While New Jersey is notoriously known as one of the most expensive states to live in the nation, one report claims there are states with pricier housing costs than the Garden State.
In WalletHub’s latest report, the personal finance website ranks all 50 states by how much both homeowners and renters typically spend on housing. This is based on how much of each state’s median monthly household income goes towards housing expenses like rent, mortgage payments and home energy.
“Homeowners and homebuyers have faced whiplash over the past few years, with housing prices soaring and interest rates fluctuating from historic lows back up to the highest rates in more than a decade,” WalletHub writer and analyst Chip Lupo said in the report. “In some states, housing costs can take up around 50% of the median income.”
New Jersey ranked 15th overall for its housing costs for homeowners, which is said in the report to make up about 28.03% of the median monthly household income across the state. And the state ranked 25th for renting, with those costs making up about 27.62% of the state’s median monthly household income.
WalletHub compiled these rankings based on data, collected as of March 26, from the Council of Community and Economic Research, the U.S. Census Bureau, Zillow and the site’s own research. But it doesn’t take into account the cost of additional expenses like property taxes, utilities and insurance, among other things.
For example, the average property tax bill for homeowners in New Jersey exceeded $10,000 for the first time ever in 2020, according to the state Department of Community Affairs. And homeowners in almost half of the Garden State’s 21 counties paid more than $10,000 in property taxes last year.
Similarly, New Jersey residents have seen sharp increases in their utility costs throughout the year, with electricity costs expected to further increase between 17.23% and 20.20% this summer.
Bankrate also recently found that a six-figure salary is needed to buy a home in 30 U.S. states. In New Jersey, a median annual household income of $160,001 is needed to afford the state’s median-priced home of $539,100, which is the eight-highest in the nation.
WalletHub’s report said that homeowners spend the most money on housing in Hawaii (53.47%), California (45.99%), Oregon (36.27%), Nevada (35.29%) and Washington (34.82%). And renters typically spend the most money on housing in New York (54.42%), Hawaii (52.88%), Massachusetts (48.78%), Florida (42.64%) and Maine (41.78%).
On the other end, homeowners are said in the report to spend the least money on housing in Iowa (18.84%), West Virginia (19.94%), Kansas (20.12%), Nebraska (20.37%) and Ohio (20.38%), while renters spend the least money in Kansas (19.11%), Iowa (19.32%), Wyoming (19.64%), Minnesota (21.11%) and Oklahoma (21.63%).