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
25 of 25 communities
Under $400kClose to EllsworthClose to Rapid CityShort commuteNew construction availableAcreage availableCity water and sewerSmaller marketMore ruralEstablished housingNewer housingClear 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
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
- 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.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- Not measured for this page.Drive time is not measured for this community. Time it from the parcel itself.
- To downtown Rapid City
- Not measured for this page.Drive time is not measured for this community. Time it from the parcel itself.
- Utility pattern
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
- School district
- Meade School District 46-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- 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.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- Typical price
- About $683,000 average sold in the Sheridan Lake Road MLS area, 71 sales over 12 monthsAverage sold $682,615. Black Hills MLS, single family, 12 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 71 closed sales.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About 25 to 30 minutes, through or around Rapid CityDriving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- Roughly 6 miles northeastDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
- Utility pattern
- Mostly private well and septic
- School district
- Rapid City Area School District 51-4Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- 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
- $375k to $575kMedian sold $425,000. Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 127 closed sales.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- 36 min from the Prairie Haven side, closer to 51 from the plats highest up the foothillsDriving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- About 26 minutes from the Prairie Haven side, longer from the upper platsDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
- School district
- Meade School District 46-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- 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.
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
- $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- Typical price
- $320k to $500kMedian sold $385,000. Mount Rushmore Area MLS, all residential, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 117 closed sales.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About 55 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- About 50 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. Verify water and sewer service for the address.
- School district
- Lead-Deadwood School District 40-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- Typical price
- No figure published. Newell is Mount Rushmore Area MLS territory and the current feed covers only the Black Hills MLS, so any count from that feed is a floor rather than this town's price level.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About 60 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
- To downtown Rapid City
- About 54 miles, roughly 70 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
- School district
- Newell School District 09-2Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- 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.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- Typical price
- No figure published. St. Onge is Mount Rushmore Area MLS territory and the current feed covers only the Black Hills MLS, so a zero here would be a gap in the data rather than a fact about the market.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About 45 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
- To downtown Rapid City
- About 44 miles, roughly 48 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- Mostly private well and septic
- School district
- Spearfish 40-2 at the townsite, with Belle Fourche 09-1 to the north and Meade 46-1 to the east. Parcel specific.Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
- Typical price
- $300k to $450kMedian sold $365,000. Mount Rushmore Area MLS, all residential, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 97 closed sales.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- 48 min, 38.2 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- 33 min, 28.9 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. Verify water and sewer service for the address.
- School district
- Meade School District 46-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- Typical price
- 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.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About 40 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- About 35 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
- School district
- Meade School District 46-1, despite being in Lawrence CountyAssignment 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
- 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.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About 55 milesDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
- To downtown Rapid City
- About 45 miles, roughly 56 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
- School 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.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- Typical price
- Median sold $627,000Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 7 closed sales, small sample.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About an hour and ten minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- About 50 to 60 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
- School district
- Custer School District 16-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
- 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- Typical price
- About $650,000 average sold, 28 sales over 24 monthsAverage sold $648,229. Black Hills MLS, single family, 24 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 28 closed sales.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About 35 minutes, north through Rapid City to I-90Driving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- 26 min, 18.6 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
- School district
- Custer School District 16-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- Typical price
- Median sold $519,000Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 13 closed sales.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About 45 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- About 30 to 35 minutes on US-16Driving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. Verify water and sewer service for the address.
- School district
- Hill City School District 51-2Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide- 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- Typical price
- About $618,000 average sold, but only 9 sales over 24 monthsAverage sold $618,449. Black Hills MLS, single family, 24 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 9 closed sales, small sample.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About 40 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- To downtown Rapid City
- About 25 minutes northeastDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Utility pattern
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
- School district
- Hill City School District 51-2Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide
Prairie and Badlands
East of the Hills on the open prairie, where lots run larger, water is often a private well, services are thinner and the wind and the drive are the tradeoffs.
- 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- Typical price
- About $270,000 average sold, 19 sales over 24 monthsAverage sold $270,435. Black Hills MLS, single family, 24 months through August 2026, as of August 2026. 19 closed sales.
- To Ellsworth AFB
- About 43 miles westDistance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
- To downtown Rapid City
- About 50 miles west on I-90Distance only. Drive time is not measured for this community, so time it from the parcel.
- Utility pattern
- City water and sewer inside the limits
- School district
- Wall School District 51-5Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
4 is the most that fits. Drop one first.Guide
What changes
Between Summerset, Whitewood, Custer, St. Onge
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 corridorWhitewoodNorthern Hills and I-90CusterCentral and Southern HillsSt. OngeNorthern Hills and I-90
- County
- SummersetMeade CountyWhitewoodLawrence CountyCusterCuster CountySt. OngeLawrence County
- Jurisdiction
- SummersetCity of Summerset, incorporated July 2005WhitewoodNot recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.CusterNot recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.St. OngeUnincorporated. No town government. Lawrence County zones the parcels and the Sheriff patrols them.
- Corridor
- SummersetI-90WhitewoodI-90 and US-85CusterUS-16St. OngeSD 34, with I-90 seven miles southeast at Whitewood
- To downtown Rapid City
- Summerset15 min, 10.0 miWhitewoodAbout 35 minutesCusterAbout 50 to 60 minutesSt. OngeAbout 44 miles, roughly 48 minutes
- To Ellsworth AFB
- Summerset30 min, 19.2 miWhitewoodAbout 40 minutesCusterAbout an hour and ten minutesSt. OngeAbout 45 miles
Side by side
Summerset, Whitewood, Custer, St. Onge
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 | Northern Hills and I-90Whitewood | Northern Hills and I-90St. Onge | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Where it sits | ||||
| Regiondiffers | Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor | Northern Hills and I-90 | Central and Southern Hills | Northern Hills and I-90 |
| Countydiffers | Meade County | Lawrence County | Custer County | Lawrence County |
| JurisdictiondiffersCity versus county decides who provides service and who inspects the work. | City of Summerset, incorporated July 2005 | Not recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground. | Not recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground. | Unincorporated. No town government. Lawrence County zones the parcels and the Sheriff patrols them. |
| Corridordiffers | I-90 | I-90 and US-85 | US-16 | SD 34, with I-90 seven miles southeast at Whitewood |
| To downtown Rapid Citydiffers | 15 min, 10.0 miDriving time and distance, off peak. | About 35 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak. | About 50 to 60 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak. | About 44 miles, roughly 48 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak. |
| To Ellsworth AFBdiffers | 30 min, 19.2 miDriving time and distance, off peak. | About 40 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak. | About an hour and ten minutesDriving time and distance, off peak. | About 45 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. | I-90 and US-85 are state maintained. The town streets and the roads out past them clear on their own schedule. | Winter roads are a genuine planning factor at this distance, and on acreage you need to know who maintains yours. | Highway 34 is state maintained and connects three directions. County and private roads off it are a different conversation. |
| Housing and lots | ||||
| Typical pricediffers | Builder inventory sets the level here, and the MLS publishes no Summerset median on its own. | 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. | Median sold $627,000Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 7 closed sales, small sample. | No figure published. St. Onge is Mount Rushmore Area MLS territory and the current feed covers only the Black Hills MLS, so a zero here would be a gap in the data rather than a fact about the market. |
| Housing agediffers | Mostly 2000s to present | Older and modest through town, so systems matter more than finishes. | Mixed ages. Older homes near the core, newer construction toward the edges. | An 1891 townsite with genuinely old buildings, surrounded by ranch and acreage property of every era. |
| New constructiondiffers | Limited, mostly infill and small projects | Limited, mostly infill and small projects | Not recorded townwide in this guide. Check current permits with the city or county. | Limited, mostly infill and small projects |
| Acreagediffers | Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size. | Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size. | Acreage is common outside the city core, with wells and septic systems typical on many rural properties. | Acreage parcels are common here |
| Typical lotdiffers | Wide lots on new streets | Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot dimensions. | Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot dimensions. | Small townsite lots, with acreage and ranch ground around them. |
| Covenants and HOAdiffersCovenants are recorded per plat. The title commitment lists what binds the parcel. | Recorded covenants on some plats, none on others | Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat. | 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. | Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it | Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it | Mostly private well and septic |
| Waterdiffers | Black Hawk Water User District, or Diamond D Water in Sun Valley | Municipal water inside the limits, a private well or a district system outside them.Read off the townwide utility pattern in the guide. The service address controls, so confirm the provider before you write an offer. | 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. | The Saint Onge Sewer and Water Company serves about 78 connections around the townsite, with a clean compliance record. Parcels outside that system are on private wells. There is no rural water district covering this area. |
| Sewerdiffers | City of Summerset | City sewer inside the limits, private septic outside them.Read off the townwide utility pattern in the guide. The service address controls, so confirm the provider before you write an offer. | City sewer inside the limits, 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. | The water company's name implies sewer service, but I have not been able to verify from the public record which parcels it reaches. Assume private septic outside the townsite and confirm the rest before closing. |
| Short term rentalsdiffers | The thinnest rules on this list, which means a rental plan has to be pinned down for the specific address. | No short term rental provisions in the city code, and Rally season renting is common here under state rules. | Grandfathered permits are non transferable and expire when the property sells, and the rules flip at the city line. | Unincorporated Lawrence County, so no municipal ordinance applies. Note that unincorporated Lawrence County declined to require a vacation home rental permit, so there is no county permit to obtain either. |
| 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. | Meade School District 46-1, despite being in Lawrence CountyAssignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district. | Custer School District 16-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district. | Spearfish 40-2 at the townsite, with Belle Fourche 09-1 to the north and Meade 46-1 to the east. Parcel specific.Assignment 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. | No full-service grocery store is in Whitewood. Most larger grocery trips go to Sturgis or Spearfish. | Lynn's Dakotamart is a full-service grocery store in town. | Nothing in town. Spearfish is eleven miles southeast and Belle Fourche thirteen northwest. |
| Healthcarediffers | Hospital-level care is in Rapid City, about 15 minutes south. | Monument Health Sturgis HospitalNo hospital in Whitewood. Sturgis is the nearer of the two, with Spearfish next. | Monument Health Custer Hospital and clinic are in town. | Monument Health Spearfish Hospital, a 35 bed facility with a 24 hour emergency department, about 18 minutes away. |
| 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. | 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. | Custer State Park at the door, including Sylvan Lake, the Needles Highway, the wildlife loop and the September buffalo roundup. | Creek bottoms, hay ground and hunting country, with Spearfish Canyon and the northern Hills half an hour away. |
| 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. | 23 mapped outlines, 0 with a full guideReference outlines from county and city GIS, not surveys. The recorded plat controls. | No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet. | No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet. |
| The trade | ||||
| Housing and patterndiffers | New streets and builder inventory, with Highlands at Norman Ranch adding over 100 first phase homesites across more than 300 acres. | A quiet main street with Sturgis, Spearfish and Deadwood each about ten minutes out and the interstate right there. | A county seat at a park entrance, with a replacement Monument Health hospital and acreage starting just past the city limits. | An 1891 French-Canadian railroad townsite that is now a cattle auction crossroads and an acreage corridor. |
| 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. | Small town prices with three larger towns about ten minutes out in three directions, in Meade 46-1 despite sitting in Lawrence County. | You are inside the Hills with real acreage, Custer State Park at the door, and a new hospital in a town of about 1,900. | The cheapest ground in the northern Hills that still puts you eleven miles from a hospital and sixteen from three towns. |
| 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. | 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. | 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. | A three-way school district split you have to verify per parcel, and no services of any kind in town. |
Where it sits
Regiondiffers
- Summerset
- Rapid City and the Ellsworth corridor
- Whitewood
- Northern Hills and I-90
- Custer
- Central and Southern Hills
- St. Onge
- Northern Hills and I-90
Countydiffers
- Summerset
- Meade County
- Whitewood
- Lawrence County
- Custer
- Custer County
- St. Onge
- Lawrence County
Jurisdictiondiffers
City versus county decides who provides service and who inspects the work.- Summerset
- City of Summerset, incorporated July 2005
- Whitewood
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.
- Custer
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. The address decides whether it is city or county ground.
- St. Onge
- Unincorporated. No town government. Lawrence County zones the parcels and the Sheriff patrols them.
Corridordiffers
- Summerset
- I-90
- Whitewood
- I-90 and US-85
- Custer
- US-16
- St. Onge
- SD 34, with I-90 seven miles southeast at Whitewood
To downtown Rapid Citydiffers
- Summerset
- 15 min, 10.0 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Whitewood
- About 35 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Custer
- About 50 to 60 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- St. Onge
- About 44 miles, roughly 48 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
To Ellsworth AFBdiffers
- Summerset
- 30 min, 19.2 miDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Whitewood
- About 40 minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- Custer
- About an hour and ten minutesDriving time and distance, off peak.
- St. Onge
- About 45 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.
- Whitewood
- I-90 and US-85 are state maintained. The town streets and the roads out past them clear on their own schedule.
- Custer
- Winter roads are a genuine planning factor at this distance, and on acreage you need to know who maintains yours.
- St. Onge
- Highway 34 is state maintained and connects three directions. County and private roads off it are a different conversation.
Housing and lots
Typical pricediffers
- Summerset
- Builder inventory sets the level here, and the MLS publishes no Summerset median on its own.
- 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.
- Custer
- Median sold $627,000Black Hills MLS, single family, trailing 12 months, as of August 2026. 7 closed sales, small sample.
- St. Onge
- No figure published. St. Onge is Mount Rushmore Area MLS territory and the current feed covers only the Black Hills MLS, so a zero here would be a gap in the data rather than a fact about the market.
Housing agediffers
- Summerset
- Mostly 2000s to present
- Whitewood
- Older and modest through town, so systems matter more than finishes.
- Custer
- Mixed ages. Older homes near the core, newer construction toward the edges.
- St. Onge
- An 1891 townsite with genuinely old buildings, surrounded by ranch and acreage property of every era.
New constructiondiffers
- Summerset
- Limited, mostly infill and small projects
- Whitewood
- Limited, mostly infill and small projects
- Custer
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. Check current permits with the city or county.
- St. Onge
- Limited, mostly infill and small projects
Acreagediffers
- Summerset
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size.
- Whitewood
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot size.
- Custer
- Acreage is common outside the city core, with wells and septic systems typical on many rural properties.
- St. Onge
- Acreage parcels are common here
Typical lotdiffers
- Summerset
- Wide lots on new streets
- Whitewood
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot dimensions.
- Custer
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. The recorded plat carries the lot dimensions.
- St. Onge
- Small townsite lots, with acreage and ranch ground around 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
- Whitewood
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat.
- Custer
- Not recorded townwide in this guide. Read the recorded documents for the plat.
- St. Onge
- 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.
- Whitewood
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
- Custer
- Mixed, municipal service in town with well and septic outside it
- St. Onge
- Mostly private well and septic
Waterdiffers
- Summerset
- Black Hawk Water User District, or Diamond D Water in Sun Valley
- 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.
- 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.
- St. Onge
- The Saint Onge Sewer and Water Company serves about 78 connections around the townsite, with a clean compliance record. Parcels outside that system are on private wells. There is no rural water district covering this area.
Sewerdiffers
- Summerset
- City of Summerset
- 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.
- 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.
- St. Onge
- The water company's name implies sewer service, but I have not been able to verify from the public record which parcels it reaches. Assume private septic outside the townsite and confirm the rest before closing.
Short term rentalsdiffers
- Summerset
- The thinnest rules on this list, which means a rental plan has to be pinned down for the specific address.
- Whitewood
- No short term rental provisions in the city code, and Rally season renting is common here under state rules.
- Custer
- Grandfathered permits are non transferable and expire when the property sells, and the rules flip at the city line.
- St. Onge
- Unincorporated Lawrence County, so no municipal ordinance applies. Note that unincorporated Lawrence County declined to require a vacation home rental permit, so there is no county permit to obtain either.
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.
- Whitewood
- Meade School District 46-1, despite being in Lawrence CountyAssignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
- Custer
- Custer School District 16-1Assignment follows the official boundary for the address. Confirm with the district.
- St. Onge
- Spearfish 40-2 at the townsite, with Belle Fourche 09-1 to the north and Meade 46-1 to the east. Parcel specific.Assignment 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.
- Whitewood
- No full-service grocery store is in Whitewood. Most larger grocery trips go to Sturgis or Spearfish.
- Custer
- Lynn's Dakotamart is a full-service grocery store in town.
- St. Onge
- Nothing in town. Spearfish is eleven miles southeast and Belle Fourche thirteen northwest.
Healthcarediffers
- Summerset
- Hospital-level care is in Rapid City, about 15 minutes south.
- Whitewood
- Monument Health Sturgis HospitalNo hospital in Whitewood. Sturgis is the nearer of the two, with Spearfish next.
- Custer
- Monument Health Custer Hospital and clinic are in town.
- St. Onge
- Monument Health Spearfish Hospital, a 35 bed facility with a 24 hour emergency department, about 18 minutes away.
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.
- 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.
- Custer
- Custer State Park at the door, including Sylvan Lake, the Needles Highway, the wildlife loop and the September buffalo roundup.
- St. Onge
- Creek bottoms, hay ground and hunting country, with Spearfish Canyon and the northern Hills half an hour away.
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.
- Whitewood
- 23 mapped outlines, 0 with a full guideReference outlines from county and city GIS, not surveys. The recorded plat controls.
- Custer
- No recorded subdivision outlines drawn for this community yet.
- St. Onge
- 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.
- Whitewood
- A quiet main street with Sturgis, Spearfish and Deadwood each about ten minutes out and the interstate right there.
- Custer
- A county seat at a park entrance, with a replacement Monument Health hospital and acreage starting just past the city limits.
- St. Onge
- An 1891 French-Canadian railroad townsite that is now a cattle auction crossroads and an acreage corridor.
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.
- Whitewood
- Small town prices with three larger towns about ten minutes out in three directions, in Meade 46-1 despite sitting in Lawrence County.
- 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.
- St. Onge
- The cheapest ground in the northern Hills that still puts you eleven miles from a hospital and sixteen from three towns.
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.
- 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.
- 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.
- St. Onge
- A three-way school district split you have to verify per parcel, and no services of any kind in town.
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
Want to talk through the tradeoffs?
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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.