Americans Rack Up $24,000 Annually in Non-Mortgage Homeownership Costs

Along with the financial burden, homeowners spend an average of 6.9 hours weekly on repairs and maintenance — totaling more than 1 year and 83 days over a 30-year mortgage.

ST. LOUIS, Jan. 30, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The typical American homeowner now spends an average of $24,529 annually, or $2,044 monthly, on home expenses in addition to their mortgage — up from $17,958 in 2024, according to new research from Real Estate Witch, an online publication owned by Clever Real Estate that connects readers with expert real estate advice.

Over the course of a 30-year mortgage, this adds up to a staggering $735,870 on top of the mortgage's total cost. That's nearly as much as the typical household spends on the mortgage itself ($26,508 annually) and amounts to a $547 monthly increase from 2024.

The breakdown of these costs is:

• Utilities: $7,319
• Maintenance: $6,087
• Renovations: $5,762
• Property taxes: $3,057
• Homeowners insurance: $2,304

Compounding the issue, more than half of homeowners (51%) are stressed by rising home insurance costs and 13% worry they could lose insurance on their property — while 46% don't feel their property taxes accurately reflect their home's value.

Additionally, those in homeowners associations (HOAs) pay an extra $3,077 in annual HOA fees, bringing their total to $27,606 per year.

4 in 5 homeowners' (81%) expenses are higher than anticipated, and over two-thirds (69%) have regrets about their home and its associated costs.

Nearly half of homeowners (46%) say they didn't accurately estimate the cost of repairs and improvements before buying.

However, 46% also admit they don't actively budget for unexpected repairs — and a majority (59%) couldn't afford a $5,000 emergency repair without going into credit card debt.

In retrospect, 81% of homeowners would prefer a more expensive home with lower maintenance costs, and 48% would have approached the buying process differently if they knew the true cost of homeownership.

Some homeowners wonder if the cost of homeownership is worth it: 44% say it's easier to rent, and about 1 in 7 (15%) have even considered returning to renting.

Read the full report at: https://www.realestatewitch.com/cost-of-owning-a-home-2025

About Real Estate Witch
Real Estate Witch is a web property of Clever Real Estate, an online platform that connects home buyers and sellers with top-rated agents at a discounted rate.

Clever Real Estate is a technology company that produces educational real estate content reaching over 10 million readers annually, and its nationwide agent matching service has a 5.0-star Trustpilot rating across 3,300+ customer reviews. Since launching in 2017, Clever has reached $12.1 billion in real estate sold, matched 147,000+ customers with realtors, and saved consumers over $180 million on commission fees. Clever's network spans 15,000 agents across all 50 states.

Please contact Alyssa Evans at [email protected] with any questions or to arrange an interview.

CONTACT: 
Alyssa Evans
Clever Real Estate
[email protected]
315-690-1518 

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SOURCE Real Estate Witch