Montana

Typical Montana home value up 66% in four years

Published

8 months ago

July 15, 2025

Typical Montana home value up 66% in four years

Montana’s typical home value has increased by two-thirds in four years, according to new valuations published this month by the Montana Department of Revenue.

The department estimates that the median residential property in Montana was worth $378,000 as of the beginning of last year. Four years previously, before the state housing market blew up during the COVID-19 pandemic, the median value was $228,000 — meaning values have increased 66%.

The department’s valuations, produced every other year for the purpose of calculating property tax bills, are a somewhat delayed look at Montana’s real estate market. The new figures represent the department’s effort to estimate market conditions as of Jan. 1, 2024.

However, because state law keeps sale prices for individual properties private, the tax valuation data is one of the most comprehensive measures available for the Montana housing market at a time when housing affordability — and property tax bills — are major points of public concern.

The valuations indicate that the potential market price for the median residential property statewide increased by 35% during the 2023 reappraisal cycle, which accounted for shifts between 2020 and 2022, and then by another 22% with this year’s cycle.

The increases tabulated by the department generally align with data from other sources. A Montana housing price index kept by real estate website Zillow, for example, estimates that the price of the typical Montana home rose by 61% between the start of 2020 and the start of 2024. Zillow’s typical home value estimates are higher than the state figures — $449,000 at the beginning of 2024 and $465,000 as of June.

Buying a median $228,000 home in 2020 with a 10% down payment and a mortgage at the then-average 3.5% interest rate would have required a housing payment of about $921 a month, excluding property taxes and insurance. Four years later, with that median home at $378,000 and interest rates at 6.6%, the monthly housing payment would be about $2,173 — 2.4 times as much.

In comparison, the per-capita personal income available to the average Montanan grew by 26% over the past four years, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. The average personal income as of 2024, $67,625, is enough for a $1,700-a-month housing payment if no more than 30% of income is put toward housing expenses.

Montana elected officials have responded to concerns about rising home prices by passing a number of laws intended to encourage housing construction, in some cases by limiting the power of cities and counties to restrict new development over concerns such as parking availability.

On the property tax side, lawmakers also passed a major tax code rework this year that aims to address how higher values have translated to higher taxes for homeowners and long-term rental landlords, ultimately shifting much higher taxes to residential properties being used as second homes.

The most expensive home prices are generally in and around Montana’s fast-growing urban centers. Gallatin County, around Bozeman, has the state’s most expensive median home value, at $685,000, according to the state data. That’s a 77% increase in four years.

Madison County (including both Ennis and portions of Big Sky) has the second-highest median value at $671,000, followed by Flathead County (Kalispell) at $578,000 and Missoula County at $507,000.

Southwest Montana counties that have historically had affordable housing markets saw the fastest value growth. The median values in three southwest Montana counties — Granite (Philipsburg), Deer Lodge (Anaconda) and Madison — have more than doubled in four years.

Flathead County also came close to the doubling threshold, with a 95% increase in prices bringing the county median to $578,000.

Additionally, many rural plains counties in north-central and eastern Montana have also seen hefty increases in excess of 30% or 40%, according to the state data.

Fergus County, around Lewistown, for example, has seen its median home value increase by 82% in four years, to $242,000. Custer County, around Miles City, has seen a 44% increase, to $194,000.

During the first of the two COVID-era reappraisal cycles, growth was especially focused on western Montana. Some eastern Montana counties, such as Daniels (Scobey), Sheridan (Plentywood) and Roosevelt (Wolf Point) in the state’s northeast corner, actually posted modest value declines.

By the time numbers were tabulated for this year’s cycle, however, higher prices had come to eastern Montana. Daniels County, for example, shifted from an 8% decline to a 36% increase.

Additionally, 30%-plus growth sustained across both cycles in much of western Montana, particularly counties in the state’s northwest corner. Lincoln County, around Libby, for example, saw a 41% increase followed by a 31% one, bringing its median value up from $177,000 to $324,000.

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Montana

New Montana license plate supports Kalispell pee wee baseball

Published

7 hours ago

March 25, 2026

Press Room

New Montana license plate supports Kalispell pee wee baseball

KALISPELL, Mont. — A new Montana license plate is now available at the Kalispell DMV to help support pee wee baseball.

Each plate can be purchased for $30 and will help to boost off season revenue.

The baseball plate was designed by Alexandra Sheneman who helped pitch design ideas to the board.

Proceeds will benefit the youth baseball program by funding new equipment and maintenance upgrades at the Kidsports Complex.

That includes bats, baseballs, nets, and new concrete.

Leftover funding will help families afford the baseball program.

“Once that number starts going up, it will generate some sponsorship funding so that we can help families that need support that can’t afford it,” said Kalispell pee wee baseball president Andy Wilson.

This is a great way to step up to the plate and help keep the youth baseball program strong for future seasons.

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Montana

Missoula and Western Montana neighbors: Obituaries for March 25

Published

19 hours ago

March 25, 2026

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Missoula and Western Montana neighbors: Obituaries for March 25

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Montana

‘Hannah Montana’ fans question Starbucks drink. ‘She hates raspberry’.

Published

1 day ago

March 24, 2026

Press Room

‘Hannah Montana’ fans question Starbucks drink. ‘She hates raspberry’.

Hannah Montana once sang that “Nobody’s Perfect,” a sentiment fans are echoing regarding Starbucks’ new drink honoring the fictional pop star ahead of her iconic Disney TV show’s 20th anniversary special.

Thought to be a drink that Hannah Montana would order at Starbucks, the coffee chain launched the Secret Popstar Refresher on March 23 as a celebration ahead of the “Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special”, set to be released on Disney+ on March 24. The drink consists of a grande Strawberry Acai Refresher with raspberry cold foam, two pumps of raspberry syrup and no strawberry inclusions – the dried strawberries typically in the refresher, according to the Starbucks app.

However, fans were quick to point out that the beloved TV show’s main character, Miley Stewart (Miley Cyrus), who lives a double life as teen pop star Hannah Montana, notoriously hates raspberries. Her disdain for raspberries was established in Season 1 of the show.

Stewart’s disgust is rooted in a childhood experience, during which she got sick after eating too much raspberry pie. Her hate for the fruit is exacerbated when Hannah Montana has to advertise a raspberry-scented perfume.

Now, fans of the show have taken to social media to speculate on Starbucks’ inclusion of raspberry.

Fans react to the raspberry Hannah Montana drink

Fans on social media quickly caught the raspberry reference after the drink’s launch on March 23, which many felt was an oversight by Starbucks, as they seemingly did not take Hannah Montana’s past into account.

Multiple comments on Starbucks’ Instagram post announcing the drink question the product’s flavor, including messages like “Why raspberry tho…didn’t Miley/Hannah hate raspberry,” “but she hates raspberry,” and “brooo there’s an episode in Hannah Montana (the perfume ad) where she doesn’t like raspberry!!!!”

The post’s caption appears to poke fun at the episode, reading: “For the fans who remember the raspberry saga, this one’s for you.”

Other comments under the post from Disney accounts also seem to acknowledge the raspberry inclusion as intentional, with the official Disney+ account commenting, “This completes the circle,” and the official Disney Channel account commenting, “the raspberry lore lives on!”

How to order a Hannah Montana drink at Starbucks

The Secret Popstar Refresher will be available for order through the Starbucks mobile app until April 5, according to a Starbucks statement obtained by USA TODAY.

The drink is a “secret menu exclusive,” meaning it is not on the official Starbucks menu in stores or drive-thru. Customers who know the recipe or use the Starbucks mobile app can order the refresher variation.

However, like any drink variation at the coffee chain, the refresher can be ordered at any time, as long as Starbucks has the required ingredients.

How to watch ‘Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special’?

The “Hannah Montana 20th Anniversary Special” became available to stream on Disney+ on March 24.

Reflecting on the past two decades, the special is an intimate sit-down interview with Miley Cyrus and “Call Her Daddy” podcast host Alex Cooper. The interview was filmed in front of a live audience in a recreation of the iconic Stewart ranch-style home.

Contributing: Greta Cross, USA TODAY

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