Wow: It’s More Expensive to Rent in Butte than Missoula Right Now

If you had to guess which city in Montana has the highest rent, it's probably a pretty easy answer on that one. But would you have guessed that Butte rent would be even higher than renting a place to live in Missoula?

Evelyn Pyburn with The Big Sky Business Journal joined me on the radio and mentioned how Bozeman has the highest median rent in Montana. But check this out, Butte has a higher median rent than Missoula.

Bozeman Highest Rent

"Monthly rent in Bozeman is significantly higher than the rest of the state’s most populous areas, with median rent in Billings currently at $1,431 per month, $1,395 in Missoula, $1,300 in Great Falls and $1,475 in Butte. Currently rent in Bozeman is $2400 a month." -Big Sky Business Journal Hot Sheet Monday, June 10, 2024.

If there is an expert on the housing market in Butte that wants to get a hold of me I would love to get your take on why the median rent in Butte is higher than Missoula. Is it because of the fancy old buildings in Uptown Butte that can be renovated into higher end living that is driving up the median price? Something else?

Evelyn Pyburn noted that Kiplinger Personal Finance recently declared that Great Falls was one of the cheapest places in the United States to live. Great Falls was ranked 16th in the country as one of the cheapest places to live in the US. Evelyn found that quite ironic given that Bozeman is one of the most expensive places in the US to live. And it's not just Bozeman, it is Gallatin County as a whole, Evelyn added.

Here's the full update from Evelyn in the below podcast: