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Livingston is game for real estate

It is hard not to hear the chatter about the rising prices of real estate in Park County these days. Except for the fact that no one is wearing black, you would think that you were in San Francisco.

But is it real? Are prices going up as quickly and as much as the buzz would have it? And how long will it be before people start wearing black?

In general, more people are relocating to the state every year. For players, there are still opportunities to get second homes at prices that seem lightweight compared to other areas with as much to offer, like Positano, Italy, St. John, and the South of France. And Montanans speak a language very much like English, which makes it all the more appealing for jet setters who are tired of the transoceanic trip.

For giddyuppies, those newcomers with fresh Bozeman jobs and Livingston wallets, Livingston offers relatively affordable homes, with town amenities like art, coffee shops, 243 bars, and lively conversation about trash, as well as an Elks Lodge and a Moose Lodge. And those folks are buying freshly built homes. Estimates for Livingston through 2006 range from 120 new homes to 14,000, depending on the day and to whom you are listening. Developers are seeking planning commission approvals faster than you can say "infrastructure failure."

If you're a player, the Montana real estate picture is bright, fast, and increasingly competitive (below). (Click image to enlarge it.)

The recent increase in alien visitations and abductions (See Volume 1: Issue 3) may have helped rather than hurt the boom. It's possible that many of the aliens are here for the housing, and some folks say "they make good neighbors because they care about fitting in." (See photo at right.)

Bozemanites and aliens alike are drawn to Livingston's new subdivisions (left).

To get some real data on real estate values, Livingston Out Loud went shopping. Of course values do depend on location, location, location, as the listings below demonstrate. But from what our crack team of investigative journalists have found, Livingston property values have gone out of this world.


While a handful of people are profiting from the boom, the news is not all good, as many Nontanans will tell you. "It's bad enough that Bozeman and San Jose are virtually indistinguishable from the air," said new Livingston resident Latte LeSaab, President of the Nontana Historical Society (see Volume 1: Issue 1), "but we'll soon be living in Levittown, Montana." And then there is the problem of infrastructure. While trash piles up on city streets as landfill fees put most households and contractors out of the running, and firefighters keep up with the increased need to hold pancake suppers for the burgeoning senior population, galleries are also staggering under the economic weight of feeding hordes at Art Walks.	Livingston is definitely on the map for players in Montana. Many people move to Livingston for the art scene. Huge crowds during Art Walks mean that galleries must spend a fortune on food and beverage. One voracious patron was actually halfway through a valuable painting (left) before an alert gallery manager stopped him in his tracks.

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