Questions: ID vs western MT - Pros and Cons

[North of 60]

Looking for advice on a few questions related to a trip we are taking to visit ID/western MT the last week of October. We currently plan to spend a few days in north ID, spend some time in NW MT and SW MT, and make the loop across the mountains in ID to Boise and then head back up to CDA. I lived/worked in Missoula for a bit, and we have seen Glacier.

1. What are your suggested things to see/do on a visit to ID, and any great places to eat in ID and western MT?
2. Is either better for the outdoors - elk, hiking, Mtn biking, whitewater, etc.?
3. What are the objective and subjective pros and cons of living in ID vs MT and vice versa? For example, objective pros of MT are no state sales tax and fewer people. Supposedly ID overall has less crime.

Reason for the questions is we are going to see both, as we will likely be moving up to either ID or western MT in the next year or so after my wife retires. Having lived in windy Casper when i was kid, i have no desire to live in eastern MT.

My best guess at the moment is we will end up somewhere within an hour or so of CDA, Missoula, or Boise to have more choices for medical care in retirement. We do like small town living.

Thx much in advance

 

[Jason Snyder]

Go to Seasons in Grangeville and get the Country Benedict. Pretty good little sporting goods store in town too.

Locking Horns Riverside Grill in Horseshoe Bend has good food and a nice patio by the river.

Cultura at one of the food courts in CDA has an amazing pastor sub and fantastic tacos.

I’d look at your overall tax burden between the two states, to include property tax. I really doubt ID has lower overall crime, but I could be wrong.

 

[TheTone]

Meltz in CDA if you want a ridiculous grilled cheese sandwich.

If I was moving to one for the hunting I would probably pick MT. As an Idaho resident it seems to have more resident opportunity; they let you put in for all species for controlled hunts, way more pronghorn, huge expanse of east/west plus almost as much north/south for a huge variety of habitats. There is a chance I’ll never draw any controlled hunts here just due to our system forces us to pick and choose, but in Montana I could at least have my name in the hat for everything every year

Both areas are seeing tons of pop growth which is a strain on people, resources and prices

 

[Axlrod]

Idaho is WAY WAY better in all respects!

 

[North of 60]

Axlrod, can you be more specific?

 

[270quest]

If your a football fan, Need to stop by Boise State and see the stadium/blue turf.

 

[JeffRaines]

Surely you’ve priced out real estate - if you haven’t you’re in for a shock when you look at the CdA area.

Me and the family are sort of waffling about moving out there. I’d love to be closer to ID/MT as we spend a bunch of time there every year… but as working folks, the numbers don’t pan out. For every person that’s told me “living in Idaho/Montana is cheaper than Washington because of taxes” must be conveniently forgetting the income taxes in both states, and for every nickel and dime Washington takes from us our tax burden would still be greater if we moved to those states by all accounts.

Add in the fact that wages are significantly less while real estate is similarly priced… it’s not that we couldn’t make it work, but we’d need to sacrifice a lot of free time we currently have to working overtime to make it a reality… and that would defeat the entire reason for us moving there.

I realize you guys are retired, so that changes things a bit more than likely.

 

[North of 60]

Oh man, I get it, and yes, housing in any western state is sky-high, and being retired and having always lived beneath our means makes it a little easier. We'll get less house in MT or ID for the same money, and i don't mind too much as i'm looking forward to less stuff to take care of in general.

We should have moved 30 yrs ago

The lack of sales tax in MT is appealing.

WA is beautiful and would be great too if the politics there were tolerable.

Still trying to get a sense of what RS folks think about preferences between the two and reasons.

 

[North of 60]

Sending this back up for feedback...I'm pretty sure there are more than just a few guys with thoughts on this.

And thanks to the two who sent me DMs! Very helpful. If that is preferred over posting here, please DM me.

 

[Soj51hopeful]

Both states are great to live in. Problem is the retired or remote workers moving here driving up real estate but not contributing to local jobs. I don’t say that to dissuade you from moving but if you expect expedient service don’t be surprised if things don’t get done like you expect. A lot of companies are short staffed and don’t exactly attract the highest candidates. Young people are moving away.

 

[Customweld]

@Soj51hopeful touched on a subject that not a lot of folks moving in don’t think about. They are moving from areas with high taxes, but offer much more services such as better roads, more parks, more government amenities in general. Most municipalities and counties in Idaho do not offer the level of service that a lot of folks are accustomed to.
Any where within 2 hours of Boise is busy, over priced and has little hope of improving.

 

[North of 60]

Soj51hopeful, that make sense, and not too worried with that particular piece as historically i've done much of the handyman work needed around the homes we've lived in - electrical, plumbing, drywall, carpentry, flooring, etc.

 

[IdahoJoe29]

Depends on where you’re moving from. I live in Hayden and the real estate market is insane but it doesn’t seem to bother people moving from California or western Washington so it makes it very hard for us who have grown up here to even afford a house. The hunting in north Idaho has gone down drastically over the years I’m sure you’ve heard. To the point where a lot of guys that have grown up hunting here just take a week and go south for elk. Whitetail hunting is still pretty good but overall things have declined. The traffic in the cda area is unreal. Roads are not built for this many people and rush hour you might as well wait for an hour then leave. But that’s how it goes in an expanding area.

 

[North of 60]

@IdahoJoe, that is helpful feedback. Thx!

 

[mtnbiker208]

When i graduated high school in 1987, Idaho had roughly 800,000 residents. Today I believe we have 2,000,000.
The infrastucture has not kept up with the population growth. Some people have prospered with the growth, some people have not. I don't see an end in sight with the population growth, The town I live in, now has a skyline with 3 tall crains building high rises. So bring your money, you are going to need it.

 

[IdahoJoe29]

@IdahoJoe, that is helpful feedback. Thx!

Sorry to be so negative but you talk to anyone who grew up in north Idaho and they will say the same thing

 

[North of 60]

All good Looking for honest pros and cons to both.

What are the pros of living in N ID?

 

[Customweld]

Sorry to be so negative but you talk to anyone who grew up in north Idaho and they will say the same thing

Its the same conversation anywhere in Idaho anymore.

 

[Soj51hopeful]

Soj51hopeful, that make sense, and not too worried with that particular piece as historically i've done much of the handyman work needed around the homes we've lived in - electrical, plumbing, drywall, carpentry, flooring, etc.

I’m not just talking home services, your hospital, food, calling the police etc.

 

[IdahoJoe29]

All good Looking for honest pros and cons to both.

What are the pros of living in N ID?

It’s nice being no more than 15 minutes from a nice lake, good fishing, tons of recreating to do if you are into dirtbiking, hiking, or side by sides, descent skiing/sledding depending on the winter and we get all 4 seasons which is nice. Very low crime in north Idaho and good political leanings for the most part