider that if you are commuting 2 hours a day that could be 120 miles round-trip which would be a minimum of 6 tanks of gas a month at somewhere between $35 - $80 a tank which would be $210 - $480 just for your gas. Potentially double that if your husband has a commute also and now you're spending $500 - $950 on gas a month. That's not even counting if your daughters have to drive themselves anywhere in a third vehicle. Add that together with a $300,000 to $500,000 mortgage and normal living expenses and you're talking about needing an annual income of $90,000 - $120,000 although realistically more than that since there's a lot of added expenses to maintaining a property with acreage. Of course if you can afford to pay cash for your house, then the situation improves significantly.
Something else to think about since you say you've always lived in town. Since your husband is a CDL driver, he most likely will need to take jobs that will have him working away from home for days at a time. During that time, you and your daughters will be alone on the property. Services and supplies could be many miles away as could help in an emergency. Your nearest neighbor could be a mile or more away. In the winter, you would be responsible for plowing your road so you can get to work. Sometimes, storms will come thru and you might not be able to leave your property for a couple of days or more. You will need to ask yourself if you can deal with this level of isolation, especially once your daughters leave home and you're there by yourself. I'm just bringing it up because there's a lot of people who can't deal with this level of isolation and only you know if you can handle this.
I not trying to discourage you from moving to Montana, but you should know what you're getting into before you spend the money on a move. The reality of living in rural Montana is not something most people can handle so kudos to you if you can.
Hey, I just wanted to piggy back onto some of the advise you have received already.
1. Look for land that has a well and septic on it. It is well worth the extra expense. Well drilling can be very tricky here. My boss purchased a propery and spent 60,000.00 trying to find water. Uknown to them there was a large solid rock shelf beneath their property that the well dirllers couldn't find the bottom too. They ended up having to purchase a property next to theirs that was for sell as well, that had a good well on it. My boss has ton's of money so it worked out for them, but man if it was a middle class family they would have been ruined. One of my coworkers has the opposite problem, the soil on their property wouldn't support a septic tank, so they had to use an above ground tank. Well it freezes in the winter, so they can only use their place during the summer right now.
2. If the property has a small house, don't just overlook it. Have a contractor see if a second story can be added. Many people I know have purchased small homes, and added a second floor. If the house is in good condition, a good contractor will even reuse the roof. So you could turn a 900 sq ft 2 bedroom house into an 1,800 sq ft 4 bed house. I will be cheaper, maybe 50 to 60 k, then buying the bigger house, or building from scratch. Again if it has a well and septic already, you are saving yourself that 50k already.
About the road no maintenance-
In some counties there are county roads that are not maintained in the winter--likely none are.
The thing with county roads is you as private citizen can not plow them. So snowed shut county roads become accessible by snowmobile only.
So it is important to know if road is county road, private lane, subdivision road or what. The road as described means it will be a summer use only parcel due to deep snow & later on deep mud.
It is funny that last poster likes Drummond & Clinton. We all like different places. I think of both as undesirable.
We have a little more remodeling left on our house before its ready to be listed, sewer back up and flooding in the basement from a flash flood last august, has us putting the kitchen and the rest of our remodel from last year on hold.
Hi Lynda, I hope you'll forgive me tossing in my two cents on a topic on which you absolutely did not ask for advice.
I'm venturing to offer it because I've had a ton of experience over the years buying and selling houses, I was a licensed agent for a time, and a good friend of mine for years is a very high-producing agent. What I've understood from her and from every other credible source, is that you virtually never get the money you invest in remodeling back when you sell the house.
If by remodeling you mean surface, cosmetic changes, that's great and can help you sell your house more quickly, for a better price. But anything more, such as new cabinets, sinks, or appliances, will almost inevitably cost you more than the value they'll add to your home (not to mention your wasted time and effort). Even if your kitchen is pure D hideous (looking at my own as I say this ), a true remodel will almost certainly not pay off. Because everyone has different ideas as to how a kitchen should work and what it should look like, you're far more likely to attract buyers with a more competitive price than with a freshly redone kitchen that will still not be exactly what any given individual buyer wants.
The last house I sold had a kitchen that was vintage 1980's, with very worn appliances. I put some effort into detail-cleaning it, shining up the windows and the ancient stainless steel sink. I spent a meditative hour touching up little rust spots on the fridge with matching appliance paint - the fridge was at least 20 years old and I knew no buyer would keep it, but if a prospective buyer opens the door and sees rust, there goes $5000 off the home's perceived value. New paint on the walls and new curtains. The house sold for a very decent price, and this was during the lowest point of the real estate crash in this area.
On the other hand, everything you do to totally erase any and all evidence of the sewer backup and flood will be valuable when you go to sell the house. Buyers are justifiably phobic about water problems and, especially, mold. However, if what they see when they walk through are walls and floors with no water marks or mold, even if they know there's been flooding in the past it won't really matter to them much. The house I just mentioned had a basement flood two days before the buyers' final walk-through, and they knew it. But I got the water out before there were stains, and rented a big industrial-type fan to dry everything out, and the whole house looked really fresh and clean for the walk-through. The buyers didn't even blink re: the flooding.
Well, I'm sure you've got your house sale preparation plans fully in order, and very likely none of what I just said applies to your situation. I'm offering it anyway, since it might be news to someone else. My agent friend says it's heartbreaking to work with homeowners who have put $$$$ into remodeling, only to find out that it won't increase the sale price of their home enough to offset the costs.
The best of luck with your sale and move to Montana - it sounds like it'll be a very interesting new life!
Some places in the state get snow measured in feet per storm, some places will only see a few inches all winter and that usually goes off quickly. The state is huge with several different climates.
Hi MTSilvertip, I'm like to know where the places in Montana that only get a few inches of snow are located?
Hi MTSilvertip, I'm like to know where the places in Montana that only get a few inches of snow are located?
There are a lot of places where perhaps feet fall, but the winds take it out of the country quickly. My parents have a ranch near Big Timber, they've only plowed the road once in 15 years
Of course the reason for that was the wind was 70 MPH and blew for a week, which I think blew the snow off of the Crazy's and covered the plains down below.
All of the state will get snow, but in some areas it doesn't stick for long due to exposure to the sun and wind. If you're in the mountains though, all bets are off.
There are a lot of places where perhaps feet fall, but the winds take it out of the country quickly. My parents have a ranch near Big Timber, they've only plowed the road once in 15 years
Of course the reason for that was the wind was 70 MPH and blew for a week, which I think blew the snow off of the Crazy's and covered the plains down below.
Once in 15 years! Around here (CT), it seems like all I do all winter long is trudge around with a shovel, clearing out walls of snow. The wind would be much preferable, although 70 mph for a whole week..... I love wind, but possibly not that MUCH wind.
Thank you for all the info and responses. This past year has been hectic to say the least, job loss, a death in the family and personal situations had put or plans of moving on hold.
It amazes me at times to look back at the past year and see what has been thrown at us and what we have over come. With that being said, my husband and I are more determined to set some real plans in place and consider our move to MT in the next few years.
We have been doing a lot of research over the past few months, based on all the info we have gotten here. We have always lived in a town/city environment and have always had what we needed at our fingertips, for the most part.
We are looking to a more simple life, more of an off grid life. I still have questions about this but for now we are researching and surfing the web for all of our questions to get some answers. I would have to say that we have found some interesting off grid living advice from people that have been doing it for 20+ years but we never get the questions answered that have us still questioning a few things.
We have done a lot of research on land and the area we want to relocate to. However, when you are looking for land that is stated in the listing as 'road has no maintenance in winter and would need a snowmobile nov-may' has me a little concerned.
My concern is school. I have a daughter that will still be in school when we move and where I am, school is something that kids have to go to or you are being charged with truancy and family services get involved, along with the county attorney and possibly the court system. My daughter said she would rather be home schooled, but I have no clue what that all entails and how to go about doing it.
I think at times I find things to detour me from making the choice to move, but after a drug raid on a house across the alley from me, I know in my heart I want to move more now than I have ever wanted to in the past. I just want to make sure in my decision that I have covered everything and that the surprises that may come up I can handle.
I have always been the type of person that stockpiles, to have what is needed on hand at all times. My husband is a jack of all trades and rarely do we ever have to hire anyone to do anything, electric/plumbing is the only thing we have to hire out for, everything needs to be certified by a professional.
We have a little more remodeling left on our house before its ready to be listed, sewer back up and flooding in the basement from a flash flood last august, has us putting the kitchen and the rest of our remodel from last year on hold.
In august we are planning a visit to MT to look at some property, Missoula, powell and granite county is where we will start looking. I believe, Clinton, Drummond are the names of the towns that are near by some of the land. I don't have my map in front of me, but do remember those two names coming up a lot.
Thanks for letting me vent a little, can't wait tell august when I get to visit MT again.
Welcome back! I remember your original post from last year. Sorry for your loss, and the emotional upheaval it has caused. Since I've been through something similar recently, I can attest to the fact that having a dream about relocating can help see you through some very trying times. So keep thinking about MT, but realistically. Lots of good advice here. That being said, we are now in our 7th year of owning retirement property on the ID/MT border, and we're building a cabin in stages, and "visiting ourselves" every summer. We opted for building a cabin before putting in a well or septic, because with the economy being what it was, we'd have a well and a septic but no cabin . We got the place perked, of course, so we know a septic will work. It goes in next year. We will probably haul water until we actually live on the property full time, but we know there are good wells in the area.
So it can be done, postponing the septic and the well, but I would agree that if you have the option of finding a piece of land/house you like with a well and septic in place, it will save you a bundle.
I'd certainly be cautious about the "no winter maintenance." You should expect to plow your own access road, so make sure the main road/county road is plowed, and then figure out how long a driveway/access road you think you'll want to plow. As tempting as it may be to get 20 acres way up the mountain, you really don't want to plow 2 miles of access road...with potholes in it...
What do you do for a living? I know you say in your first post that budget is not an issue, but do you have the financial resources to spend $400,000 to $600,000 or more buying land, putting in utilities and building a house? Montana is an expensive place to live especially taking into account local salaries are lower than average and jobs not plentiful.
Consider that if you are commuting 2 hours a day that could be 120 miles round-trip which would be a minimum of 6 tanks of gas a month at somewhere between $35 - $80 a tank which would be $210 - $480 just for your gas. Potentially double that if your husband has a commute also and now you're spending $500 - $950 on gas a month. That's not even counting if your daughters have to drive themselves anywhere in a third vehicle. Add that together with a $300,000 to $500,000 mortgage and normal living expenses and you're talking about needing an annual income of $90,000 - $120,000 although realistically more than that since there's a lot of added expenses to maintaining a property with acreage. Of course if you can afford to pay cash for your house, then the situation improves significantly.
Something else to think about since you say you've always lived in town. Since your husband is a CDL driver, he most likely will need to take jobs that will have him working away from home for days at a time. During that time, you and your daughters will be alone on the property. Services and supplies could be many miles away as could help in an emergency. Your nearest neighbor could be a mile or more away. In the winter, you would be responsible for plowing your road so you can get to work. Sometimes, storms will come thru and you might not be able to leave your property for a couple of days or more. You will need to ask yourself if you can deal with this level of isolation, especially once your daughters leave home and you're there by yourself. I'm just bringing it up because there's a lot of people who can't deal with this level of isolation and only you know if you can handle this.
I not trying to discourage you from moving to Montana, but you should know what you're getting into before you spend the money on a move. The reality of living in rural Montana is not something most people can handle so kudos to you if you can.
Patches403 - thank you for the information you provided on the financial aspect of land and travel. I am not taking a move like this likely, which is why I am doing so much research and asking questions. Where better to get some answers or a point in the right direction is by using this forum.
I did have to take some time off due to 'life' as at times it can get in the way of the things you are wanting. But, during that time I have continued with the research and my husband has been making phone calls and getting info on the alternative power source.
The job loss was mine, I actually left the job to take care of things at home as they got hectic, for us. My husband and I sat down last night for about 2 hours and talked over everything that would be a factor in the planning for the move, to the actual move itself. Prepare, prepare, prepare, that is what we are doing right now. We would like to see it happen in a 3 year window, but it may take us 5+ years depending on a lot of factors.
My husbands CDL has had him away from home for 3-6 weeks at a time, I completely understand the concern for being isolated and the capability of me being able to handle the 'life' of country living in isolation. We talked in depth about that last night.
Hey, I just wanted to piggy back onto some of the advise you have received already.
Absolutely, any help and info is always appreciated.
1. Look for land that has a well and septic on it. It is well worth the extra expense. Well drilling can be very tricky here. My boss purchased a propery and spent 60,000.00 trying to find water. Uknown to them there was a large solid rock shelf beneath their property that the well dirllers couldn't find the bottom too. They ended up having to purchase a property next to theirs that was for sell as well, that had a good well on it. My boss has ton's of money so it worked out for them, but man if it was a middle class family they would have been ruined. One of my coworkers has the opposite problem, the soil on their property wouldn't support a septic tank, so they had to use an above ground tank. Well it freezes in the winter, so they can only use their place during the summer right now.
Yes, this is one topic that was talked over in great detail last night. We have planned to sit down this weekend and discuss more on the land and what we feel we will be able to purchase/handle/ and what requirements we need in order to make the move.
2. If the property has a small house, don't just overlook it. Have a contractor see if a second story can be added. Many people I know have purchased small homes, and added a second floor. If the house is in good condition, a good contractor will even reuse the roof. So you could turn a 900 sq ft 2 bedroom house into an 1,800 sq ft 4 bed house. I will be cheaper, maybe 50 to 60 k, then buying the bigger house, or building from scratch. Again if it has a well and septic already, you are saving yourself that 50k already.
Again, yes this is one of the topics that we discussed last night. We are weighing our options of what we will need/want on our land. Or the possibility of purchasing the land and building before we make the move. Always planning/thinking/researching.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
Thank you.
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), a true remodel will almost certainly not pay off. Because everyone has different ideas as to how a kitchen should work and what it should look like, you're far more likely to attract buyers with a more competitive price than with a freshly redone kitchen that will still not be exactly what any given individual buyer wants.
. We got the place perked, of course, so we know a septic will work. It goes in next year. We will probably haul water until we actually live on the property full time, but we know there are good wells in the area. 
