Not what its cracked up to be (Missoula, Conrad: fit in, sales)

[henryj10]

Stay in California, I just moved to the Missoula area of Montana from Washington,and wish I had stayed. There are less trees, less scenary, and less beauty here than in California oregon or even Washington.

I thought the people here would be more respectful curtious and generally friendly after leaving the city, but it was the complete opposite people here are more rude than in a metro area such as seattle, portland, or the many in California.

And as for trees and wildlife/mountains there is more beauty in western Washington, northern California and Oregon then there is here short of the tiny fragment of mountains and trees in western montana,and what you can see of Idaho on the western sky scape.

They should divid the state, 1/4 of montana the western montana can still be called montana(mountains) and eastern, the majority of the state can be renamed llano(flat) in spanish because thats what it is flat almost deserty looking plains, if you ask me this state is a hell hole.

Cost of living is beginning to rival an oregon/eastern washington based housing market, and the job market/economy even with the troubled times in the U.S. or even the world rivals a third world country, stay away from montana. When you do find a job if your from out of state they won't give it to because they hate californians, washingtonians and any other who isn't from Montana, if you come here change your plates quick

[Stephan_K]

There is a simple solution... Pack your crap and go back to your paradise where ever it is ! You obviously don't have the ability to see let alone appreciate what MT has to offer.

Don't let the door...

[blackhillsdreams]

Originally Posted by henryj10

Stay in California, I just moved to the Missoula area of Montana from Washington,and wish I had stayed. There are less trees, less scenary, and less beauty here than in California oregon or even Washington.

I thought the people here would be more respectful curtious and generally friendly after leaving the city, but it was the complete opposite people here are more rude than in a metro area such as seattle, portland, or the many in California.

And as for trees and wildlife/mountains there is more beauty in western Washington, northern California and Oregon then there is here short of the tiny fragment of mountains and trees in western montana,and what you can see of Idaho on the western sky scape.

They should divid the state, 1/4 of montana the western montana can still be called montana(mountains) and eastern, the majority of the state can be renamed llano(flat) in spanish because thats what it is flat almost deserty looking plains, if you ask me this state is a hell hole.

Cost of living is beginning to rival an oregon/eastern washington based housing market, and the job market/economy even with the troubled times in the U.S. or even the world rivals a third world country, stay away from montana. When you do find a job if your from out of state they won't give it to because they hate californians, washingtonians and any other who isn't from Montana, if you come here change your plates quick

Pretty harsh assessment there Henry. I can't say that I disagree with you though because I had the same experience back in '96 when I moved to Stevensville for the summer with the intent of staying put. I couldn't find work that paid enough to survive on, real estate prices were going insane, got pulled over within the first week for having out of state plates, and found strangers not to be too friendly.

However, there are some things to consider:
1. Real estate prices went nuts primarily because Californians came in with loads of cash from the equity they'd made selling their overpriced homes back in Cali and they would plunk down just about anything anyone was asking. This is the main reason Montanans aren't too keen on them. The saying was, "Montana's biggest export is its children" because average families growing up there wouldn't be able to afford a home similar to what they grew up in based on the real, working economy there so they went to college and left. Now you could say that Montanans selling their land took the money and kept running the prices up. That would be TRUE. But the land would have sold anyway, if the prices were kept lower, the Californians would have just bought more of it...
2. In areas where the populations are spread out, jobs are thin. If you have a small business and you have a bad taste in your mouth for what outsiders are perceived as having done to your town, would you offer them a job if you knew a local needed the job too? Probably not.
3. Cost of living has gone up everywhere. Not just there.
4. Montana is beautiful, maybe different from other places, but still beautiful.

If you don't like it, leave. I did. Sometimes I wish I'd stayed, but when I see posts like this, I know I made the right decision. It isn't for everybody.

Best of luck to you wherever you end up.

[I_Want_Snow]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder... what may be ugly to you will be breathtaking to others.

Maybe you should have visited and researched a little more before you moved! To pack up and move somewhere without knowing what you are getting into and then bitching about it is nothing but pure ignorance on your part!

It's people with pi$$ poor attitudes like yours that makes the people of Montana hate outsiders. Sounds like you just needed something to complain about as I see you posted this same comment on another thread

[warriors_wife]

My husband and I are moving to Conrad, MT in the next few weeks. I have to say we are really looking forward to it. All I can say is you get out of anything what you are prepared to put into it. Wherever you land I wish you well.

[GLS]

Originally Posted by henryj10

Stay in California, I just moved to the Missoula area of Montana from Washington,and wish I had stayed. There are less trees, less scenary, and less beauty here than in California oregon or even Washington.

I thought the people here would be more respectful curtious and generally friendly after leaving the city, but it was the complete opposite people here are more rude than in a metro area such as seattle, portland, or the many in California.

And as for trees and wildlife/mountains there is more beauty in western Washington, northern California and Oregon then there is here short of the tiny fragment of mountains and trees in western montana,and what you can see of Idaho on the western sky scape.

They should divid the state, 1/4 of montana the western montana can still be called montana(mountains) and eastern, the majority of the state can be renamed llano(flat) in spanish because thats what it is flat almost deserty looking plains, if you ask me this state is a hell hole.

Cost of living is beginning to rival an oregon/eastern washington based housing market, and the job market/economy even with the troubled times in the U.S. or even the world rivals a third world country, stay away from montana. When you do find a job if your from out of state they won't give it to because they hate californians, washingtonians and any other who isn't from Montana, if you come here change your plates quick

If you can afford to move back to the West Coast, do it. If you can't, you need to work on changing your attitude. Not only are you perpetuating the stereotype of the disrespectful immigrant, but you are inviting locales to pi$$ on you. If you don't make a sincere effort to fit in, Montanans are going to reciprocate your negativity.

[Reart]

That is funny because I have had the a different experience. I have only run across a few people that are "missunderstood".

Fresh air
clean rivers
No gangs/low crime
Better people than I am used to dealing with.
Great hunting, fishing and gun laws

Henry judgeing from your comments you might want do a character check. Just take it as constructive criticism. "City Folks" sometimes carry an air of superiority and it is apparent in your post. If you want people to respect you then be respectful. That is true in any place you live.

[lannychuck]

I have lived in so California, central Oregon (visiting Portland often), northwest Montana, and now live in north central Montana. All have their own beauty and their own advantages and disadvantages. I have found that people east of the mountains in Montana are more like midwesterners (open, friendly but not obtrusive), and accepting, unless you want to flaunt your "big city superiority." The weather is not nearly as extreme as we had been told it might be (been here five years). Housing prices here are relatively low in the smaller towns--you can still buy a nice home for less than 200,000, there is no sales tax, and food and others prices are only slightly higher than average. Outdoor recreation abounds. As for scenery, it is hard to beat the northwest, but I certainly don't miss the traffic, crime, and crowds of Los Angeles area. We are retired and we would not have chosen to live in Missoula for the very reasons you have mentioned, but it is a small city, afterall, and has been strongly influenced by the influx of Californians and others. But if you are unhappy in Montana, by all means move if you can afford to. Life is too short to be stuck in a place you hate. For my wife and I, we love it here and we have the ability to travel and visit other places when we want a taste of city or other life. Best wishes no matter what you decide.

[AQHA]

Sorry you have not found Montana to your liking. It is a different way of life here and not for everyone. We like it slow and small town around here. Good luck to you in your travels.

[rambrush]

As has been posted and I tell everyone, you have to come visit and stay a week or three to get a feel for Montana. It is not for everyone.