Relocation

Compare Black Hills Communities

25 towns and unincorporated communities. Pick two to four and the full table appears underneath. Commutes are driving times to the Ellsworth main gate and downtown Rapid City. Median sold prices, where we have them, come from the MLS over the trailing twelve months with the source, window and sale count printed under each figure. Typical price bands are practical search ranges, not medians, and are labelled separately.

Narrow it

10 of 25 communities

Under $400k Close to Ellsworth Close to Rapid City Short commute New construction available Acreage available City water and sewer Smaller market More rural Established housing Newer housing Clear filters Clear everything

Price filters only consider communities with a published trailing twelve month median, so towns without one do not appear in a price filter.

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The five facts that decide a shortlist

Find a community

Selected, 4 of 4

Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor

Everything within about twenty five minutes of downtown Rapid City or the Ellsworth main gate, where most of the newer inventory, the shortest commutes and the jurisdiction questions about city versus county service are.

Colonial Pine Hills
Typical price
About $683,000 average sold in the Sheridan Lake Road MLS area, 71 sales over 12 monthsAverage sold $682,615. Black Hills MLS, single family, 12 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 71 closed sales.
To Ellsworth AFB
About 25 to 30 minutes, through or around Rapid CityDriving time and distance, off peak.
To downtown Rapid City
Roughly 6 miles northeastDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Utility pattern
Mostly private well and septic
School district
Rapid City Area School District 51-4Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide

Northern Hills and I-90

The Sturgis to Belle Fourche side of the Hills, with its own hospitals, schools and employers, so a job in Spearfish or Sturgis does not have to mean a Rapid City commute.

Sturgis
Typical price
$300k to $450kMedian sold $365,000. Mount Rushmore Area MLS, all residential, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 97 closed sales.
To Ellsworth AFB
48 min, 38.2 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
To downtown Rapid City
33 min, 28.9 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
Utility pattern
Not recorded townwide in this guide. Verify water and sewer service for the address.
School district
Meade School District 46-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide

Central and Southern Hills

In the timber and on the far southern edge, where lots get larger, well and septic get common, and the drive to a full service hospital becomes part of the decision.

Custer
Typical price
Median sold $627,000Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 7 closed sales, small sample.
To Ellsworth AFB
About an hour and ten minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
To downtown Rapid City
About 50 to 60 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
Utility pattern
Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
School district
Custer School District 16-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Selected Guide
Edgemont
Typical price
About $155,000 average sold, 13 sales over 24 monthsAverage sold $155,285. Black Hills MLS, single family, 24 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 13 closed sales.
To Ellsworth AFB
About 110 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
To downtown Rapid City
About 100 miles northeastDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Utility pattern
City water and sewer inside the limits
School district
Edgemont School District 23-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide
Hermosa
Typical price
About $650,000 average sold, 28 sales over 24 monthsAverage sold $648,229. Black Hills MLS, single family, 24 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 28 closed sales.
To Ellsworth AFB
About 35 minutes, north through Rapid City to I-90Driving time and distance, off peak.
To downtown Rapid City
26 min, 18.6 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
Utility pattern
Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
School district
Custer School District 16-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide
Hill City
Typical price
Median sold $519,000Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 13 closed sales.
To Ellsworth AFB
About 45 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
To downtown Rapid City
About 30 to 35 minutes on US-16Driving time and distance, off peak.
Utility pattern
Not recorded townwide in this guide. Verify water and sewer service for the address.
School district
Hill City School District 51-2Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide
Hot Springs
Typical price
Median sold $315,150Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 24 closed sales.
To Ellsworth AFB
About an hour and fifteen minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
To downtown Rapid City
About 60 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
Utility pattern
Not recorded townwide in this guide. Verify water and sewer service for the address.
School district
Hot Springs School District 23-2Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide
Keystone
Typical price
About $618,000 average sold, but only 9 sales over 24 monthsAverage sold $618,449. Black Hills MLS, single family, 24 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 9 closed sales, small sample.
To Ellsworth AFB
About 40 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
To downtown Rapid City
About 25 minutes northeastDriving time and distance, off peak.
Utility pattern
Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
School district
Hill City School District 51-2Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide

Prairie and Badlands

East of the Hills on the open prairie, where lots run larger, water is often a private well, services are thinner and the wind and the drive are the tradeoffs.

New Underwood
Typical price
About $320,000 average sold, 20 sales over 24 monthsAverage sold $319,585. Black Hills MLS, single family, 24 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 20 closed sales.
To Ellsworth AFB
About 11 miles, exit 78 to the main gate at exit 67ADistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
To downtown Rapid City
About 18 miles west on I-90Distance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Utility pattern
Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
School district
New Underwood School District 51-3Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Selected Guide
Wall
Typical price
About $270,000 average sold, 19 sales over 24 monthsAverage sold $270,435. Black Hills MLS, single family, 24 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 19 closed sales.
To Ellsworth AFB
About 43 miles westDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
To downtown Rapid City
About 50 miles west on I-90Distance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Utility pattern
City water and sewer inside the limits
School district
Wall School District 51-5Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide

What changes

Between Box Elder, Summerset, Custer, New Underwood

The rows below are the ones where these do not read the same. Ordered as the table runs, not by importance.

Region: Box ElderRapid City and the Ellsworth corridorSummersetRapid City and the Ellsworth corridorCusterCentral and Southern HillsNew UnderwoodPrairie and Badlands
County: Box ElderPennington CountySummersetMeade CountyCusterCuster CountyNew UnderwoodPennington County
Jurisdiction: Box ElderCity of Box ElderSummersetCity of Summerset, incorporated July 2005CusterNot recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.New UnderwoodIncorporated city of New Underwood, with Pennington County outside the limits
Corridor: Box ElderI-90SummersetI-90CusterUS-16New UnderwoodI-90 exit 78
To downtown Rapid City: Box Elder19 min, 10.9 miSummerset15 min, 10.0 miCusterAbout 50 to 60 minutesNew UnderwoodAbout 18 miles west on I-90
To Ellsworth AFB: Box Elder9 min, 2.3 miSummerset30 min, 19.2 miCusterAbout an hour and ten minutesNew UnderwoodAbout 11 miles, exit 78 to the main gate at exit 67A

Side by side

Box Elder, Summerset, Custer, New Underwood

Rows marked as differing are the ones where these do not read alike. Rows without the mark sit on a quiet background because they say the same thing in every column.

The selected Black Hills communities compared on location, housing, utilities, schools, daily errands, mapped subdivisions and the trade each one asks for
Attribute	Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridorBox Elder	Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridorSummerset	Central and Southern HillsCuster	Prairie and BadlandsNew Underwood
Where it sits
Regiondiffers	Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor	Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor	Central and Southern Hills	Prairie and Badlands
Countydiffers	Pennington County	Meade County	Custer County	Pennington County
JurisdictiondiffersCity versus county decides who provides service and who inspects the work.	City of Box Elder	City of Summerset, incorporated July 2005	Not recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.	Incorporated city of New Underwood, with Pennington County outside the limits
Corridordiffers	I-90	I-90	US-16	I-90 exit 78
To downtown Rapid Citydiffers	19 min, 10.9 miDriving time and distance, off peak.	15 min, 10.0 miDriving time and distance, off peak.	About 50 to 60 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.	About 18 miles west on I-90Distance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
To Ellsworth AFBdiffers	9 min, 2.3 miDriving time and distance, off peak.	30 min, 19.2 miDriving time and distance, off peak.	About an hour and ten minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.	About 11 miles, exit 78 to the main gate at exit 67ADistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Winter drivingdiffers	I-90 is state maintained and the city clears the newer plats. Box Elder publishes no plow priority map, so ask a neighbor how the street clears after a real storm.	The commute is I-90, so winter driving here is interstate driving rather than a two lane canyon road.	Winter roads are a genuine planning factor at this distance, and on acreage you need to know who maintains yours.	I-90 is the commute and it is state maintained. Everything off the interstate is county and city plowing on its own schedule, and this is open prairie, so wind moves snow back onto the road.
Housing and lots
Typical pricediffers	$340k to $400kMedian sold $367,000. Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 235 closed sales.	Builder inventory sets the level here, and the MLS publishes no Summerset median on its own.	Median sold $627,000Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 7 closed sales, small sample.	About $320,000 average sold, 20 sales over 24 monthsAverage sold $319,585. Black Hills MLS, single family, 24 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 20 closed sales.
Housing agediffers	Heavily new construction since the B-21 announcement	Mostly 2000s to present	Mixed ages. Older homes near the core, newer construction toward the edges.	Older in-town stock with scattered newer building.
New constructiondiffers	Active, with subdivisions still building	Limited, mostly infill and small projects	Not recorded townwide in this guide. Check current permits with the city or county.	Limited, mostly infill and small projects
Acreagediffers	Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size.	Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size.	Acreage is common outside the city core, with wells and septic systems typical on many rural properties.	Acreage parcels are common here
Typical lotdiffers	Small city lots, about 0.15 to 0.18 acres in the newer plats	Wide lots on new streets	Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot dimensions.	Standard town lots on the grid, with ranch and acreage ground starting where the limits end.
Covenants and HOAdiffersCovenants are recorded per plat. The title commitment lists what binds the parcel.	Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat.	Recorded covenants on some plats, none on others	Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat.	Few plats here carry recorded covenants
Utilities and rules
Utility patterndiffers	City water and sewer inside the limits	Sewer collection is provided by the City of Summerset. Water service varies by address and can include Black Hawk Water User District or Diamond D Water in Sun Valley.	Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it	Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
Waterdiffers	City of Box Elder municipal	Black Hawk Water User District, or Diamond D Water in Sun Valley	Municipal water inside the limits, a private well or a district system outside them.Read off the townwide utility pattern in the guide. The service address controls, so confirm the provider before you write an offer.	City of New Underwood water inside the limits, drawn from two Madison Aquifer wells. Outside the limits, parcels are on small water associations or private wells.
Sewerdiffers	City of Box Elder municipal	City of Summerset	City sewer inside the limits, private septic outside them.Read off the townwide utility pattern in the guide. The service address controls, so confirm the provider before you write an offer.	City sewer inside the limits. Rural parcels are on private septic permitted by Pennington County.
Short term rentalsdiffers	A verify first town for rental plans, with one specific misconception the guide clears up.	The thinnest rules on this list, which means a rental plan has to be pinned down for the specific address.	Grandfathered permits are non transferable and expire when the property sells, and the rules flip at the city line.	New Underwood is a highway town rather than a tourism town, and no short-term rental ordinance surfaced in the public record. Confirm with the city before you count on rental income.
Schools
School districtdiffers	Douglas School District 51-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.	Meade 46-1 and Rapid City Area Schools 51-4, split within the cityAssignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.	Custer School District 16-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.	New Underwood School District 51-3Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Daily errands
Groceriesdiffers	Lynn's Dakotamart is a full-service grocery store in town.	Not recorded in this guide. Check what is open near the address.	Lynn's Dakotamart is a full-service grocery store in town.	BJ's Country Store at the exit 78 interchange for fuel and convenience. Full grocery shopping is Rapid City, about 18 miles west.
Healthcarediffers	Monument Health Box Elder Clinic provides primary and urgent care in town. Hospital-level care is in Rapid City.	Hospital-level care is in Rapid City, about 15 minutes south.	Monument Health Custer Hospital and clinic are in town.	No clinic in town. The Monument Health Rapid Valley Clinic on Elderberry Boulevard has walk-in urgent care seven days a week, and the hospital is in Rapid City.
Recreationdiffers	The Liberty Center, the city park and ballfield network, and the South Dakota Air and Space Museum are the in-town recreation. The Badlands are a day trip, not your neighborhood park.	Leisure Lane, Steamboat and Castlewood parks are the everyday recreation. Leisure Lane is the big one, with playgrounds, basketball, picnic shelters, open grass and the community garden.	Custer State Park at the door, including Sylvan Lake, the Needles Highway, the wildlife loop and the September buffalo roundup.	The municipal pool, with a donor-funded free swim program, and open prairie in every direction.
Mapped subdivisions
Outlines on filediffers	16 mapped outlines, 3 with a full guideReference outlines from county and city GIS, not surveys. The recorded plat controls.	2 mapped outlines, 2 with a full guideReference outlines from county and city GIS, not surveys. The recorded plat controls.	No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.	No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.
The trade
Housing and patterndiffers	A young city building its first downtown at Liberty Plaza on 110 acres, with roughly 800 residential units planned.	New streets and builder inventory, with Highlands at Norman Ranch adding over 100 first phase homesites across more than 300 acres.	A county seat at a park entrance, with a replacement Monument Health hospital and acreage starting just past the city limits.	A prairie town with its own K through 12 campus and its own interstate exit, 18 miles from the city.
What you gaindiffers	The Ellsworth main gate is in town, 9 minutes from most addresses, on city water and sewer, with the region's newest housing pipeline.	Newer houses on city sewer with Hills views at a price central Rapid City does not offer, and Highlands at Norman Ranch is still selling first phase homesites.	You are inside the Hills with real acreage, Custer State Park at the door, and a new hospital in a town of about 1,900.	The only town this close to Ellsworth that still educates its own kids from kindergarten through graduation.
What you give updiffers	Comparable sales run thin inside brand new subdivisions and builder incentives move the effective price without moving the list price. I-90 fills at shift change, and the flight line is close enough that you hear it.	You are fifteen minutes out from most of Rapid City's services and you drive I-90 to get to them in the winter. The city is also split between Meade 46-1 and Rapid City Area Schools 51-4, so the district follows the address.	Rapid City is 50 to 60 minutes and Ellsworth over an hour, grandfathered rental permits expire when a property sells, and outside the city limits there are no county building codes.	You give up the grocery store, the clinic and the hardware store, and you inherit a small municipal water system with a publicly acknowledged supply question.

Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridorBox Elder
Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridorSummerset
Central and Southern HillsCuster
Prairie and BadlandsNew Underwood

Where it sits

Regiondiffers

Box Elder: Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor
Summerset: Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor
Custer: Central and Southern Hills
New Underwood: Prairie and Badlands

Countydiffers

Box Elder: Pennington County
Summerset: Meade County
Custer: Custer County
New Underwood: Pennington County

Jurisdictiondiffers

City versus county decides who provides service and who inspects the work.

Box Elder: City of Box Elder
Summerset: City of Summerset, incorporated July 2005
Custer: Not recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.
New Underwood: Incorporated city of New Underwood, with Pennington County outside the limits

Corridordiffers

Box Elder: I-90
Summerset: I-90
Custer: US-16
New Underwood: I-90 exit 78

To downtown Rapid Citydiffers

Box Elder: 19 min, 10.9 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
Summerset: 15 min, 10.0 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
Custer: About 50 to 60 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
New Underwood: About 18 miles west on I-90Distance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.

To Ellsworth AFBdiffers

Box Elder: 9 min, 2.3 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
Summerset: 30 min, 19.2 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
Custer: About an hour and ten minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
New Underwood: About 11 miles, exit 78 to the main gate at exit 67ADistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.

Winter drivingdiffers

Box Elder: I-90 is state maintained and the city clears the newer plats. Box Elder publishes no plow priority map, so ask a neighbor how the street clears after a real storm.
Summerset: The commute is I-90, so winter driving here is interstate driving rather than a two lane canyon road.
Custer: Winter roads are a genuine planning factor at this distance, and on acreage you need to know who maintains yours.
New Underwood: I-90 is the commute and it is state maintained. Everything off the interstate is county and city plowing on its own schedule, and this is open prairie, so wind moves snow back onto the road.

Housing and lots

Typical pricediffers

Box Elder: $340k to $400kMedian sold $367,000. Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 235 closed sales.
Summerset: Builder inventory sets the level here, and the MLS publishes no Summerset median on its own.
Custer: Median sold $627,000Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 7 closed sales, small sample.
New Underwood: About $320,000 average sold, 20 sales over 24 monthsAverage sold $319,585. Black Hills MLS, single family, 24 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 20 closed sales.

Housing agediffers

Box Elder: Heavily new construction since the B-21 announcement
Summerset: Mostly 2000s to present
Custer: Mixed ages. Older homes near the core, newer construction toward the edges.
New Underwood: Older in-town stock with scattered newer building.

New constructiondiffers

Box Elder: Active, with subdivisions still building
Summerset: Limited, mostly infill and small projects
Custer: Not recorded townwide in this guide. Check current permits with the city or county.
New Underwood: Limited, mostly infill and small projects

Acreagediffers

Box Elder: Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size.
Summerset: Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size.
Custer: Acreage is common outside the city core, with wells and septic systems typical on many rural properties.
New Underwood: Acreage parcels are common here

Typical lotdiffers

Box Elder: Small city lots, about 0.15 to 0.18 acres in the newer plats
Summerset: Wide lots on new streets
Custer: Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot dimensions.
New Underwood: Standard town lots on the grid, with ranch and acreage ground starting where the limits end.

Covenants and HOAdiffers

Covenants are recorded per plat. The title commitment lists what binds the parcel.

Box Elder: Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat.
Summerset: Recorded covenants on some plats, none on others
Custer: Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat.
New Underwood: Few plats here carry recorded covenants

Utilities and rules

Utility patterndiffers

Box Elder: City water and sewer inside the limits
Summerset: Sewer collection is provided by the City of Summerset. Water service varies by address and can include Black Hawk Water User District or Diamond D Water in Sun Valley.
Custer: Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
New Underwood: Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it

Waterdiffers

Box Elder: City of Box Elder municipal
Summerset: Black Hawk Water User District, or Diamond D Water in Sun Valley
Custer: Municipal water inside the limits, a private well or a district system outside them.Read off the townwide utility pattern in the guide. The service address controls, so confirm the provider before you write an offer.
New Underwood: City of New Underwood water inside the limits, drawn from two Madison Aquifer wells. Outside the limits, parcels are on small water associations or private wells.

Sewerdiffers

Box Elder: City of Box Elder municipal
Summerset: City of Summerset
Custer: City sewer inside the limits, private septic outside them.Read off the townwide utility pattern in the guide. The service address controls, so confirm the provider before you write an offer.
New Underwood: City sewer inside the limits. Rural parcels are on private septic permitted by Pennington County.

Short term rentalsdiffers

Box Elder: A verify first town for rental plans, with one specific misconception the guide clears up.
Summerset: The thinnest rules on this list, which means a rental plan has to be pinned down for the specific address.
Custer: Grandfathered permits are non transferable and expire when the property sells, and the rules flip at the city line.
New Underwood: New Underwood is a highway town rather than a tourism town, and no short-term rental ordinance surfaced in the public record. Confirm with the city before you count on rental income.

Schools

School districtdiffers

Box Elder: Douglas School District 51-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Summerset: Meade 46-1 and Rapid City Area Schools 51-4, split within the cityAssignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Custer: Custer School District 16-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
New Underwood: New Underwood School District 51-3Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.

Daily errands

Groceriesdiffers

Box Elder: Lynn's Dakotamart is a full-service grocery store in town.
Summerset: Not recorded in this guide. Check what is open near the address.
Custer: Lynn's Dakotamart is a full-service grocery store in town.
New Underwood: BJ's Country Store at the exit 78 interchange for fuel and convenience. Full grocery shopping is Rapid City, about 18 miles west.

Healthcarediffers

Box Elder: Monument Health Box Elder Clinic provides primary and urgent care in town. Hospital-level care is in Rapid City.
Summerset: Hospital-level care is in Rapid City, about 15 minutes south.
Custer: Monument Health Custer Hospital and clinic are in town.
New Underwood: No clinic in town. The Monument Health Rapid Valley Clinic on Elderberry Boulevard has walk-in urgent care seven days a week, and the hospital is in Rapid City.

Recreationdiffers

Box Elder: The Liberty Center, the city park and ballfield network, and the South Dakota Air and Space Museum are the in-town recreation. The Badlands are a day trip, not your neighborhood park.
Summerset: Leisure Lane, Steamboat and Castlewood parks are the everyday recreation. Leisure Lane is the big one, with playgrounds, basketball, picnic shelters, open grass and the community garden.
Custer: Custer State Park at the door, including Sylvan Lake, the Needles Highway, the wildlife loop and the September buffalo roundup.
New Underwood: The municipal pool, with a donor-funded free swim program, and open prairie in every direction.

Mapped subdivisions

Outlines on filediffers

Box Elder: 16 mapped outlines, 3 with a full guideReference outlines from county and city GIS, not surveys. The recorded plat controls.
Summerset: 2 mapped outlines, 2 with a full guideReference outlines from county and city GIS, not surveys. The recorded plat controls.
Custer: No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.
New Underwood: No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.

The trade

Housing and patterndiffers

Box Elder: A young city building its first downtown at Liberty Plaza on 110 acres, with roughly 800 residential units planned.
Summerset: New streets and builder inventory, with Highlands at Norman Ranch adding over 100 first phase homesites across more than 300 acres.
Custer: A county seat at a park entrance, with a replacement Monument Health hospital and acreage starting just past the city limits.
New Underwood: A prairie town with its own K through 12 campus and its own interstate exit, 18 miles from the city.

What you gaindiffers

Box Elder: The Ellsworth main gate is in town, 9 minutes from most addresses, on city water and sewer, with the region's newest housing pipeline.
Summerset: Newer houses on city sewer with Hills views at a price central Rapid City does not offer, and Highlands at Norman Ranch is still selling first phase homesites.
Custer: You are inside the Hills with real acreage, Custer State Park at the door, and a new hospital in a town of about 1,900.
New Underwood: The only town this close to Ellsworth that still educates its own kids from kindergarten through graduation.

What you give updiffers

Box Elder: Comparable sales run thin inside brand new subdivisions and builder incentives move the effective price without moving the list price. I-90 fills at shift change, and the flight line is close enough that you hear it.
Summerset: You are fifteen minutes out from most of Rapid City's services and you drive I-90 to get to them in the winter. The city is also split between Meade 46-1 and Rapid City Area Schools 51-4, so the district follows the address.
Custer: Rapid City is 50 to 60 minutes and Ellsworth over an hour, grandfathered rental permits expire when a property sells, and outside the city limits there are no county building codes.
New Underwood: You give up the grocery store, the clinic and the hardware store, and you inherit a small municipal water system with a publicly acknowledged supply question.

Where this comes from

Commute figures are driving times off peak, from the community guide each card links to. Median sold prices come from the MLS, and each figure carries its own source, window and closing count, because Sturgis, Spearfish and the northern hills report through a different MLS than Rapid City. Under five closings there is no median, and the price row says so. Five to nine closings carries a small sample note. School districts follow the official boundary for the address, and the district office is the only place to confirm an assignment. Short term rental lines are summaries. Read the guide and the current ordinance before you count on rental income.

The filters use these definitions: under $400k is the MLS sold figure for the town, a median where one is published and otherwise the average sold, comes in under $400,000; close to ellsworth is 25 minutes or less to the Ellsworth main gate; close to rapid city is 20 minutes or less to downtown Rapid City; short commute is 15 minutes or less to either downtown Rapid City or the Ellsworth gate; new construction available is the guide establishes active or limited new construction; acreage available is acreage is common or present in the guide; city water and sewer is city water and sewer across the community; smaller market is fewer than 100 closed single family sales in the trailing twelve months; more rural is acreage is common, or water and sewer are not municipal throughout; established housing is the guide classifies the housing stock as established, meaning largely pre 2000; newer housing is the guide classifies a meaningful share of the housing stock as 2000s or later.

Every row here is a townwide summary and a single parcel can read differently. Buyer due diligence should include verifying water and sewer service, school assignment, recorded covenants and HOA obligations, rental rules, legal access, insurance availability and which jurisdiction inspects and permits the work, for the exact address. Confirm with the city or county, the utility or district, the school district office, the title company and your insurer as applicable.

Last updated August 2026

Contact

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ComparingBox Elder, Summerset, Custer, New Underwood

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