La Mesa, California Cost Of Living

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F

Overall 41%

Goods & Services 10%

Housing 101%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2022 and was released from C2ER in January, 2022; this is the most current data available.

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	La Mesa	California	National
Cost of living	141	140	100
Goods & Services	110	109	100
Groceries	112	112	100
Health care	108	109	100
Housing	201	196	100
Transportation	132	132	100
Utilities	121	127	100

Key findings

The cost of living in La Mesa is 1% higher than the California average
The cost of living in La Mesa is 41% higher than the national average
La Mesa housing is 101% higher than the national average
California general sales tax is 42% higher than the national average
California state income tax is 59% lower than the national average

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Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$83,872	$6,989	$1,957	$2,516
Renters	$45,256	$3,771	$1,056	$1,358

The percent of monthly income spent on housing can be a good indicator of the affordability of housing in La Mesa, CA, as well as the overall cost of living. As a general rule of thumb, the debt-to-income ratio (DTI) for homeowners or renters should be not more than 28 percent of gross income to be spent on housing related costs and not more than 36 percent of income on all expenses, including debts. The median income for La Mesa homeowners, is $83,872. This would allow for a maximum of $1,957 per month to be spent on housing costs. For renters, the median monthly income is $45,256 which would result in a maximum of $1,056 to be spent on rental costs.

California Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
California	7.25%	10.5%

California Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
California	1%	13.3%

Goods & Services

Item	La Mesa	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$23.83	$20.27	17.6%
Beauty Salon	$65.72	$40.39	62.7%
Toothpaste	$2.26	$2.36	4.1%
Shampoo	$1.38	$1.08	28.5%
Movie	$14.91	$10.99	35.7%
Bowling	$22.56	$15.49	45.6%

Groceries

Item	La Mesa	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$4.52	$4.30	5.1%
Fried Chicken	$1.79	$1.40	28.2%
Milk	$2.30	$2.20	4.4%
Potatoes	$2.99	$3.22	7.1%
Pizza	$12.70	$10.74	18.3%
Beer	$9.93	$9.60	3.5%

Health Care

Item	La Mesa	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$123.80	$109.73	12.8%
Doctor	$125.00	$118.34	5.6%
Dentist	$109.73	$100.94	8.7%
Ibuprofen	$11.49	$9.93	15.7%
Lipitor	$490.43	$469.53	4.5%

Housing

Item	La Mesa	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$421,200.00	$184,700.00	128.0%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$2,789.33	$1,229.62	126.8%
Apartment Rent	$1,312.00	$949.00	38.3%

Transportation

Item	La Mesa	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.97	$2.71	46.6%
Tire Balancing	$55.77	$51.86	7.5%

Utilities

Item	La Mesa	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$239.65	$170.84	40.3%
Phone	$179.39	$187.18	4.2%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Spring Valley CDP (Lake County), CA	1,154	106	6.0%
Bostonia, CA	16,295	123	23.2%
National City, CA	60,349	127	26.5%
La Presa, CA	37,110	129	28.6%
Winter Gardens, CA	21,255	131	30.5%
La Mesa, CA	59,125	141	40.9%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Brookline, MA	59,180	190	90.2%
Rowlett, TX	59,203	107	7.3%
Kendale Lakes, FL	59,217	109	9.1%
Chapel Hill, NC	59,005	125	25.3%
Redmond, WA	59,268	164	64.4%
La Mesa, CA	59,125	141	40.9%

Source: This data reflects 2021 and was released from C2ER in January, 2022; this is the most current data available.