Report suggests what’s driving up costs in Charlottesville

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (WVIR) – It’s getting even more expensive to own a home in Charlottesville, according to doxoInsights.

The company released a report on household spending statistics for US cities in 2022. Household payments in Charlottesville are above the national average.

“Charlottesville is kind of in the middle of high end and low end. So, on average in the United States, the average is $2,003 per month that people pay for these 10 most common household bills,” said director Liz Powell.

Nationally, Charlottesville is not in the top 50 most expensive and largest cities.

“Charlottesville falls in there around $2,277 on average for the 10 most common bills, so that’s higher than the national average, but in the middle of San Jose, which is at the very top, and Detroit, which is all the way down,” Powell said.

The society claims that a city is generally expensive to live in based on housing costs. However, this is not the case for Charlottesville.

“Housing costs are actually not much higher than the national average. So the mortgage and rent are around the national average,” Powell said. “About $1,400 is the average for a mortgage and about $1,200 is the average for a rent.”

What drives up costs?

“Car insurance is very expensive. The average is around $389, compared to the $196 average that people across the United States pay,” Powell said.

This may be due to the weather: “If it’s colder in the winter and people have to deal with weather conditions, then often they take bigger cars,” Powell said. “That equates to higher insurance, a more expensive car, the more you pay for insurance.”

Utilities are another high cost: “Utilities cost around $518 in Charlottesville on a monthly basis, which is very expensive. And the national average people spend around $328. And again, that’s usually weather related,” Powell said.

Click here for the full report.

Do you have a story idea? Send us your topical advice here.

Copyright 2022 WVIR. All rights reserved.