Bozeman’s real estate market continues to transform as home prices and mortgage rates continue to affect affordability. For the past several years, many have anticipated lower borrowing costs, but meaningful declines in mortgage rates have yet to materialize. Meanwhile, the number of cash transactions in Bozeman has remained elevated.

The number of cash transactions for single family home sales across the Bozeman market is up slightly from last year, and remains well above the pre-covid average. The following numbers look at single family home sales both inside and outside of Bozeman city limits from January 1st to June 1st of the relative years.

Back in 2019, about 25.7% of sales, or 88 out of 343, were cash transactions. As we navigated through 2020, the percentage dipped to just under 20%, with 62 out of 311 sales. Then came 2021, a year marked by a significant leap: 103 out of 341 homes, or just over 30%, were bought with cash.

The peak arrived in 2022 with an impressive 39%, or 105 out of 268 sales. 2023 and 2024 saw a slight decline from that peak, but they were strikingly similar, and remained above the pre-pandemic average. In 2023, 32.2% of transactions (82 out of 254) were all-cash deals, closely followed by the first five months of 2024 with 32.4% (83 out of 256). In 2025, the percentage dipped, with 27%, or 63 of the 233 home purchases completed with cash. This year, it’s back up at 34%, or 88 out of 259 home sales.

Historically, the percentage of cash sales hovered in the low 20% range, displaying consistency despite minor fluctuations. For instance, in 2015, 85 out of 371 sales (22.9%) were cash, while in 2014, 70 out of 318 sales (22%) and in 2013, 61 out of 276 sales (22.1%) were made in cash.

Diving deeper, the downtown area often sees a higher percentage of cash transactions, although that has fluctuated over the years. Again, looking at single family home sales for the period of January 1st through June 1st, in 2019, 32% (18 out of 56 homes) were cash purchases. The following year saw a rise to 39% (20 out of 51 homes). By 2021, 44% of sales (22 out of 50 homes) were cash; 2022 was again a big year, with 45% (19 out of 42 homes).

Those numbers dipped slightly in 2023 to 34% (13 out of 38 homes), but surged again in 2024, setting a record with 50% (20 out of 40 homes) of downtown single family home sales made in cash. Last year, in the first five months of 2025, both overall sales numbers and the number of cash transactions were down. Twenty-seven single family homes sold, compared to 40 the year before. Of those, six (22%) were cash purchases. This year, overall sales volume and the number of cash transactions is up from last year, with 39 total sales downtown, and 38%, or 15 of those transactions being completed with cash.

The downtown condo market, which saw a record percentage of cash sales last year, continues to see a higher ratio. Looking back, in 2019, 36% (12 out of 33) of condos were bought with cash. This nudged up to 37.5% (9 out of 24) in 2020, before slightly dipping to 33% (10 out of 30) in 2021. The year 2022 again saw a significant rise, with 44% (17 out of 39) of condo sales being cash transactions. Despite a drop in total sales to 29 in 2023, the percentage of cash purchases increased greatly to 62% (18 out of 29).

In both 2024 and 2025, there were 25 closed sales of downtown condos between January 1st and June 1st. In 2024, 60% (15) of those were cash purchases. Last year, 2025 saw one of the largest percentages of downtown condo sales being made in cash, when 18 of the 25 sales, or 72% of those purchases were cash. This year, the percentage is down from last year’s high, but still elevated, with 46% (13 of 28 sales) being made in all cash.

Beyond cash transactions, a trend that markets across the U.S. have been seeing is very large down payments, as buyers bring equity from the sale of one home into the purchase of another. While this is more difficult to measure and track, anecdotal evidence indicates Bozeman is seeing this trend as well. Many of the purchases made in Bozeman above $1million may not be all cash, but buyers are often making significant down payments, regularly approaching above 50% down. These downpayments are frequently coming from the sale of a home, sometimes in Bozeman, but often in other similarly or even higher-priced areas than our local market.

As usual, I have included data for the number of single-family homes sold during the first five months of 2026. In addition to the 256 single family home sales, there are currently 110 single family home sales pending or under contract in and around Bozeman.

The included data reflects sales of homes in the greater Bozeman area, including Four Corners, Gallatin Gateway, Bridger Canyon, and within Bozeman city limits. The data includes home sales reported through the local Big Sky Country MLS, and does not include private party sales, condominiums, or townhouses.