Comment by blantonl | Hacker News Reader

Comment by blantonl | Hacker News Reader

I own a number of pieces of property in Whitefish Montana, where I decamped to the second my children were released from school for COVID reasons in March (we split time between TX and MT). Given what I felt were going to be significant economic disruptions due to unemployment and drops in income, I prepared myself with the understanding that our little resort town was going to be facing some hard times. Usually, small resort towns tend to take it on the chin when the economy turns.

Boy was I wrong.

Once the initial shock of lifestyle changes happened due to COVID, people FLOODED the area and any piece of real estate not bolted down was flying off the shelves and bought for cash unseen. I sold a small lot in the Whitefish City limits for a significant capital gain, after buying it for what I thought then was at the top of the market in 2019. I've been offered cash for home-run-knock-it-out-of-the-park prices for my retirement home property that are simply unfathomable. The only reason why I don't sell is because I treat this property like I do my two labrador retrievers - everything has a price, but I'm not interested in selling. :)

There is a lot of angst in Whitefish over the changes - all the building and influx of money really helps the local economy, but the quality of life (traffic, etc) is suffering. It's the age old dichotomy for a small Montana popular town.

I loved Whitefish when I was there, and would have considered it for the long term but was concerned about reports of a growing alt-right contingent in town. Have you encountered that?

Whitefish is exactly the opposite of your concerns. It is very similar to the "Austin" of Montana.

i just bought 18 acres on the direct border of the Ouachita National Forest in SE Oklahoma for reasons outside the pandemic (i live in Dallas, about 4hrs away). The real estate person said all land is gone within days of listing. They're selling at $7-8k/acre what was $1-2k/acre just a couple years ago. People are flocking to the country side.

I don't think it's a permanent move though. People are buying summer/weekend homes or property which already had constrained supply.

i agree, i think people are buying but then will sell and head back to the city eventually. Living out in the sticks is ok if you understand what you're getting in to but many don't. However, I think it will have a lasting impact as many urban people are going to have at least some real world exposure to rural life. It may broaden the perspectives of both urban and rural types... or drive them even further apart.

I'm sure there are a combination of factors.

With prices of most assets inflated and lots of money flowing around, land speculation is probably a significant factor.

Lots of folks are probably looking for security but will turn around and sell once things stabilize or they realize that property ownership and living in the country come with responsibilities they're not equipped or willing to handle.

Your experience could partly be explained by selection bias (e.g. sister comment “it's such a cool town!“). I am presuming you didn’t choose Whitefish randomly, and obviously you must have been an early adopter.

However, the flight to other locations does seem like a general trend. Anecdotally it appears to be happening to my neighbourhood...

I don't live in Whitefish (nor Montana), but I love it - it's such a cool town!

What do you think about Bigfork as a place for future investment/growth?

I think that most of the towns in the Flathead Valley all have good potential - they are all nice little enclaves

> labrador retrievers

Lovely dogs! And yes, everything has a price, but of course you might decide something is not worth being sold (I am referring to the house, not the dogs of course!)

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