The U.S. Census Bureau has reported that the median monthly costs for homeowners with a mortgage rose to $2,035 in 2024, up from $1,960 in 2023 after adjusting for inflation. This information comes from new 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.”
The increase in median monthly owner costs from 2023 to 2024 was 3.8%, compared to a 3.0% rise between 2022 and 2023. The main drivers of this growth were higher mortgage payments and insurance fees.
Homeowners in California ($3,001), Hawaii ($2,937), New Jersey ($2,797), Massachusetts ($2,755), and the District of Columbia ($3,181) faced the highest monthly median costs among all states and D.C.
In terms of mortgages paid off entirely, there were about 900,000 more homes owned free and clear in 2024 than in the previous year—rising from approximately 34.1 million to about 35 million nationwide. Vermont (8.9%) and New Mexico (8.7%) had two of the largest increases in such homes between 2023 and 2024.
About one-fourth of homeowners also paid condominium or homeowners’ association (HOA) fees during this period. Of roughly 86.6 million owned U.S. households in total for 2024, about 21.6 million paid either condo or HOA fees that year. The national median monthly fee stood at $135; those with mortgages paid a lower median fee ($120) than those without mortgages ($184). Nevada (51%), Florida (44%), and Arizona (45%) had the highest proportions of homeowners paying these fees while Rhode Island (10%), South Dakota (10%), Wisconsin (10%), Maine (8%), and North Dakota (8%) had among the lowest shares.
Median gross rent also rose by nearly three percent—from $1,448 in 2023 to $1,487 in 2024—yet renters’ median share of income devoted to rent remained unchanged at around thirty-one percent nationwide.
Some states experienced notable changes: Delaware, Mississippi, Idaho, Vermont and Alabama saw some of the largest increases—at least six-and-a-half percent—in median gross rent over the past year.
Household income data showed that after adjusting for inflation, incomes increased in twenty-nine states since last year; twenty-one states plus D.C., along with Puerto Rico showed no significant change. Massachusetts, New Jersey and Maryland recorded some of the nation’s highest state-level household incomes; D.C.’s median household income topped all areas at just under $110K per year while Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and West Virginia had among the lowest levels.
Income inequality as measured by the Gini index grew only in North Carolina but declined across nine other states including Georgia and Iowa during this period.
Poverty rates fell between last year and this year across thirteen states as well as Puerto Rico but rose only slightly in North Dakota and D.C.; they held steady elsewhere. Major metropolitan areas like Atlanta; Riverside-San Bernardino; and Tampa saw poverty rates drop by roughly one percentage point each.
Health insurance coverage trends showed mixed results: uninsured rates increased over eighteen states plus D.C., particularly among working-age adults where seventeen states plus D.C., saw upticks—and for children under nineteen years old where increases occurred across nineteen states compared to declines in just one state.
Additional ACS statistics will be released later this year according to Census Bureau plans.
