About Flathead County, MT

An exciting horsey weekend starting on Friday in the Flathead Valley! Clinton Anderson is doing a horse clinic here for 3 days. I have tickets for all three days. I have utilized his videos and techniques for years so am very excited to watch him in person. Individuals will have their horses at $2000 a piece so we will watch them learn and progress through the 3 days. He is coming from Texas so this is very cool in our little valley.

I showed clients homes on small acreage for 2 days last week so have been exposed to a lot of properties in the $300k to $600k range on 5-10 acres. Some decent choices out there.

Been doning the bee suit and checking on the hives in our garden area. Feels like a steep learning curve, but pretty facinating all the same.

Dirt work is happening on Super WalMart near Target, etc. Will be nice to have a grocery store at this end of town.

Should be a good hay crop this year with all the snow we had and the rain is still off and on this spring.

Glacier National Park plowing is proceeding after a big dump of snow last week slowed progress in getting the Going to the Sun highway open. It is always fun to see r.v.s driving through Kalispell on the way to the park in May when the road is not open all the way through until sometime in June depending on the weather.

Whitefish Mountain Resort (Big Mountain to me) is selling next year season passes. The great news is that the price did not go up. Thos of us with season passes from this last winter are able to ride up the mountain for free this summer to take advantage of the zip lines, walk thru the tress and other summer activities.

A new hobby on our ranch: honey bees. We have installed the bees in 2 new hives in our back garden. Already having fun watching these busy bees carrying in pollen and working on establishing their new homes. Will get suited up this weekend to take an in depth peek into the hives to see what is going on and if all is well. Fortunately we have friends who are giving us lots of advice. There is a steep learning curve but what facinating creatures!!

Rent To Own! 50% rent credit! Gorgeous 3 bedroom, 2 bath, 2000 square foot home with magnificent views of the Rocky Mountains! Home has an oversized 2 car garage that has built in cabinets and attic storage! The lots is .62 acres and is impeccably landscaped and fenced! The floor plan is open and the house has a gas fireplace, lots of storage, beautiful kitchen, huge bedrooms and self draining sprinkler system. Rent is $1250/mo and first months rent and $5,000 dollars down required to move in. Please contact us with any questions at www.50statesrent2own.com. Until next time....

Pete Olsen

Rent To Own Homes, LLC

www.50statesrent2own.com

www.activerain.com/blogs/peteolsen01

Tax day has come and gone and spring is here! Temps in the 70's lately and NICE. Seems like everyone has come out of hibernation. Traffic is thickening edging towards summer.

The new Super One grocery store in Kalispell is making encouraging progress in the remodel. Looking forward to having a large supermarket near my office again. With construction very slow, it gives a glimmer of hope. Waiting for the Super Walmart to start construction in the Costco area.

CASA, court appointed special advocate for children, is an organization I volunteer for. Currently I am on a break between cases, but a compelling article in the Daily Interlake for the great need for more CASAs to help with the caseload is prompting me to get back in the game. We CASAs are the sole voice for the child or children who are removed from their homes due to abuse or neglect. It is an extremely stressful and emotional volunteer job and takes many hours to do court reports, interview family, social workers, counselors, teachers and spend time getting to know the child. All our work helps the judge decide what is best for the child. My last case made me just want to take this 10 year old boy home and raise him with boundaries and love, but of course that isn't possible. The state always tries to reunify the child with their parents or at least a family member. I definitely learned about the "other side of the tracks" in our wonderful valley. Drugs and alcohol are often the cause of family problems as is abuse. If you want to make a difference, look into volunteering for this wonderful organization.

Happy Easter everyone! After attending church in Whitefish with friends, went to brunch at the Grouse Mountain Lodge, awesome! Surprised to see snow on the golf course still that the lodge sits on.

Weekend ranch happenings: horse riding, greenhouse growing, bee hives put together and painted, inventory of fences that need replacing (ugh!), hoses and patio furniture back out for the summer. Wonderful weather to get chores done. A funny think happend with my youngest Golden this week. Maggie has become used to walking on the swimming pool ice all winter. Well, this week she went swimming instead with two paws cling to a floating piece of ice. I had to coach her to the step so she could get out, all the while saying that I wasn't coming in to get her!

There are buyers out there! Many showings on my listings the last few days, all price ranges. Feel much more optimistic this spring than last. I have listings from townhomes, to houses on small acreage, to a house on an airstrip with a hangar, horse properties, just about anything in every price range. Getting many internet inquires from buyers or buyer prospects. Could be a busy year!

Chinese Proverb: "those who say it can't be done should not interupt those doing it"