Cost of Living & Housing in Chinook
Chinook's cost of living centers on genuinely low home prices relative to Montana's own elevated statewide averages, paired with a real, disclosed tension: Chinook's effective property tax RATE runs substantially above both the national and Montana statewide medians.
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Learn moreA genuinely affordable home price relative to Montana statewide
Chinook's own median home price ran approximately $154,550 (Ownwell) -- far below Montana's own $467,919 statewide average home value (base record).
A 1.39% effective property tax rate -- well above both the national and Montana statewide medians
Chinook's own 1.39% effective property tax rate (Ownwell) runs genuinely, substantially above the national median (approximately 1.02%) and the Montana statewide median Ownwell itself cites (0.83%). The resulting dollar bill still stays below the national median ($1,940 versus $2,400) only because Chinook's home values run so low (base record).
Montana's 5.65% top income tax rate and no general sales tax
Montana's real, current 2026 individual income tax runs a two-bracket structure topping out at 5.65% on income above $47,500 (single/MFS) or $95,000 (MFJ), with a further reduction to 5.4% scheduled for 2027. Montana levies no general statewide sales tax, and Chinook is not one of the narrow list of resort communities that levy a local exception (base record).
Confirm current rent and employer data directly
A reliable, city-specific median rent figure and a confirmed, current named-employer list for Chinook were not found with confidence this pass -- confirm both directly with the Blaine County Chamber of Commerce (base record).
Key takeaways
- Chinook's median home price runs approximately $154,550 -- genuinely affordable relative to Montana's own $467,919 statewide average.
- Chinook's own 1.39% effective property tax rate runs substantially above both the national and Montana statewide medians, even though the resulting dollar bill ($1,940) stays below the national median.
- Montana's 5.65% top income tax rate and lack of a general sales tax apply in Chinook as they do statewide.
- A confirmed, current rent figure and named-employer list were not found with confidence this pass -- confirm both directly.
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