I'm a 2010 graduate with a degree in agribusiness. Currently living up in Billings, Montana and working at a sugar beet factory. It's basically a logistics/office assistant position and I'm exploring my options to move on. I also have some accounting experience at a coal mine.

I kinda wonder if I could do better financially down there. I only make 37k plus Uber driving on the side. Billings is about B/CS size with maybe 180k people and a much smaller college population. I'm a single guy, 33 years old, and an Army veteran between high school and college. I really like the hunting and fishing a lot better here but my career seems stuck for now. I would rather live in Denver or somewhere up here but I wonder what my options are down there?

You're better off up north. It's too hot down here and there are waayyy more people and even more apartments than in 2010.

Unless you plan on coming back to run an apartment complex or restaurant, your skills would be best served in Colorado.

BUT, if you happen to make it back, welcome.

That would be one of the bad points.

[This is not the General Board. -Staff]

really just kinda depends on what you're preferring in your down time paired with what you need professionally.

i have been in CS my whole love and have a love for it. but at the same time, i'm starting to get an itch to explore other parts of the state.

Yeah, married people in their mid-40s are kind of the standard type of townie down there. I would never want to be the super-stereotypical kind with the Chevy Tahoe and Century Club bumper sticker though. Maybe I have the outdated mentality of B/CS being cheap to live in since I hear it no longer is.

You make your own opportunities. Nobody else does it for you. That said, this area is growing like crazy and there are more and more opportunities for the taking - that includes starting your own business. I moved back after four years working in the Downtown Dallas market and haven't looked back. It's been a great place to live, get married, start and sell multiple businesses, work for established companies, get additional education, raise a family, buy and develop rural property, and now look forward to throttling back while staying active.

I live in Dallas but make it down to BCS several times a year. Part of me really wants to move back as well and I think it's significantly easier to be a young professional in BCS than it was five or ten years ago. I think it is a pretty exciting time to be in the area. So, I would at least explore the options there.

I am still trying to figure out what the path to a career would be for me there as there isn't a lot of demand for a corporate lawyer.

Good luck to you and hopefully you will end up in the right place for you, wherever that may be.

I know housing isn't dirt cheap there anymore. When I was in college I had a 2 bedroom apartment at Willowick for $580, all bills included! This was '07-10 and it was pretty cheap to buy a house there too. My parents moved from down there back up to Wyoming last year and sold their place on Lienz Lane, south CS, for like 250k. A 3 bedroom 1750sf house.

When I bought a few years ago the higher end housing was running in the $145 per sq foot range. You can likely find lower for a smaller lot or less amenities but nothing like the burbs in Houston where it dips down to the $100 per sq foot range. Also there seems to be a limited inventory of sub 200k homes although I'm no realtor so that could just be my perception.

If you're an outdoorsman, I would encourage you to look elsewhere. Have you looked at Boise? I've got a friend who lives there and loves it. I've lived in CS 25 years. I agree it's a nice place to raise kids and it's fun being by the university, but the climate is a beating. I plan on moving closer to the mountains as soon as my kids graduate and I'm able to retire from TAMU.

Yeah, I actually like it here in Billings too. Boise would probably be a good place for me. I just have to make a job change...graduated from college more than six years ago and I feel like I never went.

redd38 said:

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Green2Maroon said:

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I'm a single guy, 33 years old

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Trust me, don't move back here. Move to a city that has other single 30yr olds.

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Or move to this city with plenty of single 21 year olds.

First off, OP, I wish you luck, and yes, opportunities are growing here. Yes, the cost of both housing and rental units has gone up...way up. But there are still *bargains* to be had, esp. in some older neighborhoods re smaller rental or purchase houses, so I wouldn't give up there.

As far as a prospective social life goes, I know many (many) folks recently arrived in their late 20s to early 40s who have made a nice life for themselves here, single or not. Maybe come down and visit for awhile?

With your military background, you might consider law enforcement. Multiple agencies hiring and at least CS will have new digs soon.

CS78 said:

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redd38 said:

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Green2Maroon said:

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I'm a single guy, 33 years old

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Trust me, don't move back here. Move to a city that has other single 30yr olds.

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Or move to this city with plenty of single 21 year olds.

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Getting too old anymore, but I miss all the eye candy down there!

I graduated in 11 and lived in Houston for about 4 years. We moved back to CS in 15, thinking the cost of living would be lower, but we were dead wrong. Other than movies, things are the same if not more expensive here. We spent about a year and a half looking to buy a house in the 200k range with a acre or two before we finally found something after making many offers. I would not recommended moving here if you have plans to buy a home anytime soon.