wisconsin to montana move (Bozeman, Belgrade: real estate, apartment, rental market)

[cindee1963]

I'm thinking of moving to the belgrade three forks area can anyone give me some input on jobs the economy, cost of living and how i can find some pictures of the area how's the house and rental market there. Any information will be great thanks

[MTer]

Go online and search the communities and realtors. For real estate, you can start with realtor.com or any of the national realtors' sites.

[KBS2006]

i was in belgrade to pick up a mandola from the Weber Mandolin factory in 2003. It was in July and I was visiting people in Bozeman. I honestly came back from there wanting to move to Montana. I'm in N. Illinois and now have decided to take a ride out there in September to seriously look at homes. Most people told me, if coming to Montana, bring your own money cause there are not a lot of good jobs that pay well. Belgrade reminded me of a train stop, not a very big town, not very built up like Bozeman. But you're really right down the interstate from Bozeman which has everything you'd ever need. It is a great place, not sure if it would be my first choice. I think Eastern Idaho offers some nice alternatives without the pricetag.

kenny

[amarieda]

Belgrade is mostly a bedroom community for Bozeman. Most people can't afford to buy a $400,000 house on a $40,000 salary, so they buy in Belgrade and commute (if you look at the profile of Bozeman on this site, the population increases by like 27% during the day due to communters). Most of the jobs are in Bozeman, although there are a few employers in the Belgrade/Four Corners area.

Three Forks may be farther away, but the housing market there is also pretty expensive - same with Manhattan - and there are not as many jobs.

Overall in the state the pay is low and housing is high. Because Bozeman is a college town, you can expect to pay quite a bit for an apartment, even in Belgrade. Food costs are pretty typical but because of all the driving you'll probably have to do to afford to live and work, gas will be a big part of your budget.

Try doing a google image search to find some pictures - most of what comes up are maps, but there are several good pictures of the area as well. Most of the valley looks pretty similar - it's green, pretty flat with some rolling hills, several rivers, and surrounded by mountains.

[Montanaman1]

I have property west of Three Forks, near Whitehall. The area is beautiful, but as mentioned jobs are few and far between and wages are on the low side. Still I think you can't go wrong if you can afford it.

Good Luck

Rick