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.
6 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
- Unincorporated, so closings report under Rapid City and Meade County rather than a Black Hawk median. Lot size and outbuildings move the price more than the street does.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About 30 minutes, the same I-90 run as Summerset just northDriving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- About 12 to 15 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
- School district
- Rapid City Area Schools 51-4 for most addressesAssignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- 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
- No published median exists for the community. Closed sales on the specific street are the only figure worth quoting here.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About 15 minutes northDriving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- About 6 miles northwestDistance 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
- Split between Douglas 51-1 and Rapid City Area 51-4. Address specific.Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- 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.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- 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- Typical price
- Builder inventory sets the level here, and the MLS publishes no Summerset median on its own.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- 30 min, 19.2 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- 15 min, 10.0 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- 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.
- School 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.
Between Summerset, Colonial Pine Hills, Box Elder, Edgemont
The rows below are the ones where these do not read the same. Ordered as the table runs, not by importance.
- Region
- SummersetRapid City and the Ellsworth corridorColonial Pine HillsRapid City and the Ellsworth corridorBox ElderRapid City and the Ellsworth corridorEdgemontCentral and Southern Hills
- County
- SummersetMeade CountyColonial Pine HillsPennington CountyBox ElderPennington CountyEdgemontFall River County
- Jurisdiction
- SummersetCity of Summerset, incorporated July 2005Colonial Pine HillsUnincorporated. There is no city government. Pennington County zones the lots, issues the permits and patrols the roads.Box ElderCity of Box ElderEdgemontIncorporated city of Edgemont, with Fall River County outside the limits.
- Corridor
- SummersetI-90Colonial Pine HillsUS 16 and Sheridan Lake RoadBox ElderI-90EdgemontUS 18 and SD 471
- To downtown Rapid City
- Summerset15 min, 10.0 miColonial Pine HillsRoughly 6 miles northeastBox Elder19 min, 10.9 miEdgemontAbout 100 miles northeast
- To Ellsworth AFB
- Summerset30 min, 19.2 miColonial Pine HillsAbout 25 to 30 minutes, through or around Rapid CityBox Elder9 min, 2.3 miEdgemontAbout 110 miles
Summerset, Colonial Pine Hills, Box Elder, Edgemont
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 | Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridorColonial Pine Hills | Central and Southern HillsEdgemont | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | ||||
| Regiondiffers | Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor | Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor | Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor | Central and Southern Hills |
| Countydiffers | Meade County | Pennington County | Pennington County | Fall River County |
| JurisdictiondiffersCity versus county decides who provides service and who inspects the work. | City of Summerset, incorporated July 2005 | Unincorporated. There is no city government. Pennington County zones the lots, issues the permits and patrols the roads. | City of Box Elder | Incorporated city of Edgemont, with Fall River County outside the limits. |
| Corridordiffers | I-90 | US 16 and Sheridan Lake Road | I-90 | US 18 and SD 471 |
| To downtown Rapid Citydiffers | 15 min, 10.0 miDriving time and distance, off peak. | Roughly 6 miles northeastDistance 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. | About 100 miles northeastDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel. |
| To Ellsworth AFBdiffers | 30 min, 19.2 miDriving time and distance, off peak. | About 25 to 30 minutes, through or around Rapid CityDriving time and distance, off peak. | 9 min, 2.3 miDriving time and distance, off peak. | About 110 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel. |
| Winter drivingdiffers | The commute is I-90, so winter driving here is interstate driving rather than a two lane canyon road. | You are 900 feet above Rapid City on grades, and some subdivision roads are privately plowed. Snow tires are not a luxury item up here. | 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. | 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. |
| Housing and lots | ||||
| Typical pricediffers | Builder inventory sets the level here, and the MLS publishes no Summerset median on its own. | 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. | $340k to $400kMedian sold $367,000. Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 235 closed sales. | 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. |
| Housing agediffers | Mostly 2000s to present | Platted over several decades, so 1970s cabins and current builds sit on the same road. | Heavily new construction since the B-21 announcement | An 1890 railroad town, so mostly older stock, with about a quarter of units vacant at the 2020 count. |
| New constructiondiffers | Limited, mostly infill and small projects | Limited, mostly infill and small projects | Active, with subdivisions still building | None underway |
| Acreagediffers | Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size. | Acreage parcels are common here | Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size. | Acreage parcels are common here |
| Typical lotdiffers | Wide lots on new streets | Large by Rapid City standards, from generous lots to several acres. | Small city lots, about 0.15 to 0.18 acres in the newer plats | Town lots inside the limits, ranch scale outside them. |
| Covenants and HOAdiffersCovenants are recorded per plat. The title commitment lists what binds the parcel. | Recorded covenants on some plats, none on others | 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 | 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. | Mostly private well and septic | City water and sewer inside the limits | City water and sewer inside the limits |
| Waterdiffers | Black Hawk Water User District, or Diamond D Water in Sun Valley | Depends entirely on the parcel. The Colonial Pine Hills Sanitary District serves roughly 430 connections. Several separate water associations serve other pockets, and the rest of the area is on private wells. | City of Box Elder municipal | City of Edgemont municipal water. Rural parcels are on private wells. |
| Sewerdiffers | City of Summerset | Private on-site septic throughout, permitted by Pennington County. There is no municipal sewer and no lagoon serving the area. | City of Box Elder municipal | City sewer inside the limits, with private septic on rural parcels. |
| Short term rentalsdiffers | The thinnest rules on this list, which means a rental plan has to be pinned down for the specific address. | This is unincorporated county, so there is no municipal short-term rental ordinance. County zoning and subdivision covenants are what govern, and the covenants out here are often stricter than the county. | A verify first town for rental plans, with one specific misconception the guide clears up. | 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. |
| Schools | ||||
| School districtdiffers | 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. | Rapid City Area School District 51-4Assignment 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. | Edgemont School District 23-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district. |
| Daily errands | ||||
| Groceriesdiffers | Not recorded in this guide. Check what is open near the address. | Everything is in Rapid City, roughly fifteen minutes down US 16. | Lynn's Dakotamart is a full-service grocery store in town. | Small-town grocery and convenience in Edgemont, with Hot Springs about 35 miles east for more. |
| Healthcarediffers | Hospital-level care is in Rapid City, about 15 minutes south. | No clinic up here. Monument Health Rapid City Hospital and the Rapid City clinics are the answer. | Monument Health Box Elder Clinic provides primary and urgent care in town. Hospital-level care is in Rapid City. | No hospital in town. Fall River Health Services in Hot Springs is a 25 bed critical access hospital with a 24 hour emergency department. |
| Recreationdiffers | 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. | Sheridan Lake, Pactola, the Mickelson Trail and the whole central Hills network start where the subdivisions end. | 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. | The hundred-year-old city park, the campground, the Elk Mountains and open country in every direction. |
| Mapped subdivisions | ||||
| Outlines on filediffers | 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. | 16 mapped outlines, 3 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. |
| The trade | ||||
| Housing and patterndiffers | New streets and builder inventory, with Highlands at Norman Ranch adding over 100 first phase homesites across more than 300 acres. | Ponderosa pine subdivisions platted over decades, no two alike, on county rules six miles from the city. | A young city building its first downtown at Liberty Plaza on 110 acres, with roughly 800 residential units planned. | A working BNSF crew-change town founded in 1890, at the far southern edge of the Hills below the Elk Mountains. |
| What you gaindiffers | 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. | Hills elevation, trees and lot size with a Rapid City commute and Rapid City schools. | The Ellsworth main gate is in town, 9 minutes from most addresses, on city water and sewer, with the region's newest housing pipeline. | More town per dollar than anywhere else in the region, with its own school district and city utilities. |
| What you give updiffers | 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. | Well or association water, septic on every parcel, private roads in places, and wildfire exposure that affects insurance. | 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. | A hundred miles from Rapid City, 35 from a hospital, with two unresolved questions hanging over the local economy. |
- Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridorColonial Pine Hills
- Central and Southern HillsEdgemont
Where it sits
Regiondiffers
- Summerset
- Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor
- Box Elder
- Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor
- Edgemont
- Central and Southern Hills
Countydiffers
- Summerset
- Meade County
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Pennington County
- Box Elder
- Pennington County
- Edgemont
- Fall River County
Jurisdictiondiffers
City versus county decides who provides service and who inspects the work.- Summerset
- City of Summerset, incorporated July 2005
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Unincorporated. There is no city government. Pennington County zones the lots, issues the permits and patrols the roads.
- Box Elder
- City of Box Elder
- Edgemont
- Incorporated city of Edgemont, with Fall River County outside the limits.
Corridordiffers
- Summerset
- I-90
- Colonial Pine Hills
- US 16 and Sheridan Lake Road
- Box Elder
- I-90
- Edgemont
- US 18 and SD 471
To downtown Rapid Citydiffers
- Summerset
- 15 min, 10.0 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Roughly 6 miles northeastDistance 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.
- Edgemont
- About 100 miles northeastDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
To Ellsworth AFBdiffers
- Summerset
- 30 min, 19.2 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- About 25 to 30 minutes, through or around Rapid CityDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Box Elder
- 9 min, 2.3 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Edgemont
- About 110 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
Winter drivingdiffers
- Summerset
- The commute is I-90, so winter driving here is interstate driving rather than a two lane canyon road.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- You are 900 feet above Rapid City on grades, and some subdivision roads are privately plowed. Snow tires are not a luxury item up here.
- 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.
- 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.
Housing and lots
Typical pricediffers
- Summerset
- Builder inventory sets the level here, and the MLS publishes no Summerset median on its own.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- 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.
- Box Elder
- $340k to $400kMedian sold $367,000. Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 235 closed sales.
- 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.
Housing agediffers
- Summerset
- Mostly 2000s to present
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Platted over several decades, so 1970s cabins and current builds sit on the same road.
- Box Elder
- Heavily new construction since the B-21 announcement
- Edgemont
- An 1890 railroad town, so mostly older stock, with about a quarter of units vacant at the 2020 count.
New constructiondiffers
- Summerset
- Limited, mostly infill and small projects
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Limited, mostly infill and small projects
- Box Elder
- Active, with subdivisions still building
- Edgemont
- None underway
Acreagediffers
- Summerset
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Acreage parcels are common here
- Box Elder
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size.
- Edgemont
- Acreage parcels are common here
Typical lotdiffers
- Summerset
- Wide lots on new streets
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Large by Rapid City standards, from generous lots to several acres.
- Box Elder
- Small city lots, about 0.15 to 0.18 acres in the newer plats
- Edgemont
- Town lots inside the limits, ranch scale outside them.
Covenants and HOAdiffers
Covenants are recorded per plat. The title commitment lists what binds the parcel.- Summerset
- Recorded covenants on some plats, none on others
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Recorded covenants on some plats, none on others
- Box Elder
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat.
- Edgemont
- Few plats here carry recorded covenants
Utilities and rules
Utility patterndiffers
- 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.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Mostly private well and septic
- Box Elder
- City water and sewer inside the limits
- Edgemont
- City water and sewer inside the limits
Waterdiffers
- Summerset
- Black Hawk Water User District, or Diamond D Water in Sun Valley
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Depends entirely on the parcel. The Colonial Pine Hills Sanitary District serves roughly 430 connections. Several separate water associations serve other pockets, and the rest of the area is on private wells.
- Box Elder
- City of Box Elder municipal
- Edgemont
- City of Edgemont municipal water. Rural parcels are on private wells.
Sewerdiffers
- Summerset
- City of Summerset
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Private on-site septic throughout, permitted by Pennington County. There is no municipal sewer and no lagoon serving the area.
- Box Elder
- City of Box Elder municipal
- Edgemont
- City sewer inside the limits, with private septic on rural parcels.
Short term rentalsdiffers
- Summerset
- The thinnest rules on this list, which means a rental plan has to be pinned down for the specific address.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- This is unincorporated county, so there is no municipal short-term rental ordinance. County zoning and subdivision covenants are what govern, and the covenants out here are often stricter than the county.
- Box Elder
- A verify first town for rental plans, with one specific misconception the guide clears up.
- 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.
Schools
School districtdiffers
- 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.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Rapid City Area School District 51-4Assignment 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.
- Edgemont
- Edgemont School District 23-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
Daily errands
Groceriesdiffers
- Summerset
- Not recorded in this guide. Check what is open near the address.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Everything is in Rapid City, roughly fifteen minutes down US 16.
- Box Elder
- Lynn's Dakotamart is a full-service grocery store in town.
- Edgemont
- Small-town grocery and convenience in Edgemont, with Hot Springs about 35 miles east for more.
Healthcarediffers
- Summerset
- Hospital-level care is in Rapid City, about 15 minutes south.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- No clinic up here. Monument Health Rapid City Hospital and the Rapid City clinics are the answer.
- Box Elder
- Monument Health Box Elder Clinic provides primary and urgent care in town. Hospital-level care is in Rapid City.
- 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.
Recreationdiffers
- 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.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Sheridan Lake, Pactola, the Mickelson Trail and the whole central Hills network start where the subdivisions end.
- 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.
- Edgemont
- The hundred-year-old city park, the campground, the Elk Mountains and open country in every direction.
Mapped subdivisions
Outlines on filediffers
- Summerset
- 2 mapped outlines, 2 with a full guideReference outlines from county and city GIS, not surveys. The recorded plat controls.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- 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.
- Edgemont
- No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.
The trade
Housing and patterndiffers
- Summerset
- New streets and builder inventory, with Highlands at Norman Ranch adding over 100 first phase homesites across more than 300 acres.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Ponderosa pine subdivisions platted over decades, no two alike, on county rules six miles from the city.
- Box Elder
- A young city building its first downtown at Liberty Plaza on 110 acres, with roughly 800 residential units planned.
- Edgemont
- A working BNSF crew-change town founded in 1890, at the far southern edge of the Hills below the Elk Mountains.
What you gaindiffers
- 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.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Hills elevation, trees and lot size with a Rapid City commute and Rapid City schools.
- 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.
- Edgemont
- More town per dollar than anywhere else in the region, with its own school district and city utilities.
What you give updiffers
- 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.
- Colonial Pine Hills
- Well or association water, septic on every parcel, private roads in places, and wildfire exposure that affects insurance.
- 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.
- Edgemont
- A hundred miles from Rapid City, 35 from a hospital, with two unresolved questions hanging over the local economy.
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.
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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.

