While purchasing a home in California is expensive, upkeep expenses can be just as costly.
A new study from Bankrate mapped out how much homeowners in all 50 states pay for annual home maintenance.
In the Golden State, the average homeowner pays about $28,790 per year in homeownership costs, which includes property taxes, homeowner insurance, cable and internet and annual energy bills, according to a study.
The $28,790 price tag is a 32% increase from 2020, mainly due to rising home prices, inflation and costly insurance premiums.
To estimate the average home maintenance price for each state, Bankrate calculated 2% of the home’s value. The upkeep costs were adjusted for inflation.
For a typical single-family home, the maintenance costs $18,118 on average annually, an increase from 2020 when those same expenses were $14,428 annually.
Homeownership is a cornerstone of the American Dream but not a reality for many Californians. Only 17% of households can afford a median-priced home in the first quarter of 2024, according to the most recent data from the California Association of Realtors.
Those looking to purchase a home in Los Angeles County would need to make at least $210,400 annually to afford a $822,950 home, the median price for homes in the county.
Only Hawaii beat out California in homeownership costs, with an average of $29,016 annually.
Kentucky, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama and Indiana had the least expensive homeownership costs, tallying between $10,455 and $12,259.
The complete study can be viewed here.