Private jets flock to Montana - but locals can't afford the trailer park

What the report says

BBC World News reported from Bozeman, Montana, that a post-pandemic influx of wealthy newcomers has intensified a housing affordability crisis in the fast-growing mountain city. The report, published 19 July 2026, says Bozeman’s population has risen by about 20% since the pandemic, after having fewer than 50,000 residents in 2019, while home values and rents climbed sharply. Local officials and real estate figures described buyers arriving from other states, often with cash, and new development aimed at higher-income residents.

The BBC framed the boom as part of a broader cultural and economic shift in a place once associated with students, ranching, skiing and counterculture. Mark Corner of Southwest Montana Realtors told the broadcaster that private aircraft linked to wealthy visitors are common at the airport, including people headed to exclusive areas such as Big Sky’s Yellowstone Club. The report also cited the popularity of the television drama “Yellowstone” as one influence on outside interest in Montana, while noting longer-running draws such as the state’s tax structure and political culture.

The consequences are being felt by renters and mobile home residents. Sara Folger, a 73-year-old resident of Mountain Meadows mobile home park, told the BBC that many neighbours have nowhere affordable to go. Residents of two mobile home parks unionised in May and staged what organisers described as Montana’s first rent strike in five decades after a proposed increase in monthly lot rent.

Bozeman Mayor Joey Morrison, elected in 2023 on an affordability platform, said rent increases and displacement have reshaped local life. The BBC also highlighted younger Montana politicians and labour organisers who are challenging what they see as policies favouring wealthier newcomers over working-class residents.