Housing Prices Soar

The state housing department has adjusted its measure of what it means to be “poor” in California, the nonprofit news source CalMatters reports.

For housing purposes, a single person without dependents earning $109,000 is considered “low-income” in five California counties — Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz —and is eligible for state assistance. Santa Clara County (Silicon Valley) tops the list, with single people earning up to $111,700 eligible for housing aid.

This is a 42% increase in the low-income designation level since 2020, when the assistance level for a single person household was $78,550.

Humboldt County’s median asking price for a home is now $425,000; the average rent is $1,700-$2,000/month for two bedrooms, to $2,500 or more in some neighborhoods.

Average California home prices — more than $900,000 in 2024 — are about twice the national average; $218,000 is the minimum annual income required to buy a medianpriced home, with monthly payments at $5,900, up 82% since 2019.