Bozeman winter weather (Livingston, Belgrade, Hot Springs: houses, buying, construction)

[highenergy]

We just returned from a trip to Montana. Liked the area around Bozeman and Livingston. Wondered about the year round weather. If it rains very much and about the length of winter and temps. in winter. Is it a dry cold? Thanks for your help in advance.

[Rickers]

The winter is Bichen if you like cold spells and some snow. That's old surfer talk and ain't a bad word ! No, to be serious the winters aren't any worse than any other Montana location just east of the divide excepting of coarse the high-line. Visit in both seasons before buying the farm. Both seasons meaning of coarse, winter, and Road construction season ! Fall and spring go by like a flash in these parts !

[highenergy]

does it rain much?

[NYMTman]

Bozeman does get a bit more rain and snow than many other areas, including Livingston and Belgrade. But that's sort of nice - the area stays green year-round while other areas of Montana turn yellow and brown in the summer.

[Rickers]

Tell me about it ! My wife and I are selling our house and we want it to look real good so we are supporting our water company single handedly just trying to keep the lawn green during this summer. We are in Hot Springs and it is a very hot and dry valley. At least the grasshoppers may not be that bad this year. If I had a real good reciepe for grasshoppers and dandylions I could eat for free !

[mttrout]

Winters are cold. It snows a lot. We sometimes have snow on the ground October through March. Roads are pretty icy, but taken care of on major streets. Not uncommon to see temps below zero for several days at a time. Can get windy also.

[colsteve]

The weather absolutely sucks. The clouds roll in and set up against the west side of the mountains with results that are beyond painful. Come late May and the latest 6" blast of thick, wet snow you'll be peeling paint with your teeth.

[mandapanda]

The joke in Montana is to tell people outside the state how awful the weather is. We do get about two weeks of really, really cold weather. The beauty of the place is that it is a dry cold and the sun shines most of the time. When the sun goes down, it gets cold quickly. Many weeks I just wear a fleece jacket. I think they clear the roads pretty well here, especially compared to other cities and the interstate in the eastern part of the state.

The length of the winter is a different story. You can get snow into the spring, but it usually doesn't stick to the roads and disappears quickly. The summers are less humid here, they can be hot, but at night it can go into the forties and even the thirties.

Really depends on what you are looking for. Lived in the east most of my life and one inch of snow would shut down the schools and most of the town. Snow rarely changes people's behavior here. Life goes on. The passes are not good, so don't move to a town where you have to go over any of the passes to commute. Seems like now the heat bothers me more than the cold. Also, most homes have garages, so you are not clearing off the car every morning. Good luck.

My usual word of caution - Montana has no consumer protection. Beware if you are going to build a home or even buy a newer home. The houses are going up fast and they aren't always the best built. This is an earthquake area.

[colsteve]

Originally Posted by mandapanda

My usual word of caution - Montana has no consumer protection. Beware if you are going to build a home or even buy a newer home. The houses are going up fast and they aren't always the best built. This is an earthquake area.

Precisely. There are so many suckers coming to the state who are so desperate to claim a Montana license plate that they will blindly rush into a purchase. Developers know this and are sticking it to them in droves. i would advise trying the market in Idaho or Oregon.

[mandapanda]

Colsteve, we hardly rushed into a purchase. We lived in a house built by these people. He was pres of the homeowners' assn, I called the state to make sure they were registered. They lived around the corner. Problem is there is no consumer protection and the wrong people know that. Friends elsewhere assume these people have left the state. Far from it. They are building all over the place. They have lived all over the state and in other states, but they are planted here. And they are Montanans, not outsiders.