This week, Montana’s newspapers sported headlines touting the use of federal dollars for the purchase of conservation easements in the Bitterroot Valley. The Bitterroot is one of our favorite Montana valleys, offering a fantastic mix of outdoor adventures, all in a location with easy access to a broad array of cultural opportunities including theater, fine [...]

Ralph Thisted, a former Hall and Hall client, and his brother Bruce were recently honored by Missoula County with the inaugural Missoula County Stewardship Award for their lifelong conservation efforts on their Ninemile ranch. Twenty years ago, the Thisteds sold 2,000 acres of their family ranch to Rose Qualley, the actress known as Andie MacDowell, [...]

When I was a child in Alabama I convinced my father to buy me a pet duck. I argued that if I did not have that duck I would not have the same type of colorful stories he spun around the dinner table while others smiled and laughed. I named her “Waddle-ina,” and she was [...]

by: Jim Taylor, Hall and Hall Ranch Partner It looks like the market for high-end scenic ranches and “retreat” type properties is following the same pattern as the rest of the economy. In short, there is a recovery brewing, but it is slow and hesitant. We are hearing the term “the new reality” bandied about [...]

By: Wade Dokken, Wealthvest Financial Services All recessions have different characteristics. A prolonged and highly over-heated real estate bubble largely induced the recession that began in December 2007. Housing related industries grew to represent nearly double their historic economic activity in the United States—a painful waste of money, since these funds were being diverted from [...]

“I’m in love with Montana. For other states I have admiration, respect, recognition, even some affection. But with Montana it is love. And it’s difficult to analyze love when you’re in it” – John Steinbeck from Travels with Charley