What a home really costs in King County, WA

The local math, in plain English

King County’s median home value of $885,200 is about 2.5× the U.S. median of $360,600, and its property tax burden (~0.82% of value) is about in line with the national typical (~0.89%). It is one of the five priciest counties in our 25-county guide (#4 by median value).

In our example, costs beyond principal and interest make up 29% of the monthly bill: property tax alone is about $605 a month, and PMI adds $398 until you reach about 22% equity.

Existing owners with a mortgage here reported median monthly owner costs of $3,413 (ACS table B25088, which counts mortgage, taxes, insurance, utilities and fees). Many of them bought years ago at lower prices or rates, so a buyer today at the median value should plan on a bigger number: about $7,689 in our example.

For comparison, the median gross rent (rent plus utilities) in King County was $2,110 a month. For a 3-bedroom, closer in size to the typical owned home, it was $2,797. In our rent vs buy calculator, using its default assumptions (4.3% appreciation, 3.3% rent growth, 6% investment return, 7.32% rate), buying doesn’t catch up within 30 years; after 30 years renting is ahead by about $1,581,000. That’s a model output, not a forecast: a lower rate or a lower investment return can change it, so try your own numbers.

Washington has no state income tax, so property and sales taxes do more of the work. Budget the property tax line carefully.