Where should we move to? montana? south dakota?

Question

me, my husband, and daughter are wanting to move out of state after hubby gets out of military. were a young couple with a young daughter. planning on moving in a year or two. we want to be away from people....we love our privacy yet dont want to be were daughters friends and stores are an hour away lol. no where to cold. were thinking montana or south dakota? we want land but were not doing the cattle thing. were from TX and SC so we want to live somewhere new. any suggestions? please say town and state so i can look it up. ive onlly been to SC and TX so dont know what else is out there! please no cities...

Answer 1

You could try looking at average climate tables for various areas and cross off areas that are too cold.  If your hubby will still get any military benefits, cross off areas far from bases with good services.  Then look at schools, for example their graduation rates and college admission rates for their graduates.  Save lots of money so you can put at least 20% down.

I like Oregon.

Answer 2

I hear Montana is nice.

Answer 3

I live in SD.  Castlewood orginally (very small rural town) then clear Lake (also very small town).    I  would suggest living in Sioux Falls...some people would call it a City.  But it it not a city...lol.  It's very easy to find your way around.  It's a growing city..they call it the rising star.   It's pretty nice there.   You could live in the Suburb part or rural outskirts of the "city"...  

  If you live in SF which is where everyone goes to from the surrounding areas (clear lake, aberdeen, watertown).  You won't have to travel an hour to get anywhere it'll be there.  OR you could live in watertown.  A small town but not as small as Clear lake.   They have a nice school, friendly community.   It is starting to develop but not nearly as much to do as SF.  I'm not talking about night life and fun stuff to do... I mean your not going to have much variety in shopping or movies or groceries...there are alot of strip malls and one movie theater.

  So if you want simple go with Watertown.  If you simple but with more diversity I'd go with Sioux Falls.   You can look them on mapquest or types in the name of the towns in a seach engine to find out more about each one.   East South Dakota flat land not alot out there and even less in the middle between the hills and the plains people are miles apart you may what to look into West side of SD.  It's more touristy and more expensive and MUCH more populated then the eastern side.  But more attractive.   Alot of this is vague I'm sure....but I hope I helped a little.

Also, it's cold all over SD but more in the hills.  But it's been less cold these last few years or so.  Maybe it's global warming...who knows.

Answer 4

sioux falls, south dakota is an awesome city there are many attractions, bike trails, and the price of homes and almost everything else is the lowest in the country... dont think its all country people and hillbillies... its really modern and we have a huge mall its the largest 1 story mall in the world. every year there are things like lifelight and jazzfest the biggest free jazz and christian concerts in the country and the dakota bowl the largest high school tailgating sports event. of course its not just busy busy stuff like that, the city is actually pretty small and quiet it was ranked in the top 20 small towns to live in and on the edges of the town the houses are gorgeous well furnished with a low low crime rate and they are quiet overall the city is really something to look into!

as far as temp goes- the summer is hot hot hot but the winter does get chilly however there are fun things like skiing and snowboarding at great bear

(common misconception- south dakota is like alaska.... cold and boring and youll freeze your butt off... wrong it does get chilly but a nice jacket and some snow gear means you get to have lots of fun in the snow!)

also schools are awesome around here we have a public, catholic, and lutheran system

so recap

shopping- great

schools- awesome

activity-great

temperature-pretty good

Good luck!!

p.s. there are countless jobs and a low unemployment rate! also again, low home costs

Answer 5

montana is freezing. i would consider maybe new mexico or northern ca

Answer 6

If you don't want cold, you don't want Montana or SD.  And family life unless you are in the handful of bigger towns, will have virtually nothing for your children to do.  

IMHO, you cannot have it both ways.  You cannot have privacy and not separate your children from social opportunities.  If you are remote enough for privacy, there are no neighbors or if you have neighbors, they may not be socialable.  People seeking privacy may want just that.

Some suggestions in my neck of the woods (OR), Madras, Prineville, Rogue River, Lakeview, Paisley or Tulelake, CA, Dorris, CA.

I like this website for checking out other areas:

http://www.bestplaces.net

Answer 7

Many people from ND and SD go to TX for the winter.  There may not be that much snow, but the eternal breeze can feel cool when way below zero, and result in drifts of snow and dirt (snirt).  If you are not used to long underwear and icycles forming on facial hair or scarf from your breath, you may not want to live that far north.

Rapid City, SD is nice with the Black Hills nearby.  When I was there on business and got a chance, I would drive back into the hills late afternoon, wait until dusk, and see deer everywhere when I drove out.  And that is within driving distance of elk and buffalo.

If you are looking a remote smaller town in that area, Pierre (pronounced pier) in the center of the state is one of the smallest state capitals around.  Fort Pierre national grasslands is miles of rolling land to roam.  And total shoreline of water backed up behind the dam in town stretches longer than the pacific coast.

Answer 8

Searcy County Arkansas-Marshall is the town seat

Stay out of MT and SD if you don't like cold.  I moved from TN to SE Montana last year.  I live 40 miles from the nearest small town and 120 miles from Wal-mart.  The cost of living is sky high compared with mid state smaller towns where I came from.  What would you do for a living?  Unless you have an ATV that can stand -40 below 0, horses, snowmobiles...better stick to warmer climates.  

My husband is retired military....you are sheltered in the military-financially.  Check out the cost of living wherever you want to go.  I only mentioned Arkansas (lived there 16 years) because it is reasonable and there are places you can get waaaaaaaaaaaay away from people.  Good luck.

Answer 9

Idaho.

Answer 10

Montana and SD both get well below zero in the winter.

You would like AZ or NM better, and there are jobs there, where the other 2 states really do not have any.