Move to MT?

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

A quick Google search reveals that ID (3), TX (3), and AZ (4) each have mulitple cities (50k population or larger) in the top 15 fastest growing by population in the country. WY, CO, and MT did not have any in the top 15. However, I know its happening in the college and tourist towns in MT (Missoula, Bozeman, etc..) and elsewhere. The CO Springs, Denver, Ft. Collins area is busier every time we visit, and we'd never considre moving here.

We live in a rural area with a town of 1,000 people 5 miles away with towns from 5-10k people 25 miles north and 20 miles east. Des Moines is about 750k or so and is 75 miles east. Omaha is close to 1M and about 110 miles to the west.

We've looked at Townsend, MT, and Augusta, MT, as potential places to do more research. In addition, we really like the Sheridan/Buffalo areas in WY and the Black Hills area in WY and SD. In these areas we could likely find the same mix of rural living with a larger city within a reasonable driving distance.

 

[Rick M.]

I say the Mountain West has become Sullied and Soiled. The prairie is where it's at, except for winter. I'd never live in one house in a place that gets 20 below, second house, absolutely.

100%.

If it were me, I'd spend most of my year up here in MN and spend the depths of winter in Arizona or New Mexico, but the kid being in school really makes that impossible. In retirement I'll definitely have a small slice of life somewhere that I can wear flip flops and a t-shirt in January.

 

[Rick M.]

A quick Google search reveals that ID (3), TX (3), and AZ (4) each have mulitple cities (50k population or larger) in the top 15 fastest growing by population in the country. WY, CO, and MT did not have any in the top 15. However, I know its happening in the college and tourist towns in MT (Missoula, Bozeman, etc..) and elsewhere. The CO Springs, Denver, Ft. Collins area is busier every time we visit, and we'd never considre moving here.

We live in a rural area with a town of 1,000 people 5 miles away with towns from 5-10k people 25 miles north and 20 miles east. Des Moines is about 750k or so and is 75 miles east. Omaha is close to 1M and about 110 miles to the west.

We've looked at Townsend, MT, and Augusta, MT, as potential places to do more research. In addition, we really like the Sheridan/Buffalo areas in WY and the Black Hills area in WY and SD. In these areas we could likely find the same mix of rural living with a larger city within a reasonable driving distance.

Buffalo and Ranchester were also high on our lists. I think the Sheridan area is juuuust behind Bozeman and will be the next big thing. Better get there now before you get priced out! Also, with Sheridan, you're not far from Billings for any healthcare needs as you get older, whether or not that's a factor to you I'm not sure. But it's worth considering.

 

[peterk123]

A quick Google search reveals that ID (3), TX (3), and AZ (4) each have mulitple cities (50k population or larger) in the top 15 fastest growing by population in the country. WY, CO, and MT did not have any in the top 15. However, I know its happening in the college and tourist towns in MT (Missoula, Bozeman, etc..) and elsewhere. The CO Springs, Denver, Ft. Collins area is busier every time we visit, and we'd never considre moving here.

We live in a rural area with a town of 1,000 people 5 miles away with towns from 5-10k people 25 miles north and 20 miles east. Des Moines is about 750k or so and is 75 miles east. Omaha is close to 1M and about 110 miles to the west.

We've looked at Townsend, MT, and Augusta, MT, as potential places to do more research. In addition, we really like the Sheridan/Buffalo areas in WY and the Black Hills area in WY and SD. In these areas we could likely find the same mix of rural living with a larger city within a reasonable driving distance.

It will be interesting to see if people move out of here in a few years once they realize the length of the winters. And if you don't embrace the outdoors, this can be a boring place.

Oh and wait until companies adjust salaries for remote work. They will figure it out, just wait. That is gonna really sting.

 

[Rick M.]

Oh and wait until companies adjust salaries for remote work. They will figure it out, just wait. That is gonna really sting.

My company already does this. We have brackets based on what city / region you live in. I know some remote workers get upset about this, but if every Silicon Valley based engineer is sprinkled throughout rural areas of the country making 400k+ / yr., regular working people of those towns are going to start feeling very left behind with respect to the income disparities. You can relocate to the Midwest from the west coast and essentially have your own fiefdom that no Midwesterner can dream about. It drives the cost of everything up in an area, from rents to mortgages to almost any good/service. It's a tough nut to crack.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

100%.

If it were me, I'd spend most of my year up here in MN and spend the depths of winter in Arizona or New Mexico, but the kid being in school really makes that impossible. In retirement I'll definitely have a small slice of life somewhere that I can wear flip flops and a t-shirt in January.

#Costa Rica

 

[HighUintas]

I would be 100% ok with that. Actually, I'd beg my company to cut my pay in return for letting me work remote out of state.

 

[Pacific_Fork]

My company already does this. We have brackets based on what city / region you live in. I know some remote workers get upset about this, but if every Silicon Valley based engineer is sprinkled throughout rural areas of the country making 400k+ / yr., regular working people of those towns are going to start feeling very left behind with respect to the income disparities. You can relocate to the Midwest from the west coast and essentially have your own fiefdom that no Midwesterner can dream about. It drives the cost of everything up in an area, from rents to mortgages to almost any good/service. It's a tough nut to crack.

My company has something similar. We are a global company and inside the US there are two pay scales. California is one scale, and the rest of the country is another.

 

[Footindave]

It is definitely a dream of mine once the kids are gone, but talking wife into may be a challenge

 

[Mt Al]

We've looked at Townsend, MT, and Augusta, MT, as potential places to do more research. In addition, we really like the Sheridan/Buffalo areas in WY and the Black Hills area in WY and SD. In these areas we could likely find the same mix of rural living with a larger city within a reasonable driving distance.

All great places. Sheridan would be my top choice in that list, but with Townsend you're between Helena and Bozeman, have Canyon Ferry and other lakes relatively close, public land all around in every direction. Spearfish in the Black Hills is also a great place, have a good friend who moved there from Bozeman 20 years ago and would never move back, but has access to a lot of private land.

Good luck with your search, there are tough winters out here but they're not near as bad as advertised, people from upper midwest laugh when they experience a Montana winter - outside of West Yellowstone and a few other places.

 

[Trackerbacker]

I say move because it's an adventure, a new one. Grab it and run.

However.

If it ain't NEIA, you're in shithole IA. I've been in all 99 counties, one reason or another. Spent years where the tristate area is wisconsin and minnesota. Spent years where the tri-state area is ill-wis. Spent years in Central iowa. Spent years in SEIA. Spent years driving through NW and SW iowa.

Iowa, the best of it, is highway 20 and north, east of 218. Hidden country, the whole drift less area (min-wis-iowa).

 

[Doc Holliday]

Oh and wait until companies adjust salaries for remote work. They will figure it out, just wait. That is gonna really sting.

Not as long as there are less qualified workers than there are openings. I am a headhunter for a Fortune 500 firm.....have been for 20 years and have had a front row seat to this evolution. Some of the liberal silicon valley firms that garner all the headlines may be laying off some folks recently, but that is nothing but a cyclical ebb and flow...... the vast majority of the F500 across all the other industries have many more openings than they can fill, and despite talking tough about forcing employees back into the office, that strategy backfired. The genie is not going back in the bottle.

 

[jjohnsonElknewbie]

I say move because it's an adventure, a new one. Grab it and run.

However.

If it ain't NEIA, you're in shithole IA. I've been in all 99 counties, one reason or another. Spent years where the tristate area is wisconsin and minnesota. Spent years where the tri-state area is ill-wis. Spent years in Central iowa. Spent years in SEIA. Spent years driving through NW and SW iowa.

Iowa, the best of it, is highway 20 and north, east of 218. Hidden country, the whole drift less area (min-wis-iowa).

^^^100
Pools 9 and 10 on the Mississippi and the surrounding areas are very special. Love that country, and Effigy Mounds is one of the most mysterious and awe-inspiring places I've been.

 

[Gobbler36]

If you have to ask people if you should move somewhere that you have never been then you probably shouldn’t move. At least visit the area and decide for yourself. And yes residents are tired of people moving here, especially right now, covid has seriously ****** the state with all the transplants in the last year and half. And yes I’m a grumpy asshole, only because I’m watching my local community die because the businesses can’t get workers and the locals are moving away because they can’t afford to live here anymore.

This is echoed all over the west right now, same here in Idaho it’s just been trampled by everyone wanting their taste of “Mountain View’s“ and 3 years later the avg Joe can’t afford a 500k+ starter home. sick of it, im pretty sure West Virginia has Mountain View’s

 

[Trackerbacker]

^^^100
Pools 9 and 10 on the Mississippi and the surrounding areas are very special. Love that country, and Effigy Mounds is one of the most mysterious and awe-inspiring places I've been.

Yup. Sure, we don't have mountains, elk, bear (in iowa), but all those are attainable in the driftless area.

People dream, and I don't blame them, of doing an Alaskan float hunt once in their life. That would be a truly amazing trip. 10/10 if you're into it.

Except yearly I can cruise up the river, into a tributary, bounce around for a bit, fish, head up into the bluffs, harvest a white tail. Pack it out to the boat, camp on an island and fish a bit more. Then cruise down river, load up and head home.

Yearly. For under $200. Or weekly (during season) if I wanted, just change deer to turkey, pheasant, squirrel, duck, goose, rabbit...

The grass is greener on the otherside, because that grass is nutured, looked after, tended to, they made the best of it.

With iowa changing its tax code, I'd give a year or 2 post last kid out, spend some serious time and be creative, be imaginative. Check out cabins in Wisconsin, Northern Minnesota, maybe grab a home base somewhere and a cabin in Montana and wisconsin.

If you do. Find a way to identify as a trans-resident, and reap the rewards of resident tags in both states!

 

[307]

Not as long as there are less qualified workers than there are openings. I am a headhunter for a Fortune 500 firm.....have been for 20 years and have had a front row seat to this evolution. Some of the liberal silicon valley firms that garner all the headlines may be laying off some folks recently, but that is nothing but a cyclical ebb and flow...... the vast majority of the F500 across all the other industries have many more openings than they can fill, and despite talking tough about forcing employees back into the office, that strategy backfired. The genie is not going back in the bottle.

Good to know. My lady is a senior cloud engineer and has been remote only for a couple of years. We'd like to snowbird from WY to FL on a yearly basis and having to return to the office would really butcher the plan. I plan to transition to a full time "trophy husband" to maximize freedom as well.

 

[mtnbiker208]

It will be interesting to see if people move out of here in a few years once they realize the length of the winters. And if you don't embrace the outdoors, this can be a boring place.

Oh and wait until companies adjust salaries for remote work. They will figure it out, just wait. That is gonna really sting.

I have heard that all my life, and have not seen it.

 

[NEarcher22]

Do it always wanted to be west!

 

[qwerksc]

Montana has two seasons, winter and Hawaiian winter.

 

[Brando']

The ENTIRE state is being overrun by people who watch Yellowstone/Big Sky and think that life in Montana is even remotely like those two shows.
Winter here lasts 6-7 months, solid. Sometimes longer. It is not uncommon to have 2 straight weeks (multiple times a winter) of -40°F temperatures, and that is not including wind chill. If you are not prepared for long periods of isolation and bitter cold, then you won't make it.
Housing and land prices have skyrocketed here thanks to the influx of out of staters. The median prices of houses in my area have increase almost 300% from 5 years ago.
I have seen it snow every month of the year here. I can remember watching fireworks on Independence Day while light flurries fell. I have been camping in August when you will wake up to a few inches of snow in the morning.
Forest fires consume spring, summer, and fall. We have had numerous summers where the sky looks like the LA basin in the 1980s for weeks on end.
Think long and hard on those types of conditions before you commit to Montana.

It's so tough in MT. I guess all those teenage and early 20's hipster boys and girls in Missoula and Bozeman are just tougher than the average grown man outdoorsman.

If you don't want the guy to move to MT just say so, but let's be real it's not that hard of a place. If I were still living out west, I would want more hunters moving in rather than the Cali folks that were taking over Idaho.