House Buyers of America Identifies the U.S. Cities Where Owning an Older Home Is Most Expensive

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The national real estate firm's study analyzes which U.S. metropolitan areas carry the highest repair costs, electricity rates, and maintenance burden for owners of older homes in 2026.

TYSONS CORNER, VA / ACCESS Newswire / August 7, 2026 / Newly released data from leading real estate company House Buyers of America has identified the U.S. metropolitan areas where the ongoing cost of owning and maintaining an older home is highest in 2026. The study, which analyzed the 100 largest U.S. metropolitan areas, assessed three key cost factors: repair and labor costs, residential electricity rates, and average housing age, combining them into a proprietary Older Home Cost Index score.

"Most conversations about housing affordability focus on what it costs to buy a home. But for owners of existing older homes, the more pressing question is what it costs to keep it running," said Nick Ron, founder and CEO of House Buyers of America. "An older home in San Francisco or Honolulu is a fundamentally different financial commitment than the same house in Memphis or San Antonio. The labor is more expensive, the utility bills are higher, and deferred maintenance costs homeowners more. We wanted to put numbers behind that reality."

Here are some additional key findings from the study:

• Honolulu leads the index: Urban Honolulu, HI scored a perfect 100 on the Older Home Cost Index, driven by the highest residential electricity rate in the country at 46.62 cents per kilowatt-hour combined with contractor costs running 35% above the national average.

• California dominates the top of the rankings: San Francisco ranked second at 85.4 and San Jose ranked third at 82.5. California accounts for six of the top twelve metros in the study, with Los Angeles, San Diego, Oxnard, and Sacramento all appearing near the top. The combination of a 35.25 cents per kilowatt-hour statewide electricity rate and premium labor markets drives the results across the state.

• Connecticut places two metros in the top ten: Bridgeport ranked seventh at 65.3 and Hartford ranked ninth at 61.0, reflecting some of the highest electricity rates in the continental U.S. and repair costs running well above the national average alongside housing stock that averages 56 to 57 years old in both metros.

• Seattle is the study's biggest anomaly: Despite having some of the cheapest electricity in the country at 14.36 cents per kilowatt-hour, Seattle ranked 21st overall. Contractor labor costs in the Seattle metro run 20% above the national average, one of the largest premiums in the study, pushing its score well above most Midwest and Southern markets.

"What stood out in this data is how differently these costs combine depending on the market," Ron said. "In California, it is electricity and labor moving together in the same direction. In Seattle, it is almost entirely a labor story. In the Northeast, it is older housing stock compounding the pressure of already expensive energy and trades markets. The end result for older homeowners in these cities is the same: a higher cost of ownership that does not always get factored into the decision to stay or move on."

Here were the top 10 markets in the Older Home Cost Index:

1. Urban Honolulu, HI (100.0)

2. San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA (85.4)

3. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA (82.5)

4. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY (72.9)

5. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA (70.1)

6. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA (69.1)

7. Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT (65.3)

8. San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA (64.9)

9. Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT (61.0)

10. Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA (59.8)

About House Buyers of America

House Buyers of America is a leading national home-buying company helping homeowners sell with confidence through a simple, transparent, and hassle-free process. Founded in 2001 and operating in 44 states, the company blends decades of real estate expertise with technology-driven operations to deliver speed, certainty, and consistent outcomes. House Buyers of America has been recognized for its industry impact, including Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year and inclusion on the Inc. 5000 list of America's fastest-growing companies.

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SOURCE: House Buyers of America, Inc.