With Indy constantly growing and announcing new developments this year, we figured it was time to talk about the cost of planting some roots in the Circle City.
The median household income in Marion County is $51,219, according to the US Census Bureau. State-wise, Indiana is No. 35 in the country for median income at ~$58,116 per household.
The overall cost of living in Indy is lower than the national average, but higher than the rest of the state. This also goes for the cost of healthcare, groceries, housing, transportation, and other miscellaneous expenses.
Breaking down the numbers
Hypothetically speaking, if you live in a household that brings in $50,000 annually — according to experts — you shouldn’t spend more than 30% of your monthly gross income on rent and utilities. Don’t worry, we did the math for you — your max monthly budget would be $1,250. The average monthly rent for an apartment in Indy is $1,108 — leaving you little to no wiggle room.
According to a recent study by Attom Data Solutions, it’s actually more affordable to buy a home in Marion County than to rent.
Take a look at the chart below to see how Indy’s cost of living compares to that of the Fort Wayne, IN.
Interested in seeing Indy’s cost of living compared to cities in other states? We played around on nerdwallet’s cost of living calculator, where you can put in any city along with your current pre-tax household income to find out what other cities you could actually afford to live in.
We took a look at the cost of living in Indy compared to Chicago, IL. Here’s what we found:
- The cost of living is 33% higher in Chicago.
- To maintain our standard of living, we would need to bring in $66,612 to our Hoosier household.
- The median cost for a two-bedroom apartment is $2,210, which is $1,138 more than Indy.
Indy also has entities such as the Fair Housing Center of Central Indiana + other government-funded programs to help develop more affordable units.
There are also a number of local development firms working on apartments seemingly all the time — from 1820 Ventures LLC’s redevelopment plans downtown to the affordable housing additions to the Monon 30 Project.
