GREAT FALLS — A development planned to bring 163 homes to Great Falls marked the completion of its first house Thursday, offering a look at a project developers say could help meet the area’s housing needs.
Meadowview Village, near Central Avenue and 46th Street South, held a ribbon-cutting and opened the finished home for public tours.
Watch: MEADOWVIEW RIBBON CUTTING
Developer Keith Miller, co-founder of Upslope Group, said home prices start at $276,000. The project is aimed at first-time buyers and people looking to downsize.
The homes are built in a factory in Idaho, transported to Great Falls and placed on permanent foundations. Buyers own both the home and its lot.
“There's no lot rent. This is true home ownership,” Miller said. “So you can build equity and build generational wealth.”
Miller said the developer is offering $10,000 in closing credits to the first six buyers. Those credits can help reduce upfront costs or buy down a mortgage interest rate, depending on the financing arrangement.
He said the homes are eligible for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages and come with warranties. The first completed home is also Energy Star certified, according to Miller.
Factory construction allows crews to prepare a foundation while the house is being built, shortening the timeline. Miller said buyers can expect roughly three to five months from a deposit to a completed home, depending on the time of year.
The development’s first phase calls for 43 homes. Miller said the project received its first lot deposit Wednesday.
Plans also include green space in front of each home, two indoor pickleball courts, a clubhouse with a fitness center, a dog park and a playground. Miller said construction of those shared amenities would begin after the first phase of homes is completed.
The project comes as the Great Falls area continues to face demand for additional housing.
A 2024 assessment commissioned by the Great Falls Development Alliance projected demand for approximately 650 new housing units annually in Cascade County over the following decade. That included about 270 rental units and 370 homes for purchase each year.
Jake Clark with the GFDA said even with several projects underway, the availability still falls short of that demand.
“Even with about 10 projects moving right now in the housing space in Great Falls, we're still just scratching the surface of the type of demand that we have for housing,” Clark said.
Clark said bringing more housing onto the market could help prices level off. More information on Meadowview Village can be found here.
