Moving to Montana

[Wildatheart]

Alright Gentlemen,
My wife finishes school May of 2020. And we are literally headed west. I lived in Helena out of High School for a summer and since have been back to a lot of other areas in Montana. And of course absolutely can’t get enough of it. I have a buyer for my business and plan on doing the deal at the end of 2019. We are in our 20s. If you were to live anywhere in the State where would that be and why? We will have to keep in mind her employer opportunities which will be elementary education.

 

[bobr1]

Getting a job in education is really really difficult in the desirable areas of the state especially if she is just graduating. However, any of the other areas they will hire anyone that is willing to work there even if they don't have the exact qualification. Not trying to be negative but it's just the reality. My wife was fortunate to get a position in a good area but she had been teaching for many years and has a graduate degree from a good school and many certifications that most people in the state don't have. The only other option is a lot of the nicer areas will hire at less than full time and she won't get any of the benefits of full time but after a few years may be able to get a full time position. Good luck

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using Tapatalk

 

[rivergunner]

Previous post was spot on. If you don't have qualms with living in the very rural parts of the state teaching opportunities are there. However living in the popular towns in the W and SW parts of the state are tough. Plus making ends meet on a teaching salary are tough. CA cost of living on a gas station wage (relatively speaking). I have a good job and a lot of school behind me and couldn't afford to live in alot of the state nowadays. Just the way she goes. I wish you guys the best of luck, exciting time for ya!

 

[Mt Al]

Same as above, but some thoughts:
Some people in your situation will move to a spot, say, 30 miles from a "big" town and 30 from a smaller town. Teacher heads to the small town, non teacher to the big town for work. Education pay sucks, but benefits can be excellent. Too many places to list, but Helena is tough to beat. Less trendy/spendy than Bozeman, Missoula and Kalispel - with every single outdoor thing you can do in Montana a reasonable drive away. If I were moving to MT that's where I'd go. Same for Great Falls. Some people want "buzz", people, energy, tech. Zero wrong with that, but if that's the case your options are limited with lots of competition for teaching jobs.

 

[Gumbo]

Getting a job in education is really really difficult in the desirable areas of the state ...

Kind of depends on what you consider the "desirable" areas are...

 

[hobbes]

Can't help you on how likely it will be for your wife to get a teaching job, but I've traveled around the state quite a bit over the last 8 years for work and hunting. My opinions:

I live in Helena and prefer it's slower pace over college towns like Bozeman and Missoula. I wouldn't turn either down to stay in MT or if the right opportunity presents itself. I like the Kalispell region, but the cost of living is higher and I don't really like how thick the local elk country is. Butte isn't bad and probably has fewer folks trying to move there, but it definitely looks older than the rest of the towns I mentioned. Billings is farther east and bigger than I prefer, but it's the largest population and will have more schools. Great Falls feels similar to Helena (to me), but it's got more wind (I prefer Helena).

There are several small to mid size Montana towns that Id consider:
Lewistown
Dillon
Libby
Anaconda (I've not spent much time here)
Miles City (I'm not crazy about location but town is ok)
Havre (I'm not crazy about location but town is ok)
Glasgow (My wife wouldn't like this, but I'd survive)

Smaller towns:
Thompson Falls
Choteau
Lincoln

Towns that I don't want to live in:
Cut Bank
Shelby
Roundup
Glendive
Sidney
Hardin
Livingston (windy as heck)

 

[Cubby]

I live in Miles City and really like it of coarse I grew up here and have never moved so I might be bias. We don't have mountains on this side of the state but we don't have the people that western MT has either which is a big bonus

 

[netman]

Grant has a nice school and is really close to everything.

 

[S.Clancy]

If she goes to an area in NE Montana she may qualify for loan repayment

 

[Billinsd]

Great Falls feels similar to Helena (to me), but it's got more wind (I prefer Helena).

I stopped in Great Falls early last September after midnight looking for a hotel. I got gas and looked around and saw a lot of tweakers. It definitely didn't feel safe. I felt like I was in some bad area at the outskirts of LA or Riverside!!! I got back on the freeway as fast as I could and drove to Helena which looked a little nicer. Great Falls reminds me of Grand Junction, but not nearly as pleasant.

There are several small to mid size Montana towns that Id consider:
Glasgow (My wife wouldn't like this, but I'd survive)

I spent a couple days there last September after I ran into a nice buck northweast of town. I've NEVER EVER seen so many deer and speedgoats along the highway in my entire life!!! I felt this urge to pull over, because I was going to hit something. So, I come over a hill and 4 bucks are crossing the road as I slow down. One of them did a 180 after crossing the road and bam. Same thing happened to my dad in our old 59 Ford truck, only it was at Lake Havasu and it was a donkey!!! I spent a lot of time in Glasgow and I REALLY like it. I'd like to buy a house or something there. My wife said she will come and visit me, and I said, don't worry I won't live there in the winter. It's still too rural for her. I took Cape air out of there to Billings at least twice for less money that it would take for gas. I understand the flights are subsidized. This is a great place if you want to get a way from the zombie apocalypse!!!

Towns that I don't want to live in:
Shelby

What's wrong with Shelby? I did not make it there? I take it, it's a real small town. By the way the calendars stopped back there, somewhere in the early 70s or so. I was quite taken back that hardware stores done lock the lawnmowers and machines they leave out during the day. The crime rate is probably super low.......

 

[Billinsd]

I live in Miles City and really like it of coarse I grew up here and have never moved so I might be bias. We don't have mountains on this side of the state but we don't have the people that western MT has either which is a big bonus

I was over at Baker last September and really liked it. The people were so nice and friendly. I love that part of Montana. I'm definitely, going to spend more time there.....

 

[Billinsd]

Bozeman was more like Suburban San Diego or Orange County with mountains in the background. No other city in Montana I visited was like that. However, I haven't been to Misssoula or Kalispell.

 

[timmymac24]

My wife and I are both in education. I am secondary science and she is elementary. We got married 25 years ago and my first priority was to be "out west" since one my best friends is a PT in Great Falls. We researched and basically decided the best states to live in for outdoor life paid the least. Idaho, MT, Colorado were all dismal at that time don't know if it's changed. Just finished my 20th year in So Cal with very good salary and benefit package but the outdoor life sucks along with the homeless, smog, and people.....Good luck all the same hope it works out for you guys.

 

[hobbes]

I stopped in Great Falls early last September after midnight looking for a hotel. I got gas and looked around and saw a lot of tweakers. It definitely didn't feel safe. I felt like I was in some bad area at the outskirts of LA or Riverside!!! I got back on the freeway as fast as I could and drove to Helena which looked a little nicer. Great Falls reminds me of Grand Junction, but not nearly as pleasant. I spent a couple days there last September after I ran into a nice buck northweast of town. I've NEVER EVER seen so many deer and speedgoats along the highway in my entire life!!! I felt this urge to pull over, because I was going to hit something. So, I come over a hill and 4 bucks are crossing the road as I slow down. One of them did a 180 after crossing the road and bam. Same thing happened to my dad in our old 59 Ford truck, only it was at Lake Havasu and it was a donkey!!! I spent a lot of time in Glasgow and I REALLY like it. I'd like to buy a house or something there. My wife said she will come and visit me, and I said, don't worry I won't live there in the winter. It's still too rural for her. I took Cape air out of there to Billings at least twice for less money that it would take for gas. I understand the flights are subsidized. This is a great place if you want to get a way from the zombie apocalypse!!! What's wrong with Shelby? I did not make it there? I take it, it's a real small town. By the way the calendars stopped back there, somewhere in the early 70s or so. I was quite taken back that hardware stores done lock the lawnmowers and machines they leave out during the day. The crime rate is probably super low.......

Shelby the town isn't bad, but I don't care for the region except for upland hunting. It's too windy and cold and too close to Browning.

I like Glasgow, except for no mountains, and would be happy there but my wife wouldn't appreciate being that far from the bigger towns.

I like Miles City also and it has enough that my wife would be ok with it, but I prefer the mountains.

I'm happy in Helena so far.

As far as tweakers go, Helena has it's share also. In fact, all Montana towns do from what I can tell.

 

[mtmuley]

I love Shelby. I was born there and the family still has the farm North of town damn near in Canada. Moved to the Root when I was a toddler. Hamilton sucks by the way. mtmuley

 

[Calcoyote]

I am fairly new to this forum and don't want to hi-jack this thread but I have a couple of questions along the same lines:

My wife and I want to leave Oregon and move to either Idaho or Montana. Last year we took a vacation and spent some nights in Moscow ID, Missoula MT, Kalispell MT, and Coeur d'Alene. This year we went back and stayed in Moscow, Orofino, Hamilton, and Thompson Falls.

I work from a home office so my job can be anywhere. I would really like some advice. Here are my thoughts on each place:

Moscow - Loved the coffee shops. It a little larger than what I was wanting and is further from the National Forest than I prefer. It is also the most liberal city in Idaho (or so I am told).

Missoula - Too big. Too many people

Kalispell - A LOT busier that what we were expecting. All of the big chain stores have come in and it is projected to double in the next decade. Not interested. Polson is nearby and is beautiful, but I have read there is a HUGE meth problem. Lots or break-ins and theft.

Coeur d'Alene - Beautiful but too many people.

Orofino - My research had made this city Number 1 on my list for possible places to move. We spent two nights there. The people were VERY friendly. The surrounding mountains looked really good for hunting/fishing, but Orofino is in the bottom of a Canyon which kind of gives you a closed in feel. Also, parts of the town seemed to have a bit of a run-down look. A lot of cars up on blocks in people's front yards with a sofa on the porch. We drove to Kamiah and the area was much prettier than Orofino but it seemed a bit run-down too. There were also clouds of Mayflies like I have never seen before. The locals said this only lasts a couple of weeks per year. VERY FRIENDLY PE0PLE in both Orofino and Kamiah.

Hamilton - What can I say? The Hamilton/Darby area was a dream. I felt at home. Wife and I did not want to leave. We have been back from vacation for a month now, but Hamilton still comes up in our conversations on an almost daily basis. Is there a negative to this area that I did not see?

Thompson Falls - Very small. Not much in the way of shopping but gorgeous and surrounded by National Forest. We spent two nights there plus I spent a week there chasing Whitetails last year. It is in the "Banana Belt" of Western Montana and does not get the extreme cold and deep snow that other parts of Montana does. It gets cold and there is snow but not excessive. Really liked it. Minnie's Restaurant and Big Eddies were good places to eat. Big Eddies makes a pretty good Top Shelf margarita too.

Any input anyone could give me on these towns would be appreciated.

Are there any other towns that we should look at?

 

[Wildatheart]

Can't help you on how likely it will be for your wife to get a teaching job, but I've traveled around the state quite a bit over the last 8 years for work and hunting. My opinions:

I live in Helena and prefer it's slower pace over college towns like Bozeman and Missoula. I wouldn't turn either down to stay in MT or if the right opportunity presents itself. I like the Kalispell region, but the cost of living is higher and I don't really like how thick the local elk country is. Butte isn't bad and probably has fewer folks trying to move there, but it definitely looks older than the rest of the towns I mentioned. Billings is farther east and bigger than I prefer, but it's the largest population and will have more schools. Great Falls feels similar to Helena (to me), but it's got more wind (I prefer Helena).

There are several small to mid size Montana towns that Id consider:
Lewistown
Dillon
Libby
Anaconda (I've not spent much time here)
Miles City (I'm not crazy about location but town is ok)
Havre (I'm not crazy about location but town is ok)
Glasgow (My wife wouldn't like this, but I'd survive)

Smaller towns:
Thompson Falls
Choteau
Lincoln

Towns that I don't want to live in:
Cut Bank
Shelby
Roundup
Glendive
Sidney
Hardin
Livingston (windy as heck)

I really appreciate all of this advice! It means a lot! Making my wife a bit more sure also

 

[hobbes]

I am fairly new to this forum and don't want to hi-jack this thread but I have a couple of questions along the same lines:

My wife and I want to leave Oregon and move to either Idaho or Montana. Last year we took a vacation and spent some nights in Moscow ID, Missoula MT, Kalispell MT, and Coeur d'Alene. This year we went back and stayed in Moscow, Orofino, Hamilton, and Thompson Falls.

I work from a home office so my job can be anywhere. I would really like some advice. Here are my thoughts on each place:

Moscow - Loved the coffee shops. It a little larger than what I was wanting and is further from the National Forest than I prefer. It is also the most liberal city in Idaho (or so I am told).

Missoula - Too big. Too many people

Kalispell - A LOT busier that what we were expecting. All of the big chain stores have come in and it is projected to double in the next decade. Not interested. Polson is nearby and is beautiful, but I have read there is a HUGE meth problem. Lots or break-ins and theft.

Coeur d'Alene - Beautiful but too many people.

Orofino - My research had made this city Number 1 on my list for possible places to move. We spent two nights there. The people were VERY friendly. The surrounding mountains looked really good for hunting/fishing, but Orofino is in the bottom of a Canyon which kind of gives you a closed in feel. Also, parts of the town seemed to have a bit of a run-down look. A lot of cars up on blocks in people's front yards with a sofa on the porch. We drove to Kamiah and the area was much prettier than Orofino but it seemed a bit run-down too. There were also clouds of Mayflies like I have never seen before. The locals said this only lasts a couple of weeks per year. VERY FRIENDLY PE0PLE in both Orofino and Kamiah.

Hamilton - What can I say? The Hamilton/Darby area was a dream. I felt at home. Wife and I did not want to leave. We have been back from vacation for a month now, but Hamilton still comes up in our conversations on an almost daily basis. Is there a negative to this area that I did not see?

Thompson Falls - Very small. Not much in the way of shopping but gorgeous and surrounded by National Forest. We spent two nights there plus I spent a week there chasing Whitetails last year. It is in the "Banana Belt" of Western Montana and does not get the extreme cold and deep snow that other parts of Montana does. It gets cold and there is snow but not excessive. Really liked it. Minnie's Restaurant and Big Eddies were good places to eat. Big Eddies makes a pretty good Top Shelf margarita too.

Any input anyone could give me on these towns would be appreciated.

Are there any other towns that we should look at?

I like Thompson Falls. I've spent a lot of nights there working. Seems like pretty good folks live there. I've eaten at Minnie's more times than I can count. Big Eddie's is nice too. The owners also own the Falls Motel. They are nice folks. It is definitely a small town, but I like it. The biggest down side for my wife would be the distance to the bigger grocery stores and box stores (about 1.5 hours). She's not a big shopper but likes relatively easy access.

I've not spent a lot of time there, but Libby seems like a nice town. Kalispell would be the closest "bigger" town.

It's too bad that Montana is no longer accepting new residents. I got in just in time just before the 1 million cap. But.....you can still visit for a couple weeks a year.

 

[Mt Al]

I am fairly new to this forum and don't want to hi-jack this thread but I have a couple of questions along the same lines:

My wife and I want to leave Oregon and move to either Idaho or Montana. Last year we took a vacation and spent some nights in Moscow ID, Missoula MT, Kalispell MT, and Coeur d'Alene. This year we went back and stayed in Moscow, Orofino, Hamilton, and Thompson Falls.

I work from a home office so my job can be anywhere. I would really like some advice. Here are my thoughts on each place:

Moscow - Loved the coffee shops. It a little larger than what I was wanting and is further from the National Forest than I prefer. It is also the most liberal city in Idaho (or so I am told).

Missoula - Too big. Too many people

Kalispell - A LOT busier that what we were expecting. All of the big chain stores have come in and it is projected to double in the next decade. Not interested. Polson is nearby and is beautiful, but I have read there is a HUGE meth problem. Lots or break-ins and theft.

Coeur d'Alene - Beautiful but too many people.

Orofino - My research had made this city Number 1 on my list for possible places to move. We spent two nights there. The people were VERY friendly. The surrounding mountains looked really good for hunting/fishing, but Orofino is in the bottom of a Canyon which kind of gives you a closed in feel. Also, parts of the town seemed to have a bit of a run-down look. A lot of cars up on blocks in people's front yards with a sofa on the porch. We drove to Kamiah and the area was much prettier than Orofino but it seemed a bit run-down too. There were also clouds of Mayflies like I have never seen before. The locals said this only lasts a couple of weeks per year. VERY FRIENDLY PE0PLE in both Orofino and Kamiah.

Hamilton - What can I say? The Hamilton/Darby area was a dream. I felt at home. Wife and I did not want to leave. We have been back from vacation for a month now, but Hamilton still comes up in our conversations on an almost daily basis. Is there a negative to this area that I did not see?

Thompson Falls - Very small. Not much in the way of shopping but gorgeous and surrounded by National Forest. We spent two nights there plus I spent a week there chasing Whitetails last year. It is in the "Banana Belt" of Western Montana and does not get the extreme cold and deep snow that other parts of Montana does. It gets cold and there is snow but not excessive. Really liked it. Minnie's Restaurant and Big Eddies were good places to eat. Big Eddies makes a pretty good Top Shelf margarita too.

Any input anyone could give me on these towns would be appreciated.

Are there any other towns that we should look at?

All I can say is you're right about Hamilton. Bitterroot Valley, close enough to Missoula and far enough away. My friend just moved there an loves it. "Was/Is" is a huge issue with any trendy town or place in Montana and Hamilton isn't what it was along with Missoula, Bozeman, Kalispel. The whole Bitterroot Valley is insanely more populated than it was 35 years ago, not even the same place. However, it's still awesome. 4 hour drive to Orofino for steelhead, california quail are all over the valley now (no season, no limit so far).

 

[MT257]

Towns that I don't want to live in:
Cut Bank
Shelby
Roundup
Glendive
Sidney
Hardin
Livingston (windy as heck)

What are your reasons for not wanting to live these places? Ive grown up in one an spent considerable time in a few others, it is what you make of it.