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.

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3 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, 2 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.

Box Elder
Typical price
$340k to $400kMedian sold $367,000. Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 235 closed sales.
To Ellsworth AFB
9 min, 2.3 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
To downtown Rapid City
19 min, 10.9 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
Utility pattern
City water and sewer inside the limits
School district
Douglas School District 51-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
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Rapid City
Typical price
$300k to $450kMedian sold $349,950. Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 706 closed sales.
To Ellsworth AFB
24 min, 13.8 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
To downtown Rapid City
5 min, 1.5 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
Utility pattern
City water and sewer inside the limits
School district
Rapid City Area Schools 51-4Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
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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.
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What changes

Between Edgemont, Whitewood

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

Region: EdgemontCentral and Southern HillsWhitewoodNorthern Hills and I-90
County: EdgemontFall River CountyWhitewoodLawrence County
Jurisdiction: EdgemontIncorporated city of Edgemont, with Fall River County outside the limits.WhitewoodNot recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.
Corridor: EdgemontUS 18 and SD 471WhitewoodI-90 and US-85
To downtown Rapid City: EdgemontAbout 100 miles northeastWhitewoodAbout 35 minutes
To Ellsworth AFB: EdgemontAbout 110 milesWhitewoodAbout 40 minutes

Side by side

Edgemont, Whitewood

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 HillsEdgemont	Northern Hills and I-90Whitewood
Where it sits
Regiondiffers	Central and Southern Hills	Northern Hills and I-90
Countydiffers	Fall River County	Lawrence County
JurisdictiondiffersCity versus county decides who provides service and who inspects the work.	Incorporated city of Edgemont, with Fall River County outside the limits.	Not recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.
Corridordiffers	US 18 and SD 471	I-90 and US-85
To downtown Rapid Citydiffers	About 100 miles northeastDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.	About 35 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
To Ellsworth AFBdiffers	About 110 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.	About 40 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
Winter drivingdiffers	Cold semi-arid country with a recorded low of 40 below. US 18 is the lifeline and it is a long way to anywhere in a storm.	I-90 and US-85 are state maintained. The town streets and the roads out past them clear on their own schedule.
Housing and lots
Typical pricediffers	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.	No town median is published for Whitewood, and it sits in Lawrence County, which the Mount Rushmore Area MLS covers rather than the Black Hills feed behind the figures here. Prices sit under Sturgis, Spearfish and Deadwood, each about ten minutes out.
Housing agediffers	An 1890 railroad town, so mostly older stock, with about a quarter of units vacant at the 2020 count.	Older and modest through town, so systems matter more than finishes.
New constructiondiffers	None underway	Limited, mostly infill and small projects
Acreagediffers	Acreage parcels are common here	Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size.
Typical lotdiffers	Town lots inside the limits, ranch scale outside them.	Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot dimensions.
Covenants and HOAdiffersCovenants are recorded per plat. The title commitment lists what binds the parcel.	Few plats here carry recorded covenants	Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat.
Utilities and rules
Utility patterndiffers	City water and sewer inside the limits	Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
Waterdiffers	City of Edgemont municipal water. Rural parcels are on private wells.	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.
Sewerdiffers	City sewer inside the limits, with private septic on rural parcels.	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.
Short term rentalsdiffers	Edgemont is not a tourism town. Short-term rental demand here is work crews, hunting season and Rally traffic passing through, not visitors staying to see something.	No short term rental provisions in the city code, and Rally season renting is common here under state rules.
Schools
School districtdiffers	Edgemont School District 23-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.	Meade School District 46-1, despite being in Lawrence CountyAssignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Daily errands
Groceriesdiffers	Small-town grocery and convenience in Edgemont, with Hot Springs about 35 miles east for more.	No full-service grocery store is in Whitewood. Most larger grocery trips go to Sturgis or Spearfish.
Healthcarediffers	No hospital in town. Fall River Health Services in Hot Springs is a 25 bed critical access hospital with a 24 hour emergency department.	Monument Health Sturgis HospitalNo hospital in Whitewood. Sturgis is the nearer of the two, with Spearfish next.
Recreationdiffers	The hundred-year-old city park, the campground, the Elk Mountains and open country in every direction.	Sturgis and Bear Butte State Park about eight miles east, Deadwood 10 to 12 miles southwest, Spearfish and Spearfish Canyon 10 to 12 miles northwest.
Mapped subdivisions
Outlines on filediffers	No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.	23 mapped outlines, 0 with a full guideReference outlines from county and city GIS, not surveys. The recorded plat controls.
The trade
Housing and patterndiffers	A working BNSF crew-change town founded in 1890, at the far southern edge of the Hills below the Elk Mountains.	A quiet main street with Sturgis, Spearfish and Deadwood each about ten minutes out and the interstate right there.
What you gaindiffers	More town per dollar than anywhere else in the region, with its own school district and city utilities.	Small town prices with three larger towns about ten minutes out in three directions, in Meade 46-1 despite sitting in Lawrence County.
What you give updiffers	A hundred miles from Rapid City, 35 from a hospital, with two unresolved questions hanging over the local economy.	Anything past the basics is a drive to Sturgis, Spearfish or Deadwood, and there are no published MLS figures for the town on its own.

Central and Southern HillsEdgemont
Northern Hills and I-90Whitewood

Where it sits

Regiondiffers

Edgemont: Central and Southern Hills
Whitewood: Northern Hills and I-90

Countydiffers

Edgemont: Fall River County
Whitewood: Lawrence County

Jurisdictiondiffers

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

Edgemont: Incorporated city of Edgemont, with Fall River County outside the limits.
Whitewood: Not recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.

Corridordiffers

Edgemont: US 18 and SD 471
Whitewood: I-90 and US-85

To downtown Rapid Citydiffers

Edgemont: About 100 miles northeastDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Whitewood: About 35 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.

To Ellsworth AFBdiffers

Edgemont: About 110 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Whitewood: About 40 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.

Winter drivingdiffers

Edgemont: Cold semi-arid country with a recorded low of 40 below. US 18 is the lifeline and it is a long way to anywhere in a storm.
Whitewood: I-90 and US-85 are state maintained. The town streets and the roads out past them clear on their own schedule.

Housing and lots

Typical pricediffers

Edgemont: 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.
Whitewood: No town median is published for Whitewood, and it sits in Lawrence County, which the Mount Rushmore Area MLS covers rather than the Black Hills feed behind the figures here. Prices sit under Sturgis, Spearfish and Deadwood, each about ten minutes out.

Housing agediffers

Edgemont: An 1890 railroad town, so mostly older stock, with about a quarter of units vacant at the 2020 count.
Whitewood: Older and modest through town, so systems matter more than finishes.

New constructiondiffers

Edgemont: None underway
Whitewood: Limited, mostly infill and small projects

Acreagediffers

Edgemont: Acreage parcels are common here
Whitewood: Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size.

Typical lotdiffers

Edgemont: Town lots inside the limits, ranch scale outside them.
Whitewood: Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot dimensions.

Covenants and HOAdiffers

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

Edgemont: Few plats here carry recorded covenants
Whitewood: Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat.

Utilities and rules

Utility patterndiffers

Edgemont: City water and sewer inside the limits
Whitewood: Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it

Waterdiffers

Edgemont: City of Edgemont municipal water. Rural parcels are on private wells.
Whitewood: 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.

Sewerdiffers

Edgemont: City sewer inside the limits, with private septic on rural parcels.
Whitewood: 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.

Short term rentalsdiffers

Edgemont: Edgemont is not a tourism town. Short-term rental demand here is work crews, hunting season and Rally traffic passing through, not visitors staying to see something.
Whitewood: No short term rental provisions in the city code, and Rally season renting is common here under state rules.

Schools

School districtdiffers

Edgemont: Edgemont School District 23-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Whitewood: Meade School District 46-1, despite being in Lawrence CountyAssignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.

Daily errands

Groceriesdiffers

Edgemont: Small-town grocery and convenience in Edgemont, with Hot Springs about 35 miles east for more.
Whitewood: No full-service grocery store is in Whitewood. Most larger grocery trips go to Sturgis or Spearfish.

Healthcarediffers

Edgemont: No hospital in town. Fall River Health Services in Hot Springs is a 25 bed critical access hospital with a 24 hour emergency department.
Whitewood: Monument Health Sturgis HospitalNo hospital in Whitewood. Sturgis is the nearer of the two, with Spearfish next.

Recreationdiffers

Edgemont: The hundred-year-old city park, the campground, the Elk Mountains and open country in every direction.
Whitewood: Sturgis and Bear Butte State Park about eight miles east, Deadwood 10 to 12 miles southwest, Spearfish and Spearfish Canyon 10 to 12 miles northwest.

Mapped subdivisions

Outlines on filediffers

Edgemont: No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.
Whitewood: 23 mapped outlines, 0 with a full guideReference outlines from county and city GIS, not surveys. The recorded plat controls.

The trade

Housing and patterndiffers

Edgemont: A working BNSF crew-change town founded in 1890, at the far southern edge of the Hills below the Elk Mountains.
Whitewood: A quiet main street with Sturgis, Spearfish and Deadwood each about ten minutes out and the interstate right there.

What you gaindiffers

Edgemont: More town per dollar than anywhere else in the region, with its own school district and city utilities.
Whitewood: Small town prices with three larger towns about ten minutes out in three directions, in Meade 46-1 despite sitting in Lawrence County.

What you give updiffers

Edgemont: A hundred miles from Rapid City, 35 from a hospital, with two unresolved questions hanging over the local economy.
Whitewood: Anything past the basics is a drive to Sturgis, Spearfish or Deadwood, and there are no published MLS figures for the town on its own.

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

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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.

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ComparingEdgemont, Whitewood

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