Taylor Sheridan Made Montana Famous. Now Locals Are Paying the Price

Montana’s Charm Is Drawing Newcomers

There are a lot of reasons to love living in Montana, and those of us who have been here a while don’t love seeing it change too fast.

Our wide-open spaces and slower pace of life are what make people fall in love with this state. But thanks to Taylor Sheridan, there’s now a whole new wave of people showing up.

The New Wave Of Out-of-State Buyers

Montana has always attracted newcomers. In the past it’s been folks from California and Texas, but now we’ve got another group of outsiders moving in.

If you’ve been keeping up, Sheridan has milked a new "Yellowstone" spin-off called "The Madison," where a family from New York moves out west to Montana. Chris pointed out many of Sheridan's shows follow the same formula.

Realtors here are already getting calls from New Yorkers ready to make the move to the Treasure State.

An Affordability Crisis For Locals

I get it, we can’t tell people where they can and can’t live. This is America, and people are free to move.

But for longtime Montanans, it’s frustrating to see what we love get driven by profit. Out-of-state buyers paying way over asking price have created an affordability crisis. People born and raised here are getting priced out of family homes, and new families are struggling to find starter homes.

Montana Values Should Matter

It’s not just about money; it’s about values too. Montanans wave at strangers and help neighbors because it’s home, not because they saw it on TV. All we want is to live our lives in peace without seeing taxes spike because we suddenly became the flavor of the week.

So to Taylor Sheridan, New Yorkers, and anyone else paying attention, let Montana be Montana.