COST OF LIVING IN ROCKWALL

We’re going to start with housing prices. This is one of the things that makes it so attractive to live in Texas. For July 2021, the median price for a home in Rockwall County was $383,750. For Dallas County it was $320,000. When you look at other markets in Texas, the median home prices in Q2 2021 were $307,200 for the Houston area and $515,100 for the Austin area.

Outside of Texas, the Median home price for Q2 2021 was $756,000 for LA, $348,600 for the city of Chicago and $536,700 for the New York/Jersey City area.

So that’s owning a house, what about renting?
According to RENTCafé the average rent for an apartment in Rockwall is $1,468 per month. The average rent in Houston is $1,172/month and the average rent in Austin is $1,539 per month.​

Outside of Texas the average rent is $2,450 for LA, $2,012 for Chicago, and for Manhattan it’s a whopping $3,872/month.
If you decide to rent a home or condo in Rockwall County, here’s is the year-to-date average for August 30, 2021.

A one-bedroom home will cost you about $1,245/month. But good luck finding a one-bedroom home here. We don’t have a lot of these available unless you go to an apartment complex.
A two-bedroom home will cost you about $1,632/month.
A three-bedroom home will cost you about $2,010/month.
A four-bedroom home average $2,467/month in rent.

So that talks about getting into a home, whether you’re going to buy it or rent it.
Now lets talk average cost for all the other stuff.
Homeowners Insurance.

Agh. You’ve gotta have it and Texas is on the high side. The average is cost of homeowners insurance for $250,000 dwelling coverage is $1,863. That’s on par with what you’ll get in Rockwall.

Your energy bill is going to average about $175/month. But the good news is that Texas is deregulated. This simply means that consumers have options and can compare rates and services of different third-party supply portion of the electricity bill.

A gallon of gas currently costs $2.65. It’s currently August 2021. If you’re watching this much later, put a comment below asking about an update and I’ll get you that information.

If you like going to restaurants to eat. Rockwall has a mix of chain restaurants and some really great local favorites with new concepts arriving often. On the nicer end an entrée will run you $20-$30 with drinks about $10 a piece and appetizers around $10-$15.

Our grocery prices are 1.8% higher than the national average.
Property taxes. I did a whole video about property taxes in Texas. We have high property taxes in Texas and depending on where you are, even within the County of Rockwall, the tax rate can vary. We have PIDs, MUDs, and PUDs and you should definitely watch that video about Taxes in Texas get more information. Overall, Texas ranks as one of the highest for property tax rates. For a home in the City of Rockwall that isn’t in a special tax district, the current rate is 1.9931 in taxes paid for every $100 in assessed value.

That’s property taxes, and then there’s our state income tax. Just kidding. WE DON’T HAVE ONE! So yeah, our property taxes are high but you don’t pay a state income tax.
Healthcare. So we’re in a good place when it comes to our positioning with the rest of the country. We are below the national average when it comes to the cost of healthcare
Now what about commuting? The average one-way commute in Rockwall takes a little over 32 minutes.

The median income for Rockwall County. Rockwall County ranks the highest in the state for median household income with a median household income of $105,763. That’s a lot more than the median income of the neighboring county of Dallas which is at $61,807.

What’s really interesting about that is the median price for a home in Rockwall is only 20% higher than Dallas County yet Rockwall’s median household income is 71% higher. Meaning you have more margin with the income to house price ratio.
If you have any questions about any of these areas drop a comment below or contact me. I’m a local real estate agent and if you’re thinking about moving to Rockwall I can definitely help you with that and help you find the ideal place to live for what works for you.

And finally, be sure to subscribe. I do a bunch of videos about what it’s like to live in Rockwall so if you’re thinking of moving here, you’ll want to subscribe and hit the bell so you’re notified when I post something new.