Measured against area pay, North Harmony costs less to live in than 51% of U.S. towns
Builders were permitted 15 new homes in 2025.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Jamestown-Dunkirk, NY micro area ($58K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
The grade compares costs with what households across the Jamestown-area micro earn ($58K, Census 2020–24). The typical home costs 3.5 years of area income, and 64% of renters pay 30% or more of income for housing.
In dollars
- $990a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
In paychecks the grade
- 3.5 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$58K, Jamestown-area income
- 16%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 18%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
What North Harmony’s housing numbers say
A second-home town
39% of North Harmony’s homes are seasonal or vacation homes, empty for much of the year. Year-round rentals are scarce: there are 55 renter households. Property taxes ↓
Nearly every household owns
88% of North Harmony households own their home, against 54% across New York. There are only 55 renter households, so rentals are scarce. Property taxes ↓
Written from the data on this page. There’s no Zillow index for North Harmony, so the typical value is the Census median; permits are Census figures through 2025; incomes, rents paid, taxes and ownership come from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind North Harmony’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, North Harmony is more affordable than 51% of U.S. towns. Property tax pulls the grade down most; the share of households paying 30%+ for housing holds it up.
A typical home costs 3.5 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to North Harmony’s own median, or type yours.
That covers a typical North Harmony home, with $7K to spare.
A two-bedroom rents for about $990 a month here, $320 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, North Harmony’s typical property tax (1.42% 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 $990
Renters already here pay a median of $793, 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 (Chautauqua County, NY): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
15 new homes permitted in 2025
Builders were permitted 15 new homes in North Harmony in 2025, all single-family houses, worth about $5 million to build. That's 8 per 1,000 residents, faster than across New York (1.8). Over the past 10 years, North Harmony has permitted 85 homes in all.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, North Harmony's population fell by 75 even though 48 new homes were permitted. Homes are holding fewer people: households are getting smaller, or more homes are used part of the year. 39% of North Harmony's homes are seasonal or vacation homes, which adds housing without adding residents. Across New York: 2.2 new residents per new home.
Every year as a table
| Year | New homes | Single-family | 2+ per building | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Jan–Aug) | 3 | 3 | 0 | $1.2 million |
| 2025 | 15 | 15 | 0 | $5 million |
| 2024 | 9 | 9 | 0 | $3.6 million |
| 2023 | 14 | 14 | 0 | $2.7 million |
| 2022 | 14 | 14 | 0 | $3.1 million |
| 2021 | 13 | 13 | 0 | $5.2 million |
| 2020 | 6 | 6 | 0 | $1.1 million |
| 2019 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $1.2 million |
| 2018 | 4 | 4 | 0 | $721,000 |
| 2017 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2016 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $1.4 million |
| 2015 | 8 | 8 | 0 | $1.5 million |
| 2014 | 4 | 4 | 0 | $865,000 |
| 2013 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $325,000 |
| 2012 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $1 million |
| 2011 | 6 | 6 | 0 | $2.3 million |
| 2010 | 9 | 9 | 0 | $2.4 million |
| 2009 | 4 | 4 | 0 | $670,000 |
| 2008 | 8 | 8 | 0 | $1.6 million |
| 2007 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $1.1 million |
| 2006 | 8 | 8 | 0 | $1.7 million |
| 2005 | 10 | 10 | 0 | $2.2 million |
| 2004 | 11 | 11 | 0 | $1.5 million |
| 2003 | 18 | 18 | 0 | $2.5 million |
| 2002 | 9 | 9 | 0 | $931,000 |
| 2001 | 4 | 4 | 0 | $675,000 |
| 2000 | 17 | 17 | 0 | $2 million |
Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.
Property tax runs below the New York norm
The median bill is $2,899 (New York: $6,582), 1.42% of a home’s value a year, against 1.55% 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+”.
The rest of a budget near North Harmony
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: New York, or New York. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity cents per kWh, homes | 29.9¢ | U.S. 18.3¢ | state | EIA, July 2026 |
Price levels: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities 2024 (metro area and state). Electricity: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A.
North Harmony vs. its neighbors
Zillow publishes no value for North Harmony. Busti and Sherman and Harmony have no Zillow value, so they are in the table only.
Cost next door · one source per column
| Town | Cost | Typical home Zillow, latest | Median value Census 2020–24 | Tax rate bill ÷ value | 2-bed rent HUD 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Harmony | B− | — | $204K | 1.42% | $990 |
| Harmony | B+ | — | $128K | 2.19% | $970 |
| Sherman | A− | — | $133K | 2.02% | $1,060 |
| Chautauqua | B | $606K | $189K | 1.46% | $1,010 |
| Busti | C− | — | $165K | 2.35% | $1,060 |
| Panama | – | $192K | $105K | 2.37% | $970 |
“—” under Zillow: Zillow publishes no value for that town, so it’s left blank rather than mixed with Census figures. “—” under Cost: not graded (too little Census data, or under 1,000 residents).
Questions about the cost of living in North Harmony
Is North Harmony expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, North Harmony costs less than 51% of U.S. towns: a B− for cost of living. The typical home costs 3.5 years of the median household income of the Jamestown-Dunkirk, NY micro area ($58K).
How much is rent in North Harmony?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $990 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $793 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in North Harmony?
The median bill is $2,899 a year, 1.42% of the median home value (New York: $6,582, 1.55%), from the Census 2020–24.
Neighbors talk housing
What North Harmony buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center. 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.