Bare Land Costs
Wetherell provided statistics from the Missoula County Multiple Listing Service for bare land sales in the Seeley Swan during 1995. The average sales price of a Double Arrow Ranch parcel (acreages range from 1 to 15 acres with an average of 3.56 acres) was $22,242. For land off the Ranch, the average sales price of a five-acre parcel was $43,333.
Smaller lots off the Ranch--les than one acre--averaged lower at $10,588 in 1995. However, several realtors in the area indicate that small lots, especially in town, are in short supply.
Bud Berckmoes of Seeley Condon Realty, who lists mostly bare land, noted that a 20,000-square-foot lot in Seeley Lake recently sold for $14,500 cash. He added that there aren't many lots like that available in town. In fact, he said, "I don't have any right now."
Larger parcels in the area are valued proportionately higher, according to the Multiple Listing Service figures. A 10-to-12-acre parcel off the Ranch sold for an average price of $57,000 in 1995, while 20-acre tracts that sold last year averaged $74,919.
Trying to come up with a "per acre" value for bare land in the Seeley Swan is difficult, since the locations and amenities of the various properties--type of access roads, distance from highway, availability of electricity and drinking water, and things like creeks and views--vary greatly. According to Wes Newbold of Great Bear Properties at Seeley Lake, bare land with electricity available and decent access is usually offered in the $5,000-per-acre range. However, prices can go as high as $10,000 per acre for some of the large riverfront properties in the Swan Valley.
Prices for bare ground are higher than what they were just a few years ago, when they could be found priced in the $3,000-per-acre range, according to local realtors.
