Permits through August 2026Yearly permits since 1995Yellowstone County index 1975–2025
Yellowstone County (100 = first year)United States, rebased to the same startNBER recession
House prices are indexed by county, not by city: this is Yellowstone County's FHFA index, with the national index rebased to the same start.
Census Bureau notes: building permit figures cover new privately owned housing units authorised by permit-issuing places; permits do not mean the units were started or completed, and places that report less often than monthly are imputed in monthly totals. FHFA notes: The FHFA HPI is a broad measure of the movement of single-family house prices. The FHFA HPI is a weighted, repeat-sales index, meaning that it measures average price changes in repeat sales or refinancings on the same properties.
Yellowstone County Unincorporated Area, Montana (Yellowstone County), authorised 427 housing units through building permits in the 12 months to August 2026, −36.3% on the previous 12 months.
243 of those units were single-family houses (57%), 119 were in two- to four-unit buildings and 65 in buildings of five or more units.
Since 1995 the place has authorised 7,117 units, with the busiest year 2013 (1,033 units). Yellowstone County's FHFA house price index rose +72.1% over the ten years to 2025.
427units permitted, 12 months to August 2026−36.3% on the previous 12 months
243single-family units57% of the total
65units in 5+ unit buildings15% of the total
—units per 1,000 residentsYellowstone County 5.8 · Montana 4.8
Permits by month and structure type
Housing units authorised in Yellowstone County Unincorporated Area by month, latest 24 monthssingle-family2+ unit buildings
Units, 12 months to August 2026
Yellowstone County Unincorporated Area
Yellowstone County
Montana
United States
All housing units
427
999
5,457
1,418,086
Single-family (1 unit)
243 (57%)
725 (73%)
2,709 (50%)
888,241 (63%)
2 units
80
82
264
34,814
3–4 units
39
55
338
17,298
5 or more units
65 (15%)
137 (14%)
2,146 (39%)
477,733 (34%)
Units per 1,000 residents
—
5.8
4.8
4.1
Change on previous 12 months
−36.3%
−16.7%
+4.9%
−0.1%
Permits by year since 1995
Housing units authorised in Yellowstone County Unincorporated Area by year, 1995–2025single-family2+ unit buildings
7,117 units since 1995; the busiest year was 2013. Annual figures include units imputed for months a place did not report.
Home prices in Yellowstone County
FHFA's index for Yellowstone County rose +72.1% over the ten years to 2025 (+5.6% a year) and +1.2% in the latest year, against +105.0% and +2.3% for Montana. Full county page: decade table, peak-to-low declines, every ZIP code and every permit-issuing place in the county.
Questions and answers
How many homes are being built in Yellowstone County Unincorporated Area, MT?
427 housing units were authorised by building permits in the 12 months to August 2026, against 670 in the previous 12 months.
What kind of housing is being permitted in Yellowstone County Unincorporated Area?
243 single-family units, 80 in two-unit buildings, 39 in three- and four-unit buildings and 65 in buildings of five or more units.
How does Yellowstone County Unincorporated Area compare with its county and state?
No population estimate is attached to this permit-issuing area, so a per-resident rate is not shown; Yellowstone County runs at 5.8 units per 1,000 residents and Montana at 4.8.
How have home prices moved in Yellowstone County?
FHFA's index for Yellowstone County rose +72.1% over the ten years to 2025 and +1.2% in the latest year; the county page has the full series.
What does a permit count?
A housing unit authorised by a building permit for new privately owned residential construction, as reported to the Census Bureau Building Permits Survey by the permit-issuing office. Permits are not completions; some permitted units are never built, and places that report only annually are imputed in monthly figures.
Provenance
Permits: US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, place-level monthly and annual files through August 2026 (permit office 733000); county and state comparisons from the county and state files. Population: Census Bureau vintage 2025 estimates for incorporated places, matched on FIPS place code where the permit office is one. House price index: Federal Housing Finance Agency. Public domain. Corrections · Building Permits Survey.