new home??? (Stevensville, Darby: housing, rent, jobs)

[guinness212]

Hi, my fiance and I are considering picking up and moving to Montana after we get married June 2007. We currently living in Minnesota, and we are looking for something for different. My fiance spent a few weeks in Stevensville while he was firefighting, and he fell in the love with the place. We are thinking about looking in that area. We are both teachers and both incredibly nervous and exicted to move, we would be living our family, friends, pretty much everything we've ever known. I need some input on the area. Good schools, affordable living, nice people???? Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

Thanks!

Steph

[sdcowgirl]

Montana certainly needs teachers BUT hate to tell you that your wages will be less than Minnesota. For school info and teaching info including jobs type in Office of Public Instruction Montana on any search engine and you will get the state site. Hope that helps!

[ladyflyfsh]

guinness212,

Check out this website http://www.opi.state.mt.us and you can register to have any job openings emailed to you. You can also apply for jobs online through this site.

Just about anywhere in the Bitteroot will cost you some $$ to buy property or a house. I don't know where you'll be coming from MN but you can count on making less in MT than you would ANYWHERE else.

Good luck!

[JoeJoeMan]

I hear the pay state wide isn't not very good. I know teachers from montana now working outta' state, that had job offers to come back and turned them down because of the pay.
Any place in montana that people thing is a nice part of the state to live, has had the home prices driven up, up, up, up, and thru the roof (no poun intended).
I know people/places back east, nice rural towns, where teacher salaries are 2 to 3 times that of MT and home prices are half to 3rd less that of MT.
Other than the views, Montana is not such an attractive place to move anymore, it kinda got loved to death.

[guinness212]

Well I am a first year teacher, so I really don't expect to be making a whole lot anyway. My fiance and I just got into contact with a couple from Darby who are renting their house out for a year. The house is beautiful and very affordable, so even if I get a job that doesn't pay well, it will still pay the bills. Hopefully since the towns around that area are looking for teachers. So we are keeping our fingers crossed and trying Montana out!!

[mthawki]

Guinness,

You just have to decide what your priorities are in life and go for it. If you're content with lower pay in a small MT town with affordable housing then do it. Since you're just starting off in your profession, a few years in MT might be just what you need to get your feet wet.
The pay in Minnesota for teachers is a lot higher, but so is most of the housing unless you live in a smaller, rural town. If you're not looking for a Twin Cities lifestyle, then small town MT will be perfect for you.

[JoeJoeMan]

I guess you know or will find out what the pay is.
A couple quick stories....My friend tought for a year in western MT, quit and went back to carpentry, he said it payed much better, and less agrivation, and all that after he spent the time to get the degree,
I had another friend, said hey I'm in negotiations for a job teaching at UM, the next I heard, he said he'd never move here for what they offered him.
I may be wrong, and you will probably find out, but I'm under the impression it's not easy to get a teaching job in the more desirerable places in MT, as everyone wants to get a job there, and even though the pay is grap, lots of people apply, which is typical of finding any job in Montana, lots of competition of low paying jobs. People do it because they want to live here, but that usualy only last so long, and then most come to their senses and pack their bags for greener pastures.