The Early Years
Clearwater River Realty
One office on Highway 83 in Seeley Lake, named for the river that strings the valley’s chain of lakes together. Kevin Wetherell built the early business on shoe leather and invention.
A credit card And a dream
From a one-office realty on a remote Montana highway to the West’s recreational property brokerage.
Seeley Lake, 1993
It Started on Highway 83
Kevin Wetherell, a fifth-generation Montanan from White Sulphur Springs, spent a decade running power plants before he sold a single acre. In 1993 he opened Clearwater River Realty in Seeley Lake with, as he puts it, “a credit card and a dream.”
The early version wasn’t glamorous, but it forged the work ethic that still drives the company today. Wetherell compiled absentee-owner records one microfiche frame at a time and mailed 840 owners directly. His listing brochures were colored construction paper with photographs taped on, in an era when the competition ran three lines of text. The lesson stuck: sell the place, not the parcel.
Thirty years on, that’s still the company’s pitch: lifestyle first, real estate second.
1993
Founded in Seeley Lake, Montana
30+
Locations across five states and two countries
$300M+
Annual sales volume
10
Consecutive years among America’s Best Brokerages — The Land Report
Clearwater's History
What's in a name?
The Clearwater River rises in the Swan Range and runs 46 miles south through a chain of lakes before meeting the Blackfoot. It’s pristine water in grizzly country, the last natural chain of lakes in the region. You can see the bottom the whole way down.
We took the name in 1993 and have tried to live up to it since: clear terms, clear expectations, nothing hidden under the surface. Three names and five states later, that’s the part that hasn’t changed.
How We Grew
One Company, Three Eras
The Montana Years
Clearwater Montana Properties
The 2008 merger with Waldbillig Realty took Clearwater from a local operation to a statewide presence, “from Yaak to Wibaux.” Through the recession that followed, Clearwater grew by bringing struggling brokerages into the fold and joining what became the Sports Afield Trophy Properties® network.
The Mountain West
Clearwater Properties
Today the brand spans Montana, Idaho, Washington, Wyoming, and North Dakota, with international reach in Costa Rica and Belize. Clearwater Montana Properties remains the state’s largest brokerage.
Principled Ambition
The Clearwater Way
Our governing code — the compass for how agents treat clients, and how we treat each other. It’s why agents who leave to test the waters with other brands so often come back.
Loyalty Over Leverage
Clients are making the biggest decision of their lives. They need an advocate, not a closer — and agents deserve the same loyalty they give.
Collaboration Over Competition
Our agents share listings, buyers, and hard-won local knowledge. Guardrails keep the adversarial habits of this industry outside our walls.
Values Before Volume
We vet who we hire and part ways quickly when behavior doesn’t fit. Agents who thrive in a nurturing culture treat clients best — that’s the whole theory.
Clearwater Giving Fund
Every Sale Gives Back
Through the Clearwater Giving Fund, a portion of every transaction goes to a local service group or charity chosen by the agent. We have proudly supported fire halls, food banks, and 4-H clubs.
To date that’s more than $1.36 million returned to the communities we call home, one closing at a time.
Clearwater Today
The Next Chapter
Leadership
FIFTH GENERATION, NEW CHAPTER
In 2025, Shaun Michael Lewis, a fifth-generation Montanan who led Clearwater’s digital transformation as COO & CTO before running global operations for an international retail company, returned as CEO. Kevin Wetherell remains chairman, still serving clients across western and central Montana.
Meet Our Leadership →Find Your Wild®
Still Telling Wild Stories
Our bi-annual magazine, Find Your Wild, puts 50,000 copies of ranch listings, river frontage, and Mountain West life in front of buyers each year.
Read the Magazine →Clearwater Properties
Stake Your Claim®
Our understanding of the land and our extensive experience helps us ask better questions, spot important details, and help you move forward with confidence.
From the first showing to the final signature, we make the process clear and protect your interests. With Clearwater, you have more than an agent. You have a advocate looking out for you during every step of the way.