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Compare towns

Letcher vs Mission Hill

80 miles apart. Close on almost everything the Census measures, so the differences below are the small ones.

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Letcher, SDA small town of 171South Dakota · 171 people
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Mission Hill, SDA small town of 200South Dakota · 200 people
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Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

LetcherA small town of 171
Quiet strengthsLetcher doesn’t stand out on the data we haveNeighbors can tell you what the numbers miss.
All about Letcher →
Mission HillA small town of 200
Quiet strengthsMission Hill doesn’t stand out on the data we haveNeighbors can tell you what the numbers miss.
All about Mission Hill →
★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs about the same each month

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Letcher$670/mo
Typical home $102K (Census) · tax rate 1.58% · or rent about $725/mo · Housing →
Mission Hill$670/mo
Typical home $104K (Census) · tax rate 1.42% · or rent about $775/mo · Housing →

Within $50 a month of each other.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons
LetcherMission Hill
Snow a year26″38″
January low5°F10°F
July high86°F87°F
Growing season (days)140d164d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)45th66th
Outdoors & history
LetcherMission Hill
Settled—1913
National Register places23
Archive photos—2
Famous people born here1—
Community
LetcherMission Hill
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

80 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

LetcherSDMission HillSD
Letcher ↔ Mission Hill80 miles apart
Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

LetcherMission Hill
People
Population 171Lowest 200Highest
Median age 38.4±8.2Lowest about the SD average 39.6±15.6Highest 4% above SD
Mission Hill and Letcher are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 29.2%±10.4Highest SD: 24.2% 11.5%±10Lowest SD: 24.2%
Letcher and Mission Hill are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 16.4%±11.3Highest SD: 18% 13%±6.9Lowest SD: 18%
Letcher and Mission Hill are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 17.9%Lowest SD: 31.9% 18.9%Highest SD: 31.9%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 11.1%±8.2Highest SD: 5% 0%±7.1Lowest SD: 5%
Letcher and Mission Hill are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $81,042±$24kHighest 8% above SD $71,250±$14kLowest 5% below SD
Letcher and Mission Hill are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $102,100±$18kLowest 60% below SD $104,200±$32kHighest 60% below SD
Mission Hill and Letcher are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly $725±$195Lowest 23% below SD $775±$283Highest 18% below SD
Mission Hill and Letcher are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $1,614Highest 41% below SD $1,477Lowest 46% below SD
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 85.7%±78.5Highest SD: 39.8% 29.4%±100Lowest SD: 39.8%
Letcher and Mission Hill are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 24%Highest SD: 11.9% 5.5%Lowest SD: 11.9%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 80%Highest SD: 68.6% 75%Lowest SD: 68.6%
Typical home builtmedian year 1958Highest 22 yrs older than SD 1948Lowest 32 yrs older than SD
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 21 minHighest 20% above SD 18 minLowest about the SD average
Work from home 6.6%±5Highest SD: 9.7% 0%±11.5Lowest SD: 9.7%
Letcher and Mission Hill are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 1.5%Highest 0%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 15.3 miHighest 7.3 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.21Highest 0.00Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town Woonsocket (19%)Yankton (49%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Mission HillFew work in Letcher
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 0.5%Highest 0%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 0.0 mi 0.0 mi
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.0 mi 0.0 mi
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0 0
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 57.9Highest 52.0Lowest
South Dakota average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024
Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Letcher neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Letcher’s Town Square.

Mission Hill neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Mission Hill’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Letcher and Mission Hill

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Towns like Letcher

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Pierpont161 people · $75K homes
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Volin139 people · $116K homes
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Spencer103 people · $156K homes
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Kennebec296 people · $156K homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

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