Montana relocation: resentment toward newcomers (for sale, condos, jobs)

[jimj]

Costa Rica!!!!

[beesweet]

As the saying goes...there are too many people that want to impress people that they don't care about. When that mindset is changed, maybe life will get easier.

[mjgcamper]

You know I can always build a little townhouse inside the barn if need be. Just another avenue of freedom. The idea is to have an alternate lifestyle, be happy, and enjoy the sunshine, snow, cold, heat flowers, whatever life brings. Work because I want to..... Play because I need to.

One thing.... after what I've seen happen to Oregon, you guys are still lucky to be in Montana.

[General Patton]

After reading some of the post, not all, I am surprised. I live in California and wanted to move somewhere in Montana. I'll still have to work for a living so I'll be looking for a job when I get there. Here in California, it is run away with illegals, most of which come from Mexico. Calif is going broke because of them. It cost Los Angeles County over $37million just for the month of November 2007. California also has 55 different counties. "Press One For English" is very common here.
I was hoping that as just another American wanting to relocate his family to a different state, it would be no big deal.

There are many jobs, from housekeeping to construction, that are filled by illegals leaving American citizens out in the cold.

[Timberwolf232]

There are Illegals here also. More and more seem to be coming in by the truckload, usually from California, Colorado, Texas, or other areas that have a housing market that's slowing more than ours.. (which is finally starting to slow down also.)

It's ironic that you say California is going broke because of illegals, when here the working class of Montana is going broke because of all the Californians moving in.

[ANGELPICKS]

My Husband And I Are Looking Into Moving To Montana In The Near Future. I Have Family There In Great Falls And I Also Lived There And Went To School Over At The Cmr High School. I Enjoyed Montana Then And Am Looking Forward To Going Back There. My Family And I Are Looking For A Nice Area To Live And Raise Our Kids. It's Been Hard Trying To Find Ads For Any Rental Homes Out There. Any Help Would Be Nice! I Also Work In The Medical Field And Would Like To Be Able To Have Something Lined Up When We Move.

[rickers]

I don't understand how Californians moving in could cause any working class people to go broke ! How exactly does that work ? I think it may be a case of some people blaming other people for their problems. I know many Montana working class people, in fact I don't really know anyone who isn't working class and none of them are going broke, and if they were, I don't see how that is the fault of newcomers moving in.
Any one complaining about Californians should just get over it.
If people don't want anyone from California or anywhere else moving here they should lobby the state legislature to pass a law banning newcomers! Grow up or move somewhere else and stop blaming, and whining about something that will continue and you cant stop.

[talibkwali]

Really? You don't understand how californians moving here would affect our economy? It's not just Californians its everyone who wants to come here and get a job (preferably one that's not TOO hard) so they don't have to deal with the ruination of california.
Oh but they also still want a Starbucks.
And a health food store because they are special.
Oh and one of these huge houses i see being built everywhere with a little cow skull so they are "Authentic Montanans".
So they take a cushy job and buy cowboy boots.

Newsflash: Increased population changes economy. It's one of the reasons the US is nearly broke. (Not the sole reason, given)

I don't mind people who come with seeking minds (thats how i visit other states and countries and cultures)
What bothers me are the people who pull up in their Denali's and start with:
"You know you all do it wrong here, right?"

[Reziac]

Originally Posted by rickers

I don't understand how Californians moving in could cause any working class people to go broke ! How exactly does that work ? I think it may be a case of some people blaming other people for their problems. I know many Montana working class people, in fact I don't really know anyone who isn't working class and none of them are going broke, and if they were, I don't see how that is the fault of newcomers moving in.

It works like this:

Californians come in with enough money to pay for a $300k house (after all they just sold a house in CA for $700k). Just as with everything else, the real estate market rises to the highest sustainable price -- and there are enough Californians coming in, with cash burning a hole in their pockets, to raise the price of an average house to $300k or more. (Actually, that's bottom end in Bozeman. Average is more like $450k.)

A $300k house means a down payment of $90,000 for a standard loan, or about $15k if you can get a 3% down, first-time-buyer deal (but not everyone is eligible for that, even if they don't have a lot of money). It also means total monthly payment (mortgage, AND property tax, AND insurance) of about $3000 (give or take a grand, depending on your down payment and terms).

That's all well and good for the newly-arrived Californians; their new house is paid for and they don't have a big mortgage payment, because what they sold their CA house for more than covered it, or at the very least covered the down payment, and enough to make their monthly payment doable.

Now, at the other end are people who grew up in Montana and are working average Montana jobs, making maybe $2000 to $3000 per month. If they're lucky, they can save $20,000 over 20 years of steady work. That's enough for a down payment on a $60k house, but it doesn't touch a standard loan on a $300k house -- even IF they could make the payments. You may notice that the AVERAGE Montanan's TOTAL income is now below the AVERAGE monthly payment for an AVERAGE house IN MONTANA.

Which means that home ownership is now completely out of reach for an entire generation of Montanans. But Californians can continue to come in and buy Montana property, unimpeded by local economic reality.

And because average property values have gone up so fast, property taxes are likewise on the rise. I expect older Montana homeowners (from before the CA invasion) will shortly (if not already) be in the same position Californians were before Prop 13, which fixed property tax at 1% of assessed value at the time of purchase. Before that, many elderly Californians were being forced to sell their homes because the property tax had climbed beyond their income.

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I'd hazard a guess that new business failures in MT have gone up because startup costs (which are largely tied to property prices) are now beyond what most young businesses can recoup, but I don't have any numbers on that... anyone got some hard data??

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[100%Michigan]

One reason why I only visit Montana is due to the nature. It's hard to find that nature in other places. Being in Montana with a storm ( snow or rain ) I even find that pleasant... driving along a isolated road. I dont think I would move to Montana... because I know not much of their cities. I hear things here and there but I wont speak of, but overall its a plus +