Wages VS Cost of Living (Billings, Missoula: middle-class, houses, schools)

[Simmers]

Hello Everyone!
I was going to ask for input/information on what the wages and cost of living average in comparison of city to city in Montana (I.E. Billings vs Kalispell). It seems like Billings has lower wages and lower cost of living in comparison to Kalispell, is this correct? I am looking for an opportunity in the IT field and was told the average in Billings is $35K for this field and in Kalispell it seems the average for this field is $50K, is this correct? I don't want to ask for too much or too little. Any information on this would be greatly appreciated.

[mthawki]

Take a look at what houses are costing in each city to give you an idea of what your expenses will translate into. Housing is cheaper in Billings and much more expensive in Kalispell, thus the reason for the salary difference for similar IT positions. Other cost of living categories like groceries, utilities, medical will probably be pretty much the same between the two.
There are a fair number of IT positions here in Helena with the State and private industry. Probably more to choose from than Kalispell.

Moderator cut: linking to competitors sites is not allowed

[Simmers]

Thanks! That's a neat link too!

[deem]

look up SPERLINGS BEST PLACES
you can get all the stats on just about any city or town in usa
great place
we use it all the time -

[deem]

Hello MTHAWKI
CAn you tell me where I can see pictures of Montana? ALso what is your opinion of Billings- I have been to Kalispell and Great FAlls, - too cold too far up
but I do love Montana
thanks for your help

[Reziac]

Billings, probably more than any other MT city, is not a single monolithic "what's it like", and is wildly different depending on where you are. I haven't been there since 1984, but at the time, these were the areas I was passing familiar with:

South/east side: from shabby to outright slum. Not safe at night.
Old downtown: going shabby but some good stores and cafes. (Had the two best used-bookstores in the entire state.) Had just started some inner city renovation at the time; don't know how far that got.
Rimrocks: nice middle-class housing, safe as anywhere.
Westside and northeast: more rural atmosphere.

Obviously some areas will have changed a lot in two decades; others, probably not much.

Here's a photo of downtown Billings from ~1940!
http://www.familyoldphotos.com/4c/2f...lings_mont.htm
And some more old photos:
http://www.familyoldphotos.com/4c/MTcoll/billings.htm

[lesliegrace]

Originally Posted by mthawki

Take a look at what houses are costing in each city to give you an idea of what your expenses will translate into. Housing is cheaper in Billings and much more expensive in Kalispell, thus the reason for the salary difference for similar IT positions. Other cost of living categories like groceries, utilities, medical will probably be pretty much the same between the two.
There are a fair number of IT positions here in Helena with the State and private industry. Probably more to choose from than Kalispell.
Moderator cut: linking to competitors sites is not allowed

mthawki,

Thank you so much for sharing the url for the cost of living calculator! I remember using it or a similar website in the past, but I could no longer find the one that I had used. I think it is a really useful tool for people who are considering relocating.

[Simmers]

Originally Posted by Reziac

Billings, probably more than any other MT city, is not a single monolithic "what's it like", and is wildly different depending on where you are. I haven't been there since 1984, but at the time, these were the areas I was passing familiar with:

South/east side: from shabby to outright slum. Not safe at night.
Old downtown: going shabby but some good stores and cafes. (Had the two best used-bookstores in the entire state.) Had just started some inner city renovation at the time; don't know how far that got.
Rimrocks: nice middle-class housing, safe as anywhere.
Westside and northeast: more rural atmosphere.

Obviously some areas will have changed a lot in two decades; others, probably not much.

Here's a photo of downtown Billings from ~1940!
http://www.familyoldphotos.com/4c/2f...lings_mont.htm
And some more old photos:
http://www.familyoldphotos.com/4c/MTcoll/billings.htm

Thanks for the info on Billings and for the photos.

I appreciate everyone's responses!

[lorelei2873]

I haven't been to Billings in a bout 1 1/2 years, but I like it. They've got a nice art museum and they actually get well-known performers in concert sometimes. There's lots of places to go out to eat, and if you want to get out of town, you can go to Red Lodge. The only thing I don't like it is that it isn't really centrally located like Helena, Butte, or Great Falls. So, when you're in Billings, you're in Billings. It's not as easy to get to a lot of the more popular attractions in Montana that are located on the western side of the state. I do really feel like I've gone to a bigger town when I go to Billings (I'm in Helena). It gives me a much greater bigger town feeling than does Missoula, for example. However, I really like it and enjoy shopping there. I do know that the schools are a little rougher in some cases (just due to the fact that it's a bigger town). It's always a special treat to go there because it seems kind of out of the way, and it was kind of one of those places we'd go on weekend trips when I was younger.

[Reziac]

Billings' atmosphere is more like Bismarck or Fargo, not much like any other MT city. Almost like being in a different state. More of a commerce-and-industry feel, whereas Great Falls is wheat-and-cattle, and other MT cities are largely mining-timber-tourism. Of course they all have other stuff too, but those are the "snapshots" I've always carried in my head.