160 Willow Bend Road, Cascade, Montana 59421, United States

This property sits at 160 Willow Bend Lane on the southern edge of Cascade, Montana, in Cascade County. It is a rural residential homestead fronting directly on the Missouri River, with a four-bedroom home of about 2,904 square feet built in 1990, a full basement, a detached two-car garage, and a large shop for boats and equipment. The property also includes a private boat launch. It is owned by the [owner name withheld], whose mailing address is in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Two things define this parcel above all others: its direct Missouri River frontage — approximately 360 feet — and a significant unresolved discrepancy in its recorded size.

Before anything else, the lot size must be addressed, because it affects nearly every other conclusion in this report. The county assessor's record lists the parcel at 0.36 acres — a small residential lot. The mapped parcel boundary, however, covers approximately 3.9 acres, and real estate listings describe the property as 3.58 acres. These three figures do not agree, and the gap is not minor: 0.36 acres and 3.9 acres differ by a factor of ten. The assessor's figure is the legal record as of this report; the mapped boundary is the source for the geospatial analysis that follows. A buyer should resolve this discrepancy — ideally with a survey and a title search — before closing, because the acreage directly affects what you are buying, the tax basis, and any future plans for the land.

The pricing picture is similarly layered. The property is actively listed at $1,399,000 according to real estate listing pages. The county assessor's market value is $587,600, and Zillow's automated estimate is $676,700 — roughly half the asking price. The assessor's improvement value alone is $376,282, with the land valued at $211,318. The listing premium over automated and assessor estimates is substantial and most likely reflects the riverfront acreage and private boat launch, features that algorithmic models often underweight. An independent appraisal would be well worth commissioning.

The Missouri River is not just an amenity here — it is also the source of the property's most consequential constraint. About 20% of the parcel falls within a high-risk flood zone (FEMA calls this Zone A), meaning there is a 1% chance of flooding in any given year. This band traverses the parcel diagonally through the middle rather than sitting only at the riverbank. The remaining 80% is mapped in the lowest-risk category. Because part of the parcel is in a Special Flood Hazard Area, federal law requires flood insurance for any mortgage backed by a federal agency — and no base flood elevation has been established for the Zone A portion, which limits the precision of elevation certificates and can complicate the insurance process. The flood zone's diagonal path through the parcel, combined with the satellite imagery showing the main structure in the southeastern area, means the structure's position is consistent with — though not confirmed to be inside — the flood-affected portion. Only an elevation certificate or licensed survey can determine whether the building itself sits within the mapped flood zone, and that document is important to obtain before or shortly after purchase.

The southeastern corner where the house sits is further compounded by wetland mapping: about 7.9% of the parcel (concentrated in the southeast) is mapped as a temporarily flooded wet meadow or floodplain fringe. This does not threaten the existing structure, but it does mean that any future work — an addition, a new outbuilding, clearing vegetation, or filling low ground — may require a federal permit from the Army Corps of Engineers before proceeding. The soil throughout the parcel is Harlem silty clay loam, a poorly draining clay-heavy soil that rates at the lowest level for septic systems and struggles to move water away from structures in wet conditions. The listing confirms a private septic system is in use; its condition and suitability given the soil and floodplain setting warrants a professional inspection. The terrain itself is nearly flat (average slope under 3 degrees, 24 feet of total elevation relief), which means runoff moves slowly and standing water is a realistic concern around the foundation and yard during high-water periods.

Electric service is available through Northwestern Energy, the investor-owned utility serving the area, at a 2024 average residential rate of about 14.2 cents per kilowatt-hour. The nearest high-voltage transmission line is about 3 miles to the northwest and is not relevant to the home's service. The property uses a private septic system; water source was not confirmed by the assessor data but the listing and local practice suggest a private well — this should be verified and both systems inspected.

Aerial imagery from 2011 through 2021 shows the property consistently configured as a rural homestead: open ground in the northern portion, a dense tree cluster in the southeast sheltering the main structure, and a branching internal drive entering from the west. A possible small outbuilding or equipment structure appeared near the center-south of the parcel by 2021 that was not clearly visible in earlier years. The structure itself has been present throughout the observation period.

The Cascade Volunteer Fire Department is the nearest identified station, about 1.37 miles away in a straight line (driving distance will be longer). No mapped fire-response jurisdiction covers the parcel in the national compilation, which may simply mean the department has not submitted its coverage area to that database rather than meaning no department responds. The county emergency-services office can confirm coverage. A fire-protection class is not published for individual addresses; the responding department or an insurance agent can provide it — and it matters for homeowner's insurance premiums.

The Northern Rocky Mountains geologic area that includes this parcel is rated as having high radon potential. That rating describes the regional geology, not the house's air specifically — only a radon test inside the building can establish actual levels. Given the rating, testing is strongly advisable. Seismic risk falls in the moderate category (Seismic Design Category C under standard engineering assumptions), with no mapped active fault within five miles. Wildfire risk is low, well below the national average, with the nearest recorded fire perimeter about 2.7 miles to the northwest. No critical habitat for federally listed species was found within half a mile.

The broader area context is worth noting: according to a July 2026 Montana Free Press article, Cascade County's economy — centered on Great Falls, about 25 miles from this property — is entering a notable growth phase, driven by an $800 million aerospace manufacturing campus planned by Janicki Industries and upgrades at Malmstrom Air Force Base. Whether that regional momentum translates to increased demand for rural riverfront property near Cascade is unverifiable from available data, but the trend is directionally positive for the area.

The strengths of this property are real and tangible: 360 feet of Missouri River frontage with a private boat launch is genuinely rare, road access is direct and public, the terrain is flat and easy to navigate, wildfire risk is low, and the regional economic backdrop is improving. The weaknesses are equally real: the lot size discrepancy must be resolved before a buyer can know what they are purchasing; a portion of the parcel is in a mapped high-risk flood zone with no established base flood elevation; the soil drains poorly and the septic system sits in a floodplain setting; and the asking price is more than twice the assessor's market value, a gap that demands independent appraisal.

Two items could not be assessed. Zoning data was not available for Cascade County in the source used — the county planning office and its GIS portal are the right places to verify what uses and structures are permitted on this land. No assessor records were retrieved for prior sales, permits, year built, or building size beyond what web research provided — the assessor's web portal returned only partial data.