Moving to Great Falls - Malmstrom AFB (college, live)

[ZenPanda]

I live in GF & I don't find the "we hate outsiders" attitude as much as I did when i lived in Dillon....

The majority of the military members stationed here don't stay anyway...

[ElkHunter]

But to me. The military should be saluted. Each and every member. The fact that they are looked at differently is rediculouse. I'm sorry that they are. They are not there to disturb anything. They are there on orders and will try to adhere to customs, ideas and such. It's not their fault. They try, to the best of their ability to adjust, because they've been thrown all over the country, or even the world, and they try to make a home in each place they can. Then they are questioned and possibly shunned because they are an outsider. Transplant.

Transplant or not. Thank you for your service, and thank your wife and kids for putting up with you. I salute.

[greaterfalls]

I've lived in Great Falls for six years, and there does seem to be a LITTLE bit of a bias against SOME military members: the young "missile cops." Fair or not, they do have a certain reputation for unruly behavior.

The vast majority of Great Falls residents love the military - but I will admit that some folks sort of raise their eyebrows when they see young airmen zipping along 10th Avenue South in their "tricked-out" cars with spinning rims and street-thumping music.

But I think that reaction is pretty common no matter where you live.

[tka6]

Originally Posted by jnmarcus

My husband and I just received orders that we will be moving to Great Falls this summer where my husband will work at Malmstrom AFB. Since we will only be stationed there for less than 2 years, we are planning to rent. We are really hoping to rent a house - hopefully 3 bedrooms with a 2 car garage. Are there many houses available for rent in the area? Where would we look to see what is available for rent?

Any other tips I should know about searching for housing? (We would prefer not to live on base.) Thanks in advance for all your help!

Hello, my husband just got reassigned to Malmstrom as well. We will be stationed there for 4 years, for now. We are planning to buy a house, but I have found REALTOR.com - Real Estate Listings & Homes For Sale to be very helpful. There are several houses for sale/rent from what we've seen so far. However, looks like we are going to be in temporary housing on base until we find what we want. It's so hard to know until when we actually get there. Hope this helped a little! Good luck on your move!

[Reziac]

Originally Posted by jnmarcus

Any other tips I should know about searching for housing? (We would prefer not to live on base.) Thanks in advance for all your help!

I don't know about Malmstrom in recent years, tho in the Olden Days the base housing was mainly meant for single guys, and the married quarters were too minimal for families with kids. My AF friends all lived in town, but they all had multiple kids, too. (BTW the public schools in GtF are excellent. And dunno about now, but when I had base privs, the BX and commissary were wonderful.)

But I do know the Air Force has been upgrading its housing -- as best I can tell from driving thru 'em, the new base housing on Edwards AFB is the nicest in the entire area, on or off the base. Big yards with lots of trees, nice single-family houses, quiet streets, lots of open space, the works. (The houses they replaced don't look bad either, mostly just smaller and starting to show their age, tho their neighbourhood is beautiful, if neglected now, with big mature trees.) And they're real family houses, the friendly practical *livable* type you'd find in a quiet older town, not McMansions with cathedral ceilings but tiny bedrooms. If Malmstrom has been upgraded already, you might find what you need right on base.

As to rentals in town, if it were me I'd be looking in the middle east side, probably the most pleasant residential part of GtF -- lots of rental houses there and good proximity to schools, just need the luck to find a rental coming open.

And here's a salute to you and yours in uniform!

[bluesaint]

I have to say that I think ElkHunter is a little off. With as little business growth as there is in GF, one of the most common remarks I used to hear is that without the base, GF would be a basically dead economy. So in that sense we appreciate the fact that we have a military base and the people that come with it. On the other hand it is an older folks community and you get the "Jetters" as we may call them cruising main in their "tricked out" cars and playing loud music through neighborhoods that go to bed early. I mean the whole town shuts down pretty early, except for a few late night diners and the bars/casinos.

The housing there is fairly inexpensive due to the slow economic pace. The average pay rate for non-professionals is lower too, but if your military you don't have to worry about this so much. There is not a lot to do other than eat out and see a movie occasionally. It doesn't have a lot of the entertainment that other larger metro areas may offers. I moved to Bozeman, Mt about a year ago for school and just to get out of GF for a while. I like Bozeman a lot more but it is very expensive in terms of housing. Anyway, hope this adds a little perspective for you.

[Reziac]

Originally Posted by bluesaint

I have to say that I think ElkHunter is a little off. With as little business growth as there is in GF, one of the most common remarks I used to hear is that without the base, GF would be a basically dead economy.

Now, I think in other terms. You don't need GROWTH. You just need STABILITY. Growth tends to mean faster paced lifestyle, more stock-market-driven companies, fewer opportunities for the little guy. Yeah, you don't make tons of money in a flat economy, but you won't go broke trying to compete with Wall Street bottom-lines either.

So... Great Falls, Malmstrom and all, is *stable*. And that's better than growth -- unless you're aimin' to get rich. But rich isn't reality for most of us. We just want the price of eggs not to go up. Stable is GOOD.

[PEARLSELBY]

Hi We would like any info on Raynesford. Thank you in advance

Originally Posted by ElkHunter

Nope, don't believe I am. Military or not, they don't like outsiders. They look at everybody as an outsider, potential advocate, danger to Montana and I really have to agree. If somebody moves in, are they military, temporary family, or are they California transplants. They don't know until you've been there for a bit and talked to people.

Too many family's have been burnt by transplants. So their anger and resistiveness is justified. They have more transplants then they do Military. But once they understand that your military, things are cool. For the most part.

[Blue Jeans Blue Eyes]

Originally Posted by theRain

I really think that folks in Great Falls are quite used to people moving in and out of the area as they are stationed at Malmstrom! The AFB has been there a LONG time. So while it is nice that this guy is saying nice things, I think he is overstating the potential negative reaction.

I agree. I think GF may be the most welcoming and diverse community in the whole state of Montana. I like visiting GF. It is a nice place and I think most of the people stationed there are happy being there.

[Reziac]

Originally Posted by PEARLSELBY

Hi We would like any info on Raynesford. Thank you in advance

It's about 6 buildings in the middle of nowhere. My understanding is that it's the remains of a mining camp that turned into a small farm depot. Anyway, nothing much there. Not really a town. Pretty country, tho I'd guess it's a good place to get snowed-in at.