Billings, Montana Housing Market

How much can you negotiate in Billings?

Only 56 out of every 100 homes for sale have found a buyer. The other 44 are still waiting. Your offer may be the only one on the table. Few sellers are dropping their price. Asking prices are holding firm. Your discount will come from one stale listing, not from the whole market.

A typical Billings home takes 44 days to find a buyer. Half of them take even longer. Those sellers are paying to own a house they want to sell. Search for homes listed 60+ days ago. There are 507 homes for sale in Billings. That is 6.3 times the tightest month on record, but below the peak of 751. Supply is shrinking against last year.

What to do about it

• Search Billings homes listed 60+ days ago that have already cut their price.
• Offer below the reduced price.
• Keep your inspection and financing contingencies.
• Ask the seller to pay closing costs.
• You can lose a few offers here and still win.

Is now a good time to buy in Billings?

Asking prices are 8.5% below their Apr 2024 peak. You are not buying at the top. Prices are still falling. Waiting has paid off so far. Let listings age, then come back lower. Billings prices have risen in 88 of the last 108 months. Drops here have been short and shallow. Buying in a slow month has rarely hurt a long hold.

There is no rush. Prices are still coming down. Watch the homes you like. Come back after they cut. Let the seller move first.

Who will rent from you in Billings?

In Billings, 32 out of every 100 households rent. Most own their home. The renter share is shrinking. Five years ago it was 33 in 100. Renter households average 1.9 people. Singles and couples rent here. Two bedrooms beat four.

Households grew 6% in five years. The housing stock grew 5%. The two are moving in step. Just 5.9% of homes sit empty. A well-priced rental fills fast here.

The median Billings household earns $78,134 a year. Incomes here have grown 5.1% a year since 2019. Incomes and home prices are rising in step. A typical home costs 6.0 times the median income. Most locals cannot buy. That keeps rental demand deep. It also caps the rent they can pay. A tenant on the median income can pay about $1,953 a month. That is the standard 30% affordability line. Rents above it thin your tenant pool fast.

That is the market, not your address. Run an address through the app to see its rent estimate and cash flow.

What numbers should you underwrite a Billings deal with?

• Price growth to assume — +6.0%/yr. Billings has grown about 6.0% a year for five years and for ten. That is a durable trend, not a boom artifact. It is a fair long-run input. Prices rose 5.3% over the last year. That is a timing signal, not a trend.
• Months of carrying cost — 2. A typical home takes 44 days to sell. Budget that long when you exit or refinance.
• Odds you cut your price to sell — 1 in 7. About 15% of homes on the Billings market right now have already cut their asking price. Assume you are one of them when you sell. Do not underwrite an exit at your asking price.
• Comp on this, not median price — $218/sqft. The typical Billings listing shrank from 2,559 to 2,204 sqft since Jul 2016. So median price hides real growth: 88% per sqft versus 62% on the median. Comp on median price and you will overpay for small homes.
• Competition when you exit — -3%. That is how much the number of homes for sale shrank in a year. Your resale will face a smaller crowd than today's comps did.
• Price-to-income ratio — 6.0×. A typical home costs 6.0 times the median income. Most locals cannot buy. That keeps rental demand deep. It also caps the rent they can pay. Incomes and home prices are rising in step.
• Tenant rent ceiling — $1,953/mo. 30% of the median household income of $78,134. Rents above this line shrink your tenant pool fast.

Is Billings a buyer's or seller's market in 2026?

Yes, if you negotiate. Buyers have the upper hand in Billings right now. 56 out of every 100 homes for sale have a buyer, 15% of sellers have cut their price, and a typical home takes 44 days to sell.

Are Billings home prices going up or down?

Asking prices are 8.5% below their Apr 2024 peak. You are not buying at the top. Prices are still falling. Waiting has paid off so far. Let listings age, then come back lower.

What price growth should I assume for Billings?

Assume +6.0% a year. Billings has grown about 6.0% a year for five years and for ten. That is a durable trend, not a boom artifact. It is a fair long-run input. Prices rose 5.3% over the last year. That is a timing signal, not a trend.

How fast are homes selling in Billings?

A typical Billings home takes 44 days to find a buyer. Half of them take even longer. Those sellers are paying to own a house they want to sell. Search for homes listed 60+ days ago.

Is Billings a renters' market or an owners' market?

In Billings, 32 out of every 100 households rent. Most own their home. The renter share is shrinking. Five years ago it was 33 in 100. Just 5.9% of homes sit empty. A well-priced rental fills fast here.

What rent can Billings tenants afford?

A tenant on the median income can pay about $1,953 a month. That is the standard 30% affordability line. Rents above it thin your tenant pool fast. The median Billings household earns $78,134 a year.