Photo: Tracie Hall from Orange County, us · CC BY-SA 2.0Even on the area’s higher pay, Lomita costs more to live in than 98% of U.S. towns
It ranks #693 of 846 in California for affordability. Up 1.2% in a year, 19% above the California typical home.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area ($96K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
The grade measures what housing costs against what households in the area earn. Lomita’s area earns well above the typical U.S. town ($96K against $74K), but homes, rent and taxes here run higher still. Owners keep up better than renters: 29% of owners pay 30% or more of income for housing (typical U.S. town: 20%), against 52% of renters.
In dollars
- $904Ktypical home, 19% above the California typical homeZillow, September 2026
- $2,540a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
In paychecks the grade
- 8.7 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$96K, Los Angeles-area income
- 25%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 52%of renters pay 30%+ of income for housing; across California: 55%Census 2020–24
- 29%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
What Lomita’s housing numbers say
Most new homes are apartments and condos
Of the 401 homes permitted in Lomita’s past 10 years, 78% were in buildings with two or more homes, not single-family houses. New homes ↓
A median income doesn’t stretch to the towns next door
At Lomita’s median income, the calculator’s budget of about $374K covers neither the typical home here ($904K) nor in any of the four neighboring towns. The least expensive is Los Angeles at $928K. Can I afford it? ↓
Written from the data on this page. Home values are the Zillow Home Value Index, through September 2026; sales and supply are Redfin’s for May 2026; permits are Census figures through 2025; incomes, rents paid, taxes and ownership come from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind Lomita’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Lomita is more affordable than 2% of U.S. towns, #693 of 846 in California. The four inputs sit close together, so no single cost explains the grade.
Prices here have kept pace with California: up 10.7% in five years, against 13.3% statewide (Zillow).
Up 10.7% in five years
About the same pace as California (13.3%).
Show as a table
| January | Lomita | California |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $531,000 | $451,000 |
| 2018 | $589,000 | $499,000 |
| 2019 | $666,000 | $537,000 |
| 2020 | $680,000 | $548,000 |
| 2021 | $754,000 | $604,000 |
| 2022 | $845,000 | $700,000 |
| 2023 | $855,000 | $723,000 |
| 2024 | $919,000 | $754,000 |
| 2025 | $923,000 | $778,000 |
| 2026 | $908,000 | $763,000 |
| September 2026 | $904,000 | $762,000 |
A typical Lomita home worth $521K in October 2016 is worth about $904K today.
Zillow Home Value Index: the typical value of all homes (middle third), smoothed and seasonally adjusted, through September 2026.
Too few sales to read the market
Only 8 homes sold in May 2026, the latest month in Redfin’s figures: too few to describe the market or quote a median sale price.
A typical home costs 8.7 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Lomita’s own median, or type yours.
That’s $523K short of a typical Lomita home.
A two-bedroom rents for about $2,540 a month here, $2,770 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Lomita’s typical property tax (0.75% of value a year, from the Census) and insurance of about 0.35%. Mortgage insurance, HOA fees and other debts aren’t included.
A two-bedroom rents for about $2,540
Renters already here pay a median of $1,961, so moving in tends to cost more than staying put.
Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA HUD Metro FMR Area): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
19 new homes permitted in 2025
Builders were permitted 19 new homes in Lomita in 2025, all single-family houses, worth about $6 million to build. That's 0.9 per 1,000 residents, slower than across California (2.7). Over the past 10 years, Lomita has permitted 401 homes in all.
Every year as a table
| Year | New homes | Single-family | 2+ per building | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Jan–Aug) | 8 | 8 | 0 | $1.7 million |
| 2025 | 19 | 19 | 0 | $6 million |
| 2024 | 10 | 6 | 4 | $1.6 million |
| 2023 | 15 | 8 | 7 | $4.1 million |
| 2022 | 35 | 19 | 16 | $6.4 million |
| 2021 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $1.3 million |
| 2020 | 240 | 5 | 235 | $37.7 million |
| 2019 | 23 | 16 | 7 | $6.9 million |
| 2018 | 21 | 2 | 19 | $4.3 million |
| 2017 | 14 | 2 | 12 | $2.6 million |
| 2016 | 19 | 6 | 13 | $3.8 million |
| 2015 | 20 | 20 | 0 | $6.3 million |
| 2014 | 16 | 16 | 0 | $3.2 million |
| 2013 | 7 | 7 | 0 | $3.4 million |
| 2004 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2003 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $964,000 |
| 2002 | 9 | 9 | 0 | $1.7 million |
| 2001 | 9 | 9 | 0 | $1.7 million |
| 2000 | 11 | 11 | 0 | $2.1 million |
Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.
Property tax runs above the California norm
The median bill is $6,232 (California: $5,124), 0.75% of a home’s value a year, against 0.70% statewide.
Census American Community Survey 2020–24: the median real-estate tax bill homeowners report, and that bill ÷ the median home value. Bills include town, school and county taxes. The Census reports bills over $10,000 only as “$10,000+”.
Lomita vs. its neighbors
Of the 5 towns here with a Zillow value, Lomita has the lowest.
Cost next door · one source per column
| Town | Cost | Typical home Zillow, September 2026 | Median value Census 2020–24 | Tax rate bill ÷ value | 2-bed rent HUD 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lomita | D− | $904K | $832K | 0.75% | $2,540 |
| Rolling Hills Estates | D− | $1.9M | $1.7M | 0.59%+ | $3,900 |
| Torrance | D− | $1.1M | $1.1M | 0.63% | $3,010 |
| Rancho Palos Verdes | D− | $1.8M | $1.6M | 0.62%+ | $3,900 |
| Los Angeles | D− | $928K | $921K | 0.66% | $2,940 |
“+”: the Census reports the tax bill only as $10,000 or more, so the rate is at least that.
Questions about the cost of living in Lomita
Is Lomita expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Lomita costs more than 98% of U.S. towns: a D− for cost of living, #693 of 846 in California. The typical home costs 8.7 years of the median household income of the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA metro area ($96K).
How much does a house cost in Lomita?
About $904K, Zillow’s typical value for September 2026, up 1.2% in a year. The California typical home is $762K.
What salary do you need to live in Lomita?
To buy the typical home with 20% down at 6.3%, about $227,000 a year, keeping the payment (about $5,310 a month with tax and insurance) at 28% of income. To rent a two-bedroom at 30% of income, about $102,000.
How much is rent in Lomita?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $2,540 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $1,961 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Lomita?
The median bill is $6,232 a year, 0.75% of the median home value (California: $5,124, 0.70%), from the Census 2020–24.
Are home prices in Lomita going up?
Yes: up 1.2% in the past year and 10.7% in five years, against 13.3% across California (Zillow).
Neighbors talk housing
What Lomita buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research, September 2026. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center, May 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. New homes: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Fair Market Rents: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The calculator is an estimate, not a loan offer. Regional price levels: BEA; electricity: EIA. How TownRatings grades cost of living.