Affordability & Cost of Living: Housing
A focused path through Ohio home prices, income, rents, mortgage costs and housing cost burden.
A focused path through Ohio home prices, income, rents, mortgage costs and housing cost burden. Follow the steps in order to see how the underlying measures connect, where comparisons are valid, and where the evidence requires additional context.
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Compare real home prices and income
Over the common 2015–2024 period, WP016 reports real Ohio house prices rose about 41% while real median household income rose about 17%.
Track the price-to-income ratio
WP016 reports Ohio's median home-price-to-income ratio reached 2.6 in the most recent OHFA data, the highest since 2005.
See the rent trend
WP016 reports inflation-adjusted two-bedroom rent rose 22% from December 2019 to December 2024.
Define severe housing cost burden
WP016 explicitly distinguishes OHFA's severe cost-burden threshold of at least 50% of income from the commonly cited 30% threshold.
Add mortgage rates to the picture
WP016 notes that a house-price index measures home values but does not capture financing costs; average 30-year mortgage rates more than doubled from 2021 to 2024.
Connect property taxes to ability to pay
Property values and household cash income can move differently, creating affordability pressure for some property owners even when their wealth on paper rises.
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