State of the Construction Industry in Wyoming, Montana, Utah, and Idaho for a General Contractor (Kalispell: school)

[wmeyer116]

Hello all,

I'm from Tennessee, born and raised in the south. I have recently graduated from a 4 year university with my degree in Financial management. I, however, do not want a desk job at this point in my life. I got the degree with the mindset that it would be a good general business degree that could carry over in other careers. While in school I worked construction in the summers, and I have seriously been considering getting my contractor’s license. Right now I am waiting for my girlfriend to finish getting her masters in nursing, which she still has 1.5 years left.

I will be staying in Tennessee for the time being until she is finished, but at that point I will be moving with her to either Wyoming, Montana, Utah, or Idaho. I have traveled to all four states and spent time backpacking and fishing there, although Montana seems to be my favorite, especially the Kalispell area,(however I have heard that it is getting crowded). The plan now is to get my contractors license in the next few months, and do some work here until she is finished, then pick up and move. She will be able to get a job mostly anywhere, and we are open to really anywhere near or in the mountains.

My question is, for those of you with experience, what is the state or the outlook of the construction industry for these states compared with one another? I don't want to just blindly move to a location that I like only to have there be no real options for me to work. I would obviously need time to get a crew together and all that, but I’m more interested in learning about the overall health of the industry.

Any help would be appreciated,

Thanks,

Will M

[The-White-Baron]

Logging has been clumped in Montana, the forest service is too tight and restrictive.

What exactly is a contracting license? We don't have those up here AFAIK.

[wmeyer116]

I meant to say a general contractor license. So residential or commercial construction. In Tennessee it allows you to do anything from build a deck for someone to pave a public road.