Groundwork

Real estate · County · Montana

Real estate businesses in Yellowstone County, MT

Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for real estate businesses in Yellowstone County, MT, set against other counties and the U.S.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 39 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,693 of 2,229 scored counties
#10 of 17 scored counties in Montana

Listings
320
17 chain locations (5%)
Official establishments
273
+19.7% since 2019
Household spending a year
$1.2B
On rent and homeowner costs · $17,757 a household
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
90
10% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
45.8
19% above the U.S.
Population, 2025
172,692
+4.5% since 2020

See the real estate businesses around any address in Yellowstone County

The site report maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Yellowstone County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

For real estate businesses, Yellowstone County has a Groundwork market score of 39 (lower middle): #1,693 of 2,229 scored counties and #10 of 17 scored counties in Montana. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.

Households in Yellowstone County spend about $1.2B a year on rent and homeowner costs, or $17,757 per household, 7% above the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 10% below the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate businesses take in.

There are 320 real estate businesses on map listings in Yellowstone County as of September 2026. 17 of them (5%) are chain locations, against 6% across the U.S. That comes to 45.8 for every 10,000 households, 19% above the U.S. rate of 38.5.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Yellowstone County was 273 in 2023, up 19.7% from 2019. That is one for every 256 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $150K has gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Yellowstone County. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Yellowstone County grew 4.5%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).

How Yellowstone County compares

The same measures for Montana and the whole U.S. Housing spending per listing divides all rent and homeowner costs by the listings counted: a measure of housing demand for each business, not money any of them take in, so it is shown against the U.S. (100) only. Households per establishment divides households by the official count.

Real estate in Yellowstone County, MT compared with Montana and the U.S.
MeasureYellowstone CountyMontanaU.S.
Listings per 10k households45.846.938.5
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)9085100
Households per official establishment256260414
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+19.7%+25.1%+15.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025+4.5%+5.3%+3.1%
Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs$17,757$17,303$16,661
Median household income$76,570$72,509$80,734
Groundwork market score3932

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
228 → 273+19.7% over the period
Employees, 2023
595
Annual payroll, 2023
$30.6M
One-person businesses, 2023
790Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
32017 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
287The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
1
Amount
$150K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Yellowstone County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.

Population and households in Yellowstone County

Population, 2025 estimate
172,692+4.5% since 2020
Households
69,897
Median age
39.6
Homes lived in by their owners
70%
Vehicles per household
2.0
Land area
2,633 sq. mi.
People per square mile
64
Median household income
$76,570+25.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$104,900
Median home value
$349,500
Jobs located here
90,871
Daytime population
173,526Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Yellowstone County?

These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the real estate businesses on map listings by name and distance.

Or open the report at the center of Yellowstone County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Real estate across Montana

Every Montana market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Montana for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Montana, with Yellowstone County marked.

Top counties in Montana

Counties in Montana ranked for real estate businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsHousing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)Population growthU.S. rank
1Richland County, MT69613.6303−1.3%#224 of 2,229
2Custer County, MT59917.9214+1.5%#613 of 2,229
3Sanders County, MT571323.8151+12.9%#729 of 2,229
4Fergus County, MT551528.3131+3.1%#839 of 2,229
5Carbon County, MT471736.4113+9.1%#1,241 of 2,229
6Lake County, MT464737.4102+6.9%#1,315 of 2,229
7Hill County, MT441625.8138−0.5%#1,394 of 2,229
8Lincoln County, MT413639.687+13.1%#1,586 of 2,229
9Cascade County, MT3913036.5106+0.7%#1,685 of 2,229
10Yellowstone County, MT3932045.890+4.5%#1,693 of 2,229

Other business types in Yellowstone County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many real estate businesses are in Yellowstone County, MT?

As of September 2026, map listings count 320 real estate businesses in Yellowstone County. 17 of them (5%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 273 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 19.7% from 2019. Official counts list 790 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Yellowstone County, MT spend on rent and homeowner costs?

About $1.2B a year, or $17,757 per household. That is 7% above the U.S. average (an index of 107, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 320 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 10% below the U.S. figure. That figure is all rent and homeowner costs, used as a measure of housing demand; it is not money real estate businesses take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 69,897 households in Yellowstone County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Yellowstone County, MT compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?

Yellowstone County has 45.8 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 19% above the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 90, where 100 is the U.S. At the U.S. ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Yellowstone County would have about 287, against 320 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 256 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 19.7% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.

How fast is Yellowstone County, MT growing?

Population estimates put Yellowstone County at 172,692 people in 2025, up 4.5% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 69,897 households. Median household income in Yellowstone County is $76,570, 5% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 25.0%, before inflation.

What is the Groundwork market score?

The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Yellowstone County scores 39 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #1,693 of 2,229 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Yellowstone County. It maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.

How the score works · Top markets for real estate businesses · All 56 business types in Yellowstone County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Yellowstone County?

A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.

The button opens the report at the center of Yellowstone County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.