Chattooga County residents are paying more for housing – be that mortgages or rent, than they have in previous years.  The latest numbers show that while housing costs remain remarkably lower than other parts of the country, Chattooga County residents have seen a marked increase over the past four years.

The total cost of owning a home is more than just the mortgage of course, there’s property taxes and insurance and of course maintenance.  The costs of those mortgage payments means some people simply can’t afford to buy a home and must rent.  Rental prices in Chattooga County are lower than surrounding areas, but the cost to rent has gone up significantly over the past four years as well.

According to Rocket Mortgage’s home survey for Chattooga County, the average cost of a house in Chattooga County has gone up almost 6% just in the last year.  As of July of this year, the average cost of a house in Chattooga County is just over $210,000.

The number of homeowners in Chattooga County is now at 68%, meaning over 30% of households in the county are renting instead of buying.  Rent for just a two-bedroom home is now averaging just over $650 per month – while that is higher than any time in the past, it is still almost half of the monthly rental average for Georgia of $1,568 per month.