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.
5 of 25 communities
Price filters only consider communities with a published trailing twelve month median, so towns without one do not appear in a price filter.
The five facts that decide a shortlist
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.
- 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.
- 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.
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.
- Typical price
- $400k to $600kMedian sold $475,000. Mount Rushmore Area MLS, all residential, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 199 closed sales.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- 68 min, 57.0 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- 53 min, 47.8 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- City water and sewer are typical inside city-served areas. Acreage outside the city can use wells, septic systems or other service arrangements, so utilities should be confirmed by address.
- School district
- Spearfish School District 40-2Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
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.
- 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.
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.
- 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.
Between New Underwood, Blucksberg Mountain
The rows below are the ones where these do not read the same. Ordered as the table runs, not by importance.
- Region
- New UnderwoodPrairie and BadlandsBlucksberg MountainRapid City and the Ellsworth corridor
- County
- New UnderwoodPennington CountyBlucksberg MountainMeade County
- Jurisdiction
- New UnderwoodIncorporated city of New Underwood, with Pennington County outside the limitsBlucksberg MountainUnincorporated Meade County
- Corridor
- New UnderwoodI-90 exit 78Blucksberg MountainI-90
- To downtown Rapid City
- New UnderwoodAbout 18 miles west on I-90Blucksberg MountainNot measured for this page.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- New UnderwoodAbout 11 miles, exit 78 to the main gate at exit 67ABlucksberg MountainNot measured for this page.
New Underwood, Blucksberg Mountain
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.
| Attribute | Prairie and BadlandsNew Underwood | Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridorBlucksberg Mountain |
|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | ||
| Regiondiffers | Prairie and Badlands | Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor |
| Countydiffers | Pennington County | Meade County |
| JurisdictiondiffersCity versus county decides who provides service and who inspects the work. | Incorporated city of New Underwood, with Pennington County outside the limits | Unincorporated Meade County |
| Corridordiffers | I-90 exit 78 | I-90 |
| To downtown Rapid Citydiffers | About 18 miles west on I-90Distance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel. | Not measured for this page.Drive time is not measured for this community. Time it from the parcel itself. |
| To Ellsworth AFBdiffers | 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. | Not measured for this page.Drive time is not measured for this community. Time it from the parcel itself. |
| Winter drivingdiffers | 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. | This is hill ground off the interstate. Ask who plows the interior road serving the parcel, because some are not county maintained. |
| Housing and lots | ||
| Typical pricediffers | 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. | No verified closed sale set is available for Blucksberg Mountain, so no price level is printed here. The five recorded plats differ enough that one figure would not describe any of them. |
| Housing agediffers | Older in-town stock with scattered newer building. | Mixed ages. Older homes near the core, newer construction toward the edges. |
| New constructiondiffers | Limited, mostly infill and small projects | Not recorded townwide in this guide. Check current permits with the city or county. |
| Acreage | Acreage parcels are common here | Acreage parcels are common here |
| Typical lotdiffers | Standard town lots on the grid, with ranch and acreage ground starting where the limits end. | 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 | Recorded covenants on some plats, none on others |
| Utilities and rules | ||
| Utility pattern | 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 New Underwood water inside the limits, drawn from two Madison Aquifer wells. Outside the limits, parcels are on small water associations or private wells. | Varies by plat. Blucksberg Mountain #1 is a regulated community water system. Confirm provider and rate by parcel. |
| Sewerdiffers | City sewer inside the limits. Rural parcels are on private septic permitted by Pennington County. | Septic common in current listings. Confirm the system by address. |
| Short term rentalsdiffers | 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. | Short term rental rules here come from Meade County and from the covenants on the recorded plat, not from a city ordinance. |
| Schools | ||
| School districtdiffers | New Underwood School District 51-3Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district. | Meade School District 46-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district. |
| Daily errands | ||
| Groceriesdiffers | BJ's Country Store at the exit 78 interchange for fuel and convenience. Full grocery shopping is Rapid City, about 18 miles west. | Not recorded in this guide. Check what is open near the address. |
| Healthcarediffers | 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. | Not recorded in this guide. Confirm the nearest clinic and hospital by address. |
| Recreationdiffers | The municipal pool, with a donor-funded free swim program, and open prairie in every direction. | Not recorded in this guide. Read the guide for what residents use here. |
| The trade | ||
| Housing and patterndiffers | A prairie town with its own K through 12 campus and its own interstate exit, 18 miles from the city. | Five separate recorded plats of residential acreage on the hill between Rapid City and Sturgis, unincorporated. |
| What you gaindiffers | The only town this close to Ellsworth that still educates its own kids from kindergarten through graduation. | Read the guide |
| What you give updiffers | 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. | Utilities, roads and covenants change from one recorded plat to the next, so nothing you learn about one street transfers to the next one over. |
- Prairie and BadlandsNew Underwood
- Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridorBlucksberg Mountain
Where it sits
Regiondiffers
- New Underwood
- Prairie and Badlands
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor
Countydiffers
- New Underwood
- Pennington County
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Meade County
Jurisdictiondiffers
City versus county decides who provides service and who inspects the work.- New Underwood
- Incorporated city of New Underwood, with Pennington County outside the limits
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Unincorporated Meade County
Corridordiffers
- New Underwood
- I-90 exit 78
- Blucksberg Mountain
- I-90
To downtown Rapid Citydiffers
- New Underwood
- About 18 miles west on I-90Distance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Not measured for this page.Drive time is not measured for this community. Time it from the parcel itself.
To Ellsworth AFBdiffers
- 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.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Not measured for this page.Drive time is not measured for this community. Time it from the parcel itself.
Winter drivingdiffers
- 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.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- This is hill ground off the interstate. Ask who plows the interior road serving the parcel, because some are not county maintained.
Housing and lots
Typical pricediffers
- 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.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- No verified closed sale set is available for Blucksberg Mountain, so no price level is printed here. The five recorded plats differ enough that one figure would not describe any of them.
Housing agediffers
- New Underwood
- Older in-town stock with scattered newer building.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Mixed ages. Older homes near the core, newer construction toward the edges.
New constructiondiffers
- New Underwood
- Limited, mostly infill and small projects
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. Check current permits with the city or county.
Acreage
- New Underwood
- Acreage parcels are common here
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Acreage parcels are common here
Typical lotdiffers
- New Underwood
- Standard town lots on the grid, with ranch and acreage ground starting where the limits end.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- 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.- New Underwood
- Few plats here carry recorded covenants
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Recorded covenants on some plats, none on others
Utilities and rules
Utility pattern
- New Underwood
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
Waterdiffers
- 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.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Varies by plat. Blucksberg Mountain #1 is a regulated community water system. Confirm provider and rate by parcel.
Sewerdiffers
- New Underwood
- City sewer inside the limits. Rural parcels are on private septic permitted by Pennington County.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Septic common in current listings. Confirm the system by address.
Short term rentalsdiffers
- 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.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Short term rental rules here come from Meade County and from the covenants on the recorded plat, not from a city ordinance.
Schools
School districtdiffers
- New Underwood
- New Underwood School District 51-3Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Meade School District 46-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Daily errands
Groceriesdiffers
- 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.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Not recorded in this guide. Check what is open near the address.
Healthcarediffers
- 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.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Not recorded in this guide. Confirm the nearest clinic and hospital by address.
Recreationdiffers
- New Underwood
- The municipal pool, with a donor-funded free swim program, and open prairie in every direction.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Not recorded in this guide. Read the guide for what residents use here.
The trade
Housing and patterndiffers
- New Underwood
- A prairie town with its own K through 12 campus and its own interstate exit, 18 miles from the city.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Five separate recorded plats of residential acreage on the hill between Rapid City and Sturgis, unincorporated.
What you gaindiffers
- New Underwood
- The only town this close to Ellsworth that still educates its own kids from kindergarten through graduation.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Read the guide
What you give updiffers
- 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.
- Blucksberg Mountain
- Utilities, roads and covenants change from one recorded plat to the next, so nothing you learn about one street transfers to the next one over.
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
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.
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.