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

6 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.

Browse

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.

Rapid Valley
Typical price
About $350,000 average sold, 274 sales over 12 monthsAverage sold $349,971. Black Hills MLS, single family, 12 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 274 closed sales.
To Ellsworth AFB
22 min, 10.4 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
To downtown Rapid City
11 min, 5.2 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
Utility pattern
Utility service varies by address. Rapid Valley Sanitary District serves portions of the area, while properties outside district service may use private wells and septic systems.
School district
Mostly Rapid City Area School District 51-4, with portions in Douglas 51-1Assignment 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.

Belle Fourche
Typical price
$275k to $375kMedian sold $300,000. Mount Rushmore Area MLS, all residential, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 113 closed sales.
To Ellsworth AFB
About an hourDriving time and distance, off peak.
To downtown Rapid City
About 55 to 60 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
Utility pattern
Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
School district
Belle Fourche School District 9-1Assignment 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.

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
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

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.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.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.
Selected Guide

What changes

Between Custer, Buffalo Gap, Wall, Box Elder

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

Region: CusterCentral and Southern HillsBuffalo GapCentral and Southern HillsWallPrairie and BadlandsBox ElderRapid City and the Ellsworth corridor
County: CusterCuster CountyBuffalo GapCuster CountyWallPennington CountyBox ElderPennington County
Jurisdiction: CusterNot recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.Buffalo GapIncorporated town of Buffalo Gap, with Custer County outside the limits.WallIncorporated town of Wall, with Pennington County outside the limits.Box ElderCity of Box Elder
Corridor: CusterUS-16Buffalo GapSD 79WallI-90 exits 109 and 110Box ElderI-90
To downtown Rapid City: CusterAbout 50 to 60 minutesBuffalo GapAbout 45 miles, roughly 56 minutesWallAbout 50 miles west on I-90Box Elder19 min, 10.9 mi
To Ellsworth AFB: CusterAbout an hour and ten minutesBuffalo GapAbout 55 milesWallAbout 43 miles westBox Elder9 min, 2.3 mi

Side by side

Custer, Buffalo Gap, Wall, Box Elder

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	Central and Southern HillsCuster	Central and Southern HillsBuffalo Gap	Prairie and BadlandsWall	Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridorBox Elder
Where it sits
Regiondiffers	Central and Southern Hills	Central and Southern Hills	Prairie and Badlands	Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor
Countydiffers	Custer County	Custer County	Pennington County	Pennington County
JurisdictiondiffersCity versus county decides who provides service and who inspects the work.	Not recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.	Incorporated town of Buffalo Gap, with Custer County outside the limits.	Incorporated town of Wall, with Pennington County outside the limits.	City of Box Elder
Corridordiffers	US-16	SD 79	I-90 exits 109 and 110	I-90
To downtown Rapid Citydiffers	About 50 to 60 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.	About 45 miles, roughly 56 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.	About 50 miles west on I-90Distance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.	19 min, 10.9 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
To Ellsworth AFBdiffers	About an hour and ten minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.	About 55 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.	About 43 miles westDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.	9 min, 2.3 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
Winter drivingdiffers	Winter roads are a genuine planning factor at this distance, and on acreage you need to know who maintains yours.	Highway 79 is state maintained and is the connection to Hot Springs and Rapid City. Off it, this is open prairie with blowing snow.	I-90 is the lifeline and it is state maintained, but this is open prairie and I-90 does close in a ground blizzard. Plan for that a few times a winter.	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.
Housing and lots
Typical pricediffers	Median sold $627,000Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 7 closed sales, small sample.	One single family sale shows in the Black Hills MLS over 24 months, at $80,000. One closing is a sample of one rather than a price level, so read it that way.	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.	$340k to $400kMedian sold $367,000. Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 235 closed sales.
Housing agediffers	Mixed ages. Older homes near the core, newer construction toward the edges.	An 1885 to 1939 historic core with an aging housing stock and about a fifth of units vacant.	Older stock through town, with a municipal demolition incentive program in place for blighted property.	Heavily new construction since the B-21 announcement
New constructiondiffers	Not recorded townwide in this guide. Check current permits with the city or county.	None underway	Limited, mostly infill and small projects	Active, with subdivisions still building
Acreagediffers	Acreage is common outside the city core, with wells and septic systems typical on many rural properties.	Acreage parcels are common here	Acreage parcels are common here	Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size.
Typical lotdiffers	Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot dimensions.	A handful of historic townsite lots, with grassland and ranch ground around them.	Platted town lots, and then it jumps straight to ranch scale.	Small city lots, about 0.15 to 0.18 acres in the newer plats
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.	Few plats here carry recorded covenants	Few plats here carry recorded covenants	Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat.
Utilities and rules
Utility patterndiffers	Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it	Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it	City water and sewer inside the limits	City water and sewer inside the limits
Waterdiffers	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.	Town of Buffalo Gap municipal water from a single well, serving about 93 connections. Rural parcels are on private wells.	Town of Wall municipal water inside the limits. Rural parcels are on private wells.	City of Box Elder municipal
Sewerdiffers	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.	Not documented in the public record. There is no municipal wastewater project or discharge permit on file that I could find. Confirm with the town finance officer before assuming either town sewer or septic.	Town sewer inside the limits, with private septic on rural parcels.	City of Box Elder municipal
Short term rentalsdiffers	Grandfathered permits are non transferable and expire when the property sells, and the rules flip at the city line.	This is hunting and grassland country rather than a tourism corridor. Demand is seasonal and specific.	This is genuine seasonal tourism territory at a national park gate. Confirm any town requirement, and note that Wall Drug houses many of its own seasonal workers, which removes demand from the local rental market.	A verify first town for rental plans, with one specific misconception the guide clears up.
Schools
School districtdiffers	Custer School District 16-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.	Hot Springs School District 23-2, despite the town being in Custer CountyAssignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.	Wall School District 51-5Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.	Douglas School District 51-1Assignment 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.	Nothing full service in town. Hot Springs, about 14 miles south, is where errands happen.	The Wall Food Center on South Boulevard West.	Lynn's Dakotamart is a full-service grocery store in town.
Healthcarediffers	Monument Health Custer Hospital and clinic are in town.	Fall River Health Services in Hot Springs, a 25 bed critical access hospital with a 24 hour emergency department and a rural health clinic, about 18 minutes away.	The Monument Health Wall Clinic on 7th Avenue is in town. The nearest hospital is Monument Health Rapid City, roughly 50 miles west.	Monument Health Box Elder Clinic provides primary and urgent care in town. Hospital-level care is in Rapid City.
Recreationdiffers	Custer State Park at the door, including Sylvan Lake, the Needles Highway, the wildlife loop and the September buffalo roundup.	Buffalo Gap National Grassland, hunting, rock collecting and OHV country, with the Cheyenne River nearby.	Badlands National Park about seven miles south, Buffalo Gap National Grassland all around, the National Grasslands Visitor Center on Main Street and the Wall rodeo arena.	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.
Mapped subdivisions
Outlines on filediffers	No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.	No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.	No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.	16 mapped outlines, 3 with a full guideReference outlines from county and city GIS, not surveys. The recorded plat controls.
The trade
Housing and patterndiffers	A county seat at a park entrance, with a replacement Monument Health hospital and acreage starting just past the city limits.	A nearly intact turn-of-the-century western streetscape on the National Register, mostly quiet, at the gate to the grassland.	A complete small prairie town with its own school, clinic and grocery, at the northern gate to the Badlands.	A young city building its first downtown at Liberty Plaza on 110 acres, with roughly 800 residential units planned.
What you gaindiffers	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.	Eighteen minutes from the hospital in Hot Springs, with 600,000 acres of grassland out the door and one MLS closing in two years to price from.	Everything a town needs in one place, 50 miles from the city, at prairie prices.	The Ellsworth main gate is in town, 9 minutes from most addresses, on city water and sewer, with the region's newest housing pipeline.
What you give updiffers	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.	No school, no store and no services in town, an aging water system with an open compliance item, and an undocumented sewer situation.	Fifty miles to a hospital and to real shopping, and an economy that runs on a three month season.	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.

Central and Southern HillsCuster
Central and Southern HillsBuffalo Gap
Prairie and BadlandsWall
Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridorBox Elder

Where it sits

Regiondiffers

Custer: Central and Southern Hills
Buffalo Gap: Central and Southern Hills
Wall: Prairie and Badlands
Box Elder: Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor

Countydiffers

Custer: Custer County
Buffalo Gap: Custer County
Wall: Pennington County
Box Elder: Pennington County

Jurisdictiondiffers

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

Custer: Not recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.
Buffalo Gap: Incorporated town of Buffalo Gap, with Custer County outside the limits.
Wall: Incorporated town of Wall, with Pennington County outside the limits.
Box Elder: City of Box Elder

Corridordiffers

Custer: US-16
Buffalo Gap: SD 79
Wall: I-90 exits 109 and 110
Box Elder: I-90

To downtown Rapid Citydiffers

Custer: About 50 to 60 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
Buffalo Gap: About 45 miles, roughly 56 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
Wall: About 50 miles west on I-90Distance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Box Elder: 19 min, 10.9 miDriving time and distance, off peak.

To Ellsworth AFBdiffers

Custer: About an hour and ten minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
Buffalo Gap: About 55 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Wall: About 43 miles westDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Box Elder: 9 min, 2.3 miDriving time and distance, off peak.

Winter drivingdiffers

Custer: Winter roads are a genuine planning factor at this distance, and on acreage you need to know who maintains yours.
Buffalo Gap: Highway 79 is state maintained and is the connection to Hot Springs and Rapid City. Off it, this is open prairie with blowing snow.
Wall: I-90 is the lifeline and it is state maintained, but this is open prairie and I-90 does close in a ground blizzard. Plan for that a few times a winter.
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.

Housing and lots

Typical pricediffers

Custer: Median sold $627,000Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 7 closed sales, small sample.
Buffalo Gap: One single family sale shows in the Black Hills MLS over 24 months, at $80,000. One closing is a sample of one rather than a price level, so read it that way.
Wall: 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.
Box Elder: $340k to $400kMedian sold $367,000. Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 235 closed sales.

Housing agediffers

Custer: Mixed ages. Older homes near the core, newer construction toward the edges.
Buffalo Gap: An 1885 to 1939 historic core with an aging housing stock and about a fifth of units vacant.
Wall: Older stock through town, with a municipal demolition incentive program in place for blighted property.
Box Elder: Heavily new construction since the B-21 announcement

New constructiondiffers

Custer: Not recorded townwide in this guide. Check current permits with the city or county.
Buffalo Gap: None underway
Wall: Limited, mostly infill and small projects
Box Elder: Active, with subdivisions still building

Acreagediffers

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

Typical lotdiffers

Custer: Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot dimensions.
Buffalo Gap: A handful of historic townsite lots, with grassland and ranch ground around them.
Wall: Platted town lots, and then it jumps straight to ranch scale.
Box Elder: Small city lots, about 0.15 to 0.18 acres in the newer plats

Covenants and HOAdiffers

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

Custer: Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat.
Buffalo Gap: Few plats here carry recorded covenants
Wall: Few plats here carry recorded covenants
Box Elder: Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat.

Utilities and rules

Utility patterndiffers

Custer: Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
Buffalo Gap: Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
Wall: City water and sewer inside the limits
Box Elder: City water and sewer inside the limits

Waterdiffers

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.
Buffalo Gap: Town of Buffalo Gap municipal water from a single well, serving about 93 connections. Rural parcels are on private wells.
Wall: Town of Wall municipal water inside the limits. Rural parcels are on private wells.
Box Elder: City of Box Elder municipal

Sewerdiffers

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.
Buffalo Gap: Not documented in the public record. There is no municipal wastewater project or discharge permit on file that I could find. Confirm with the town finance officer before assuming either town sewer or septic.
Wall: Town sewer inside the limits, with private septic on rural parcels.
Box Elder: City of Box Elder municipal

Short term rentalsdiffers

Custer: Grandfathered permits are non transferable and expire when the property sells, and the rules flip at the city line.
Buffalo Gap: This is hunting and grassland country rather than a tourism corridor. Demand is seasonal and specific.
Wall: This is genuine seasonal tourism territory at a national park gate. Confirm any town requirement, and note that Wall Drug houses many of its own seasonal workers, which removes demand from the local rental market.
Box Elder: A verify first town for rental plans, with one specific misconception the guide clears up.

Schools

School districtdiffers

Custer: Custer School District 16-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Buffalo Gap: Hot Springs School District 23-2, despite the town being in Custer CountyAssignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Wall: Wall School District 51-5Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Box Elder: Douglas School District 51-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.

Daily errands

Groceriesdiffers

Custer: Lynn's Dakotamart is a full-service grocery store in town.
Buffalo Gap: Nothing full service in town. Hot Springs, about 14 miles south, is where errands happen.
Wall: The Wall Food Center on South Boulevard West.
Box Elder: Lynn's Dakotamart is a full-service grocery store in town.

Healthcarediffers

Custer: Monument Health Custer Hospital and clinic are in town.
Buffalo Gap: Fall River Health Services in Hot Springs, a 25 bed critical access hospital with a 24 hour emergency department and a rural health clinic, about 18 minutes away.
Wall: The Monument Health Wall Clinic on 7th Avenue is in town. The nearest hospital is Monument Health Rapid City, roughly 50 miles west.
Box Elder: Monument Health Box Elder Clinic provides primary and urgent care in town. Hospital-level care is in Rapid City.

Recreationdiffers

Custer: Custer State Park at the door, including Sylvan Lake, the Needles Highway, the wildlife loop and the September buffalo roundup.
Buffalo Gap: Buffalo Gap National Grassland, hunting, rock collecting and OHV country, with the Cheyenne River nearby.
Wall: Badlands National Park about seven miles south, Buffalo Gap National Grassland all around, the National Grasslands Visitor Center on Main Street and the Wall rodeo arena.
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.

Mapped subdivisions

Outlines on filediffers

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

The trade

Housing and patterndiffers

Custer: A county seat at a park entrance, with a replacement Monument Health hospital and acreage starting just past the city limits.
Buffalo Gap: A nearly intact turn-of-the-century western streetscape on the National Register, mostly quiet, at the gate to the grassland.
Wall: A complete small prairie town with its own school, clinic and grocery, at the northern gate to the Badlands.
Box Elder: A young city building its first downtown at Liberty Plaza on 110 acres, with roughly 800 residential units planned.

What you gaindiffers

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.
Buffalo Gap: Eighteen minutes from the hospital in Hot Springs, with 600,000 acres of grassland out the door and one MLS closing in two years to price from.
Wall: Everything a town needs in one place, 50 miles from the city, at prairie prices.
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.

What you give updiffers

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.
Buffalo Gap: No school, no store and no services in town, an aging water system with an open compliance item, and an undocumented sewer situation.
Wall: Fifty miles to a hospital and to real shopping, and an economy that runs on a three month season.
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.

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

Want to talk through the tradeoffs?

Two towns can look identical in a table and feel nothing alike on a Tuesday night in February. Call or text and tell me which rows above are the ones you cannot live with, and we can work the list down from there.

Call 605-490-2040 Text 605-490-2040 Send a Message

Address Questions

Considering a home here?

Send the address and we can talk it through. The details that change from one property to the next are jurisdiction, water and sewer, the school the district assigns, covenants, road maintenance and the rest of what never shows up on a listing.

Or send a message from the contact page

ComparingCuster, Buffalo Gap, Wall, Box Elder

Compare Clear