Housing & costs
rankings by state.

Separate price, spending and burden

Regional price parities measure geographic prices relative to the U.S. level of 100. Monthly housing costs measure amounts spent by particular tenure groups. A burden rate relates housing spending to household income. Existing owner-reported home values differ from prices paid in recent sales. A state can have high dollar costs yet a different burden ranking because residents’ incomes and housing arrangements differ. The housing-rent price parity isolates a component of the BEA price index; it is not the median rent charged to tenants.

Start with the question in the selector below. Use the burden table for renters meeting the source threshold, the price indexes for a common price-level benchmark, and the stock characteristics for the kinds of homes residents occupy. Building-age shares describe the existing stock and are not annual construction rates or permit counts.

Choose the measure that answers your question

The linked pages retain exact source precision for ranks, show true ties, and display uncertainty where it is available. The comparison tool lets you inspect selected states without changing their rank among the full 50-state universe. Shared comparisons preserve their data edition.