Billings, MT--Tell Me About It? (Malmstrom AFB: for sale, house, job market)

[radjxf]

Hello all. I currently reside in central MO.
I'm interviewing for a position in Billings. Our family consists of my wife and I, 8 y/o son and a very large cat!

Our plan is a home with 5-10 acres outside of Billings.
We are generally conservative, love the outdoors (son is an expert fisherman), but would also like the availability of shopping and restaurants.

My wife is concerned about the weather. She enjoys warmer weather, but I WILL NOT MISS the 90-100* days with 90% humidity all summer in MO!!

Some ques:

How's the housing market?
Job market for 'executive management' (my wife).
Weather? (my wife is concerned with the 'cold').
Is Billings 'dry and flat' (treeless) compared with the rest of MT?
How's the hunting here?
Schools for my son?
Shopping and restaurants?

Any and all info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[Redraven]

The housing market at the present time isn't great, lots of places for sale, and not much action. Prices are staying fairly high, but values aren't. It will be shearest luck to find a 5 to 10 acre place close to Billings for any kind of decent price. Depending on location, type/size/age of house and outbuildings, etc. the price can be anywhere from $200 K to half a million. The biggest problem will be water. Some areas will require that you have a cistern for all your household water. Either the available water table is WAY too deep to be economically feasible to drill to, or it is alkali water, or both. Water delivery services are available, or you can haul your own.
I have no idea about "executive management", such jobs are WAY out of my league!
Weather can range from 100 plus in the summer, to anywhere between 30 above to 30 below in the winter. Below zero temps usually only last for a few days, then it will get back up to merely freezing. Snow usually doesn't last, either, it may snow 6 inches or so, then warm up and melt it all. the humidity is usually pretty low.
Billings is right on the Yellowstone River, and there are some trees around. It isn't forested like the mountains, but there ARE trees. the land is rolling, some hills and coulees, mountains fairly close.
There are mule Deer, white tail deer, elk and bear in the mountains, antelope on the plains, etc. The trick is to find a place to hunt. Many local farmers and ranchers have learned to be very leery of hunters that are not known to them. Slob hunters have given them plenty of reason! It can be difficult to find land on which to hunt. It is up to YOU to know exactly where you are, so you do NOT EVER trespass on private land without permission.
Your son's school will depend on where you find a place. He may wind up going to one of the smaller towns near Billings instead of a Billings school.
There are the usual shopping opportunities, Walmart, Kmart, Shopko, Costco, Herbergers, Penneys, Sears, Sportsmans Warehouse, etc. If you are retired military and have exchange and commissary privileges, Malmstrom AFB is about 240 miles away. We have the usual fast food joints, plus Outback Steak house, Texas Roadhouse, HuHot Mongolian Grill, Red Lobster, Olive Garden, Fudruckers, pizza places, Subway, Johnny Carino's, Famous Daves BBQ, oriental restaurants (chinese, Thai, etc.), some local restaurants that are quite good, Perkins, Denny's, mexican, Tex/Mex, just about anything you want.

[radjxf]

Thanks for the reply.

I'll have to check into the water situation. That doesn't sound good

[Redraven]

Originally Posted by radjxf

Thanks for the reply.

I'll have to check into the water situation. That doesn't sound good

Remember, "it depends". We have a "mini-farm" about 5 miles out of town, with a very good well. Not far away, people have a cistern.
If you end up on a place with a cistern, you learn water conservation real quick!
There are at least two water delivery services locally, and many people have the plastic water tanks in the bed of their pickups or on a trailer to haul water. The Billings City Water Department have two water stations that I know of where the tanks can be filled. I don't know what it costs.

[Diane2009]

[quote=radjxf;7680641]Hello all. I currently reside in central MO.
I'm interviewing for a position in Billings. Our family consists of my wife and I, 8 y/o son and a very large cat!

I had to post to this thread, my husband and I currently reside in central MO also and are hoping to relocate to Montana in the next year or so. I've heard that Billings is the current thriving locale in Montana, but that was prior to recent economic happenings.

I wish you good luck with your interview in Billings...

Diane