“Don’t squat with yer spurs on!” is a line from the old cowboy Code of the West that is filled with humorous and practical statements.  Some time ago, Stevens County Commissioners took it upon themselves to provide a document with the same title but with different intent and content.
It may have been a subtle attempt to offer some humor for their seasoned citizens, but the real intent was to enlighten those who move to the county from the city who don’t have the skills or practical know-how that country living requires.  The prologue says, “In keeping with the values of self-reliance, we offer this information to help the citizens of Stevens County who wish to follow in the footsteps of those rugged individualists by living outside city limits.  It is important for you to know that life in the country is different from life in the city.  County governments are not able to provide the same level of service that city governments provide.”

Some of the other paragraphs included information about property access and road maintenance, weather, emergency response, school buses, natural disasters, utilities, wells and septic systems, trash removal, mother nature and wildlife depredation, forest fires, topography, and even the fact that logging trucks can disturb your sleep and some agricultural activities cause dust and smells. 

The list goes on and on.  To savvy country folk, this list seems ridiculously obvious, but it was sincerely intended to be a valuable resource for newcomers.  A recent search revealed that officials have since removed this document from their website, but I list some of the myriad of topics here to emphasize important ideas to consider if someone wishes to move to the country. 

I received an email awhile ago from a client who jokingly commented that I didn’t do my duty as a Realtor® because I failed to inform them of the cold weather they would encounter by moving to this region of the state.  Evidently the onset of cold, snowy weather had given them a bit of buyer’s remorse! 

Of course it is unrealistic to think your Realtor® will think to inform you of every possible topic that you are bound to encounter in a country setting, so it is important that rural buyers  do comprehensive research on topics such as listed above.  Choose a Realtor® who understands country living and they can be a great connection for that information.