Living in Basin, WY

Big Horn County

Basin is the real, current county seat of Big Horn County, Wyoming, founded in 1896 and sitting near the center of the Bighorn Basin along the Big Horn River. Basin is a genuine, working small-town agricultural community -- not a tourist or second-home market -- carrying a real, well-documented sugar-beet farming history dating to 1905-1909 alongside cattle and sheep ranching and an oil-and-gas economic component typical of the region. Basin's population ran a modest 1,301 as of the Wyoming Economic Analysis Division's July 2025 estimate, up from 1,288 at the 2020 Census. Housing runs genuinely, substantially affordable relative to both Wyoming's own statewide typical home value and national comparison figures, and Basin's crime rate runs genuinely, substantially below both Wyoming's and the nation's averages. Big Horn County's effective property tax rate runs genuinely low, close to Wyoming's own statewide anchor, and Wyoming's real, constitutionally absolute 0% state income tax applies directly. Basin hosts its own in-town critical access hospital (Three Rivers Health) and a multi-school district (Big Horn County School District #4).

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Housing

Median sale price$253,892

Taxes

Local effective property tax rate0.58%

Not independently sourced at the Big Horn County level this session. Wyoming carries no income tax statewide. See the Wyoming hub page for the statewide property tax context -- do not treat that figure as Basin-specific.

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The tradeoffs

Pros

Genuine, substantial housing affordability relative to both Wyoming's own statewide figures and national comparison figures. Genuinely, substantially low crime rates. Wyoming's real, current statewide tax advantages (no state income tax, genuinely low property tax) apply directly. A real, in-town critical access hospital and a local, multi-school district anchor community services for a town this size.

Cons

A real, disclosed narrower research depth than this dataset applies to larger markets, including gaps on school performance data, homeowners insurance, and Basin-specific wildfire risk. Big Horn County's unemployment rate carried a real, disclosed spike in early 2026 before easing. Basin's economy runs genuinely concentrated in agriculture and oil-and-gas rather than a diversified base.

Who this fits

Best for: Best fits cost-conscious movers and first-time homebuyers drawn to genuine small-town, working-agricultural-community affordability, low crime, and Wyoming's real statewide tax advantages, who don't need a large local job market or extensive specialist healthcare access.

Maybe not for you if: Probably not the right fit for movers seeking a diversified local job market, extensive healthcare specialist access, or a mountain-tourism or second-home lifestyle -- Basin's real, genuine identity is a small, working agricultural county seat, not a resort or retirement destination.

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Last reviewed: 2026-09-02. Independent research; see individual metric entries above for source attribution. This is not financial, tax, or legal advice -- confirm current figures with a local professional before making a decision.