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Newsletter from Montana - Minnesota
March 2009
Here it is: one hundred treed mountainous acres adjacent to 4 million acres of public lands and parks. The property is thick with Douglas fir and aspen stands on the north side of the slopes. The south sides are filled with wild flowers, native grasses and some sage brush. The access into the National Forest is private and goes along a lofty trail with a 360 degree view of five mountain ranges; simply spectacular to ride your horse, ATV or cross country skiing. Wildlife on the property includes moose, bear, elk, deer and many others. Build a log cabin, bring your cauldron and move in! So far we have five different owners on the 386 acres of Sheep Mountain Ranch. The property is about 15 miles west of Red Lodge. If you are in love with mountains and like to be close to a metropolitan area, this acreage is for you! $490,000 takes all 100 acres!
If you prefer softly rolling terrain with more hay to harvest, I still have the 200 acres for sale for $325,000 just half an hour from Billings and half an hour from Red Lodge, with an assumable loan of $ 125,000 at 6%
If you rather like to be just around a corner from a coffee shop and 10 minutes from a ski lift, I have a new listing right in old town Red Lodge. It is a cute 1920's home, completely restored to its original splendor. There are old and young trees in the front and backyard. It has a brand new roof and fresh paint on the outside and inside. What is especially nice about this 1,152sf home is that most rooms have windows facing two different directions, catching the sunshine coming and going. The 9' high ceilings downstairs give the rooms a spacious feeling. The home has a fenced yard, a garage and even a studio, which easily converts to a bedroom if your home is overflowing with guests. Priced right at $235,000
Small homes are saving you a bundle on utilities and maintenance.
You might have heard of Sarah Susanka and "The Not So Big House"
In Billings, construction is still chugging along, with a new Cabela's set to open in May, plans for a Sam's Club warehouse and talk of a sizable expansion at the Bresnan facility (Internet provider) on Central. Unemployment figures have jumped a few ticks, but at 3.5 percent (the most recent figure, which measures December's numbers), that's less than half the national rate and even two points lower than Montana as a whole. Even real estate, while slowing down a bit, boasts an increase of 1.66 percent in the value of the median home in Billings. Our home foreclosure rate, at one in every 14,684 housing units - there were only four foreclosed properties listed in Yellowstone County earlier this week - ranks us 46th in the nation. This scenario paints south-central Montana as a relative oasis from the nation's doldrums, especially since Montana's banks are much stronger than the national banks, according to Buchanan, former Montana's first commerce director. Sales in Red Lodge were down 47% but the median price of homes sold went up from $ 250,000 to $ 320,000, an increase of 28% over the previous 12 months and there were no foreclosures here.
My daughter and I went to the home show in Billings, which is the largest within five states. We learned about new materials such as decorative gravel mixed into a compound to spread over unsightly concrete slabs or steps: 406/652 6701 -
Bboverlays@yahoo.com
And concrete countertops that look like granite.
Just for fun we entered several drawings and lo and behold I received a phone call that we won a security system worth $ 1,500 including installation for our home in Red Lodge! I would have never dreamt of installing a security system in my house, but now since I have it, I love it! There is a separate button each for fire, sheriff and medical emergencies. It also works as a hard wired speaker phone and if the alarm does go off by accident, a voice talks from the speakerphone and unless you can give it your password, the army and the navy will arrive.. They also call your neighbors if you are not home to see what is going on with your home. The alarm can be set even if you are inside just for the outside. Or for outside and the motion detector inside if you are away from the home but allowing your pets to roam. The system also turns your appliances or lamps on and off if you are not home to give it a lived in look. The system protects you not only from burglars, but goes off in case of fire, carbon monoxide, water on the floor from a broken pipe or overflowing appliance, and in case the temperature drops too low in your house. If you like to have a system like that, contact Paul Semenze 406/698 2564, psemenze@bresnan.net
If you are worried about having your computer stolen, there are software packages you can buy for around $50 which will track your computer, take photos of the thief and post it on the Flickr website, simulate a fault so it will be taken to a repair shop and then scream that it has been stolen, and you can even remotely erase your hard drive if you have to. These programs install in the BIOS, so even if the thief erases the hard drive, it will still function and report its location:
lojackforlaptops
bios-enabled-computers
gadgettrak
undercover
Silver Lake Estates is a quaint rural subdivision located adjacent to Silver Lake in Minnesota. The lake itself is 114 acres and up to 39 feet deep. Anglers pursue walleye, northern pike, bass and sunfish. The public access to the lake is located across the road from the home Mike Olson listed. Fishing, swimming and water sports are literally right outside your back door. The home is set among rows of ponderosa pines and black hills spruce trees. Also within the three acres of the property are various apple, plumb and pear trees. Polish up your green thumb because a garden also awaits your arrival.
The home consists of 1,792 square feet all on one level with 3 to 4 bedrooms and two baths. $164,000. Come and enjoy Silver Lake Estates!
If you like to have a small ranch or farm, our log sided home with 5bdr/3ba on 75 acres is still for sale. Besides the riding arena, shop, swimming pool, chicken coop, hangar, six car garage and 1,500' grass strip, we also have an insulated cow barn, which we had used to raise a foal, and after that we used it as an aviary for pheasants and peacocks. Now it is ready to house some cows again. The acreage we don't use for pasture is rented to a local farmer to grow soybeans and corn in exchange for hay and straw for our horses plus some cash.
Have you ever thought about having a cow on your own, but they are too big and messy and it probably wouldn't be worth the trouble? Well, there are mini cows which are the size of a large dog. They give just enough milk to put cream in your coffee and a few glasses of fresh milk for your kids. Even if you are lactose intolerant, you will be amazed how easy it is to digest raw milk. To make yoghurt, you just pour milk in a bowl, let it sit uncovered over night and the next morning you have yoghurt. When you get your little cow milked, the cream rises to the top, put the cream in a blender and you have enough butter to feed not only your, but also your neighbor's family. With mini cows you can be a cattle rancher and keep your daytime job, too!
The most popular pet of the 26 miniature cattle breeds is the Kentshire, which is a very docile affectionate animal. Its breeding is ½ Irish Dexter and ½ Miniature Hereford. It would give your children a great 4-H project.
There is really nothing new about miniature cattle. St. Patrick himself may well have eaten the tiny Irish Dexters in the fourth century A.D. and the shaggy ancestors of today's Highland cattle roamed the glens of Britain while King Arthur's knights sat at the round table. It is the large, commercial cattle breeds of today which are the newcomers. They have grown out of the twentieth century "bigger is better" theory of agriculture.
One hundred years ago in America, while small farms thrived, the family cow was a small, docile bovine, more akin to a family pet, than a farm animal. She usually had a name, which insured a long and mostly peaceful life because no one named an animal they intended to eat. She produced enough milk for the family, with maybe a little left to sell. She also produced a calf each year. In contrast to the Hollywood image of huge cattle drives, most herds were small and the big drives were usually made up of many small herds pulled together for safety and convenience while being moved to market. Small farms kept small herds of "dual-purpose" cattle, so named because they supplied both milk and meat. They were hardy enough to forage on unimproved pasture land. In other words, they were very much like today's miniature cattle.
Miniature cattle are easier on the land, equipment, facilities, and most importantly you. They're docile, hearty, and easy calvers. Miniature cattle can be handled easily and efficiently without the need for special equipment or special fencing. Pastures seem to stay greener longer because the tiny cows weigh less and their hooves are smaller. Miniature cattle consume 1/3 the feed of full size cattle and attain finish weight in 2/3 the time, while thriving and maintaining excellent body condition on low quality roughage (grass). They mature early (time is money) and breed back consistently. If you have never raised cows before you may be surprised at how much personality they have and how much fun they are to have around.
Here are some
mini cattle for sale - I think they are just adorable.
Feng Shui teaches that farms, orchards, and ranches where livestock is not raised for slaughter are associated with the forces of life and growth.
Come and get your little ranch in Montana or Minnesota, I specialize in rural real estate!
:-)
Best Regards,
Dorothea Lowe, Broker
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