Montana relocation: resentment toward newcomers (Bozeman, Ronan: DMV, quality of life, sales tax)

[dunlop]

Originally Posted by CosmicWizard

jenzebel wrote:

Out-of-staters have inflated the property values

Actually I think it's more of a two way street. The local who sold to the Out-of-stater COULD have asked for, and taken a lower price.

Yea which i seen happen... example 8 years ago a lot sold down the road for 28k Now i think its on the market for 300k ... and they will get it too

Anther guy sold his place last year that lived right next to me, he sold it for 450k
I could sell my place and make alot of money.... but then i would end up not being able to afford to live how i grew up here.

[Timberwolf232]

Originally Posted by GLS

Good points, but the devil is in the details, i.e. we could spend a long time trying to define "rich". For example, based upon the new government approach to taxation, they are convinced I'm rich, and I'm in strong disagreement. For me, the definition of rich is a guy who doesn't have to work for a living. Many people moving to Montana may have made a good salary somewhere else or saved over the years, but only a few have multimillion dollar yachts like Maddoff.

My point is that most of us got their nest-eggs scrambled.Many "outsiders" have more in common financially with Montanans than you might think........and if we didn't start out as "humble people" we sure are now.

I see that, I guess I get tired of people just blaming the locals for the property prices. It's not just them, there is a HUGE outside influence that is complicating the problem... Guys like that Blixeth and the damned jellystone club and a bunch of others that followed the same example. I might get arrested if I posted what I really think... It's a bunch of BS what's been happening to the local community.

I've got a very close friend who right now is is trying to decide whether or not to sell his ranch, that he has lived on his entire life... (over 50 years) because of tax issues and development hurdles. They just can't keep up and it's really sad. Every move they try to make, the county we live in says, "well we need a $25K+ fee for surveys or the same price, sometimes more for this or that... just a bunch of GD hurdles.
How does a working guy keep up?

My advice to my friend was if you have to sell, get as much as possible to make sure you have a security blanket. Is that greed? If it is, it sure ain't the same kind that has moved in here from out of state. (and country)

I might have to face it, but I sure as hell don't have to like it.

[GLS]

Originally Posted by Timberwolf232

I might have to face it, but I sure as hell don't have to like it.

I couldn't agree more! I hope your friend makes out OK.

[1979]

Originally Posted by jaswanny

I am an active duty member of the Navy serving in Iraq and am looking for a quiet place to call home after I return to the states, I also will be purchasing in Montana. Not because Montana is beautifull, but because Montana is beautifull and it fits my intersts and politcal views.

I believe that where new-comers are wrong is moving someplace because "its pretty" not taking into account if the area fits their lifestyle. Dont move to Montana with the assumption that you are going to re-invent the wheel... Are you an anti-hunter? Move to Vermont. Are you a "liberal" that detest 4 wheeling and thinks fishing is cruel? Maybe New Hampshire is the place for you. My point is move somewhere you will fit. Dont just move someplace nice expect the locals to change then complain when they resent you.

As a native northern New England, I think you ought to know there is a lot of hunting and fishing going on in Vermont and New Hampshire.

[Mt-7]

Originally Posted by Timberwolf232

I see that, I guess I get tired of people just blaming the locals for the property prices. It's not just them, there is a HUGE outside influence that is complicating the problem... Guys like that Blixeth and the damned jellystone club and a bunch of others that followed the same example. I might get arrested if I posted what I really think... It's a bunch of BS what's been happening to the local community.

I've got a very close friend who right now is is trying to decide whether or not to sell his ranch, that he has lived on his entire life... (over 50 years) because of tax issues and development hurdles. They just can't keep up and it's really sad. Every move they try to make, the county we live in says, "well we need a $25K+ fee for surveys or the same price, sometimes more for this or that... just a bunch of GD hurdles.
How does a working guy keep up?

My advice to my friend was if you have to sell, get as much as possible to make sure you have a security blanket. Is that greed? If it is, it sure ain't the same kind that has moved in here from out of state. (and country)

I might have to face it, but I sure as hell don't have to like it.

I hate to even step into this thread since I am not native to Montana, but dear ones this has already happened to my beloved Oregon. You cannot afford to pay your property taxes. Someone comes along and pays premium for your farm and turns it into a vineyard. One can see why you can only hold back the tide so long.

[Ric Carter]

Are people trying to say if the locals would have asked less for their property, the people from out of the area wouldn't have wanted to buy it? Get real.

[Mt-7]

No, it is just a grieving process, the lost of once a way of life sold off to someone who may not have the deep appreciation of the sacrifice of generations to acquire it.

[Timberwolf232]

Originally Posted by seven of nine

No, it is just a grieving process, the lost of once a way of life sold off to someone who may not have the deep appreciation of the sacrifice of generations to acquire it.

It is sad... When I was little in CO it was like MT was 20 years ago. I hardly recognize the place now. (I was raised 1/2 time here and 1/2 time in Colorado... long story.)

It's hard to watch that kind of thing start happening here, so we feel your pain about Oregon.

[CosmicWizard]

I felt the pain of PROGRESS early on in life. As a kid in Pennsylvania, the property across the street from my parents home was our baseball field for many summers. In my 10 year old mind, it would ALWAYS be that way. I simply could not fathom someone having the audacity of building a home there, but it happened anyway. That was my first experience of PROGRESS. It's happens everywhere, not just in Montana, though it may be a more recent nuisance in Montana. When I visit my family in PA, it's hard to believe that it's the same little town I grew up in.

[venusflyer]

My husband and I live in an area where he has lived his whole life. He used to go out and play and came home when he couldn't see his hand in front of his face anymore, unless it was clear night with a shining moon. His parents didn't worry about him. The road was gravel and there were 8 houses within a 10 mile radius.
They paved the road last year. We can't let our kids out of the house without the worry of them getting hit by a car. In fact, our neighbors' horse almost got hit by a car last year when she got out of the pasture. There is not a space without a house in sight. And I have to wait for cars to pass so I can check my mailbox.
When the land sells off, the houses go up and the jerks move in. They don't care that tractors use the same road, they do 50 and nearly run them off the road; nevermind the kid who is trying to get to grandma's house through the field beside the road. The litter that lies on my street is enough to fill several dumpsters full. They have no respect, they have no conscious, and they don't know why we are so upset about it.
We live in Tennessee. We hope to be Montanans one day. Change happens, but we don't have to like it and we don't have to conform to it. Stick up for your town, keep your land if at all possible, and keep the developers out of it. Be mad, be angry; if people don't want to move there because of it, well, they probably won't be able to handle it anyway. If you get your feelings hurt on a discussion board, your chance of surviving a Montanan winter probably isn't very great.