Harlingen Boasts Low Cost of Living

Harlingen, Texas is located in South Texas in the Rio Grande Valley. and is included in the Brownsville-Harlingen Metro Area in Cameron County.

One thing that makes Harlingen, TX an attractive place to live and work is the low cost of living. Harlingen’s cost of living is 20% lower than the U.S. average and consistently ranks among the 10 lowest cost of living communities. The American Chamber of Commerce Researchers Association (ACCRA) produces the ACCRA Cost of Living Indexes to provide a useful and reasonable, accurate measure of living cost difference among urban areas. The average for all participating places, both metropolitan and non-metropolitan is 100 and each participant's index is read as a percentage of the average for all places.

  • Housing Affordability Index
    Housing Affordability Index
    (2nd Quarter, 2007)
    MLS AREA
    MEDIAN HOUSE
    PRICE
    HAI*
    Harlingen
    $95,000
    1.89
    Brownsville
    $108,600
    1.90
    McAllen
    $108,700
    1.69
    Texas
    $153,800
    1.55
    *The Housing Affordability Index is the ratio of median family income to the income required to qualify for an 80 percent, fixed rate mortgage to purchase the median-priced home. The higher the ratio, the more affordable housing is. The MLS Area represents the local Realtors association's geographical coverage area.
    Source: Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University
  • Harlingen Population
    As of 2009
    		 74,950
    Growth since 2000
    		 23.20%
  • Race/Ethnicity
    White
    78.51%
    Black
    0.77%
    Asian
    0.77%
    Native American
    0.55%
    Other
    19.08%
    *74.94% of the people in Harlingen, Texas claim Hispanic ethnicity, meaning 25.06% are non-Hispanic
  • Cost of Living
    Median home cost
    $147,200
    Home appreciation
    -1.21%
    Property Tax Rate
    $18.58
    *Harlingen cost of living is 20.807% lower than the U.S. average [Read more...]
  • 2009 Average Apartment Rental Rate
    1
    Bedroom
    2
    Bedrooms
    3
    Bedrooms
    Town
    House
    Harlingen
    $420
    $525
    $650
    $569
    Brownsville
    $513
    $570
    $663
    $655
    McAllen
    $497
    $595
    $640
    *
    Source: Rio Grande Valley Apartment Association, 2009
  • Cost of Living Comparison 3rd Quarter 2009
  • Cost of Living in Harlingen, TX 2006 - 2009
    Cost of Living in Harlingen, TX
    (2006-2009)

    The American Chamber of Commerce Researchers Association (ACCRA) produces the ACCRA Cost of Living Indexes to provide a useful and reasonable, accurate measure of living cost difference among urban areas.  The average for all participating places, both metropolitan and non-metropolitan is 100 and each participant’s index is read as a percentage of the average for all places.  Harlingen typically ranks among the 10 lowest cost of living communities in the nation.
    Metro/Micro
    Urban Area A
    100%
    Composite Index
    12%
    Grocery Items
    30%
    Housing
    10%
    Utilities
    11%
    Transportation
    4%
    Health Care
    35%
    Misc. Good & Services
    3 Q 2009
    84.5
    81.1
    74.1
    114.9
    93.7
    91.0
    81.6
    2 Q 2009
    85.8
    82.7
    76.8
    121.7
    86.1
    92.0
    83.1
    1 Q 2009
    88.4
    87.2
    75.5
    129.1
    90.2
    92.8
    86.8
    Annual Average
    *
    *
    *
    *
    *
    *
    *
    4 Q 2008
    85.3
    83.4
    72.7
    115.5
    89.4
    97.0
    85.2
    3 Q 2008
    86.4
    83.9
    72.0
    122.3
    95.6
    97.3
    85.3
    2 Q 2008
    85.6
    83.6
    72.8
    112.4
    84.2
    99.3
    88.5
    1 Q 2008
    83.5
    84.4
    73.2
    109.9
    88.5
    94.9
    81.5
    Annual Average
    85.2
    83.825
    72.75
    112.525
    89.425
    97.125
    85.125