The Costs of Owning a Home

According to the American Community Survey by the U.S. Census Bureau, the median monthly ownership costs for U.S. homeowners with mortgages stood at $2,035 in 2024.

That figure is up nearly 7% from 2023 and represents a 26% increase from 2019. The Census Bureau reported that in 2019, U.S. mortgage holders paid a median monthly homeownership cost of $1,609.

What’s behind this jump? For one thing, home costs have steadily risen over the years, with the median-priced existing home in the United States in August costing more than $420,000, according to the National Association of REALTORS®.

Mortgage interest rates are also higher. Freddie Mac said that the average interest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage loan stood at 6.35% as of the week of September 11.

Homeowners also must deal with rising homeowners’ insurance premiums. And those living in properties governed by homeowners’ associations are also seeing their monthly HOA fees increase.

Different costs in different states

The monthly cost of homeownership does vary significantly according to your home state.

The Census Bureau reported that homeowners in California paid the highest median homeownership costs, at $3,001 per month, in 2024. Hawaii homeowners paid the second-highest median monthly homeownership costs, at $2,937, while those in New Jersey paid the third-highest median monthly homeownership costs, at $2,797. Massachusetts rounded out the top four, with median monthly homeownership costs here hitting $2,755 in 2024.

West Virginia homeowners paid the lowest median monthly homeownership costs, at $1,272, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, while Arkansas homeowners paid the second-lowest at $1,375. Other states with low median homeownership costs last year include Mississippi, $1,448, and Kentucky, $1,453.

A home is still often a good investment

Do these rising costs mean that owning a home is no longer a good financial investment? Not at all.

When you own a home and make your monthly mortgage payments, you can build your equity, the difference between what your home is worth and what you owe on your mortgage.

If you owe $200,000 on your mortgage and your home is worth $420,000, you have $220,000 in equity. The higher your equity, the more profit you’ll make when you sell your home.

You’ll build equity faster if your home’s value rises while you own it. This is not guaranteed, of course, but it does happen frequently. A good rule of thumb? If you own your home for at least seven years, the odds are good that its value will increase, helping you build equity and potentially boost your profit when you sell.

Owning a home also comes with other benefits, such as providing you with a place to call your own and a space to return to at the end of the day. You’ll make memories in your home over the years. Add that to the possibility of building equity, and you can see why so many still consider owning a house to be part of the American dream.