Bozeman's boom: Wealthy newcomers price out working-class locals
Grandmother Sara Folger sits in the kitchen of her single-wide trailer, the Rocky Mountains looming in the distance, and recalls the Bozeman, Montana she fell in love with decades ago. Back then, she says, the rural western town was filled with 'back-to-the-land hippies, college students, cowboys and ski bums.' But now, the formerly quiet streets are crowded with diggers, orange construction cones, and out-of-state licence plates.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, Bozeman's population has grown by about 20%—a significant jump for a town that had fewer than 50,000 residents in 2019. The influx has been driven by several factors. Montana has long attracted conservatives drawn to the state's emphasis on rugged individualism and self-reliance, as well as its lack of sales, luxury, and inheritance taxes.
The numbers of newcomers increased sharply as people began 'fleeing the Covid mess … on the East Coast and West Coast,' says Mark Corner, president of Southwest Montana Realtors. This surge in demand has pushed housing prices to record highs.
Many longtime residents are being forced out, while developers from elsewhere have profited. A recent rent strike by two mobile home parks has epitomised the ongoing socioeconomic clash between the haves and have-nots, highlighting a grassroots effort to fight for the survival of the working class.
