The U.S. Census Bureau reported that the median monthly owner costs for homeowners with a mortgage rose to $2,035 in 2024, up from $1,960 in 2023 after adjusting for inflation. This data comes from the latest American Community Survey (ACS) 1-year estimates.
“One way we measure housing affordability is based on how much households spend on selected costs such as mortgage payments, insurance, taxes, utilities, and various fees,” said Jacob Fabina, a Census Bureau economist. “In 2024, the median percentage of income householders with a mortgage spent on these costs was 21.4%, which points to an increased burden on homeowners.”
Owner costs increased by 3.8% between 2023 and 2024, outpacing the previous year’s increase of 3.0%. The rise was mainly due to higher mortgage and insurance expenses.
States with the highest median monthly owner costs for those with a mortgage included California ($3,001), Hawaii ($2,937), New Jersey ($2,797), Massachusetts ($2,755), and the District of Columbia ($3,181).
About 59.7% of owned homes had a monthly mortgage payment in 2024. The number of homes owned free and clear also grew by approximately 900,000 compared to last year—reaching about 35 million nationwide.
Vermont (8.9%) and New Mexico (8.7%) saw two of the largest increases in homes owned without mortgages between 2023 and 2024.
Homeowners’ association (HOA) or condo fees were paid by around 21.6 million households out of roughly 86.6 million owner-occupied units in the country during 2024. The overall median monthly fee was $135; households with a mortgage paid a median fee of $120 while those without paid $184.
Nevada (51%), Florida (44%), and Arizona (45%) had the highest proportions of homeowners paying HOA or condo fees; Rhode Island (10%), South Dakota (10%), Wisconsin (10%), Maine (8%), and North Dakota (8%) had among the lowest shares.
Further details about HOA and condo fees can be found in an America Counts story titled Nearly a Quarter of Homeowners Paid Condo or HOA Fees in 2024.
Rental costs also increased: median gross rent went up by 2.7% from $1,448 in 2023 to $1,487 in 2024 after adjusting for inflation. However, renters continued to spend about the same share of their income on rent—31%.
Delaware, Mississippi, Idaho, Vermont and Alabama experienced some of the largest increases in median gross rent.
Additional information about renter costs is available through an infographic called Housing Costs: 2024 released today.
Median household income rose in twenty-nine states after inflation adjustment; no significant change was observed in twenty-one states plus D.C. and Puerto Rico. Massachusetts, New Jersey and Maryland recorded the highest state-level incomes; D.C.’s median household income stood at $109,707—the nation’s highest—while Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and West Virginia had the lowest figures.
Income inequality as measured by the Gini index increased only in North Carolina but decreased across nine other states between surveys.
The poverty rate fell in thirteen states plus Puerto Rico from last year’s levels but rose only in North Dakota and D.C., remaining stable elsewhere. State poverty rates ranged from 7.2% to 18.7%. Three large metropolitan areas—Atlanta; Riverside-San Bernardino; Tampa—recorded notable declines in poverty rates over this period.
Health insurance coverage showed mixed results: uninsured rates climbed in eighteen states plus D.C., dropped in two states for all ages; similar trends were seen among working-age adults and children across several states.
All statistics are available at data.census.gov along with further analysis through user notes and blog posts explaining these new ACS estimates.
The Census Bureau plans additional releases related to ACS data—including supplemental one-year estimates for 2024 as well as five-year estimates covering data from 2020–2024—in coming months.
