Photo: Joegrimes at English Wikipedia · Public domainEven on the area’s higher pay, Onondaga costs more to live in than 70% of U.S. towns
It ranks #440 of 757 in New York for affordability. Home prices around Onondaga have risen about 65% over the past 5 years. Builders were permitted 46 new homes in 2025.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Syracuse, NY metro area ($75K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
Only 4 sales in May 2026: in a market this size, monthly medians swing a lot, so the typical value is the steadier guide.
The grade measures what housing costs against what households in the area earn. Onondaga’s area earns well above the typical U.S. town ($75K against $74K), but homes, rent and taxes here run higher still. Owners keep up better than renters: 15% of owners pay 30% or more of income for housing (typical U.S. town: 20%), against 51% of renters.
In dollars
- $1,540a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
- 96prices across the Syracuse metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 81)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
In paychecks the grade
- 3.3 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$75K, Syracuse-area income
- 21%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 51%of renters pay 30%+ of income for housing; across New York: 52%Census 2020–24
- 15%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
The short version on homes in Onondaga
Low tax bills, but a high tax rate
The median tax bill is $5,480, under the New York median of $6,582, because homes cost less. As a share of value, though, it’s 2.23% a year, against 1.55% statewide. On the typical home, that’s about $580 a month. Property taxes ↓
2026 has already passed 2025
Through August, Onondaga had permitted 69 new homes in 2026, more than the 46 in all of 2025. New homes ↓
Fewer people, more homes
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Onondaga lost 164 residents while 210 new homes were permitted. New homes ↓
Written from the data on this page. There’s no Zillow index for Onondaga, so the typical value is an estimate: the Census median carried forward with the federal house price index; permits are Census figures through 2025; incomes, rents paid, taxes and ownership come from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind Onondaga’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Onondaga is more affordable than 30% of U.S. towns, #440 of 757 in New York. Property tax pulls the grade down most; the share of households paying 30%+ for housing holds it up.
Home prices up 65% in 5 years
The federal house price index for the ZIP codes around Onondaga rose 65% over the past 5 years, faster than across New York (52%). Last year prices rose 2%. Carrying the Census median home value forward with that index puts the typical Onondaga home at roughly $310,000 today.
Carrying the Census median forward with the index puts a typical home at about $310K.
Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (annual) for the ZIP codes around Onondaga, weighted by land area. It tracks repeat sales of the same homes, so it shows how prices changed, not what homes cost.
A year’s rent takes 21% of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Onondaga’s own median, or type yours.
That’s $64K short of a typical Onondaga home.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,540 a month here, $660 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Onondaga’s typical property tax (2.23% 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 $1,540
Renters already here pay a median of $1,333, 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 (Syracuse, NY MSA): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
46 new homes permitted in 2025
Builders were permitted 46 new homes in Onondaga in 2025, all single-family houses, worth about $40 million to build. That's 2 per 1,000 residents, about the pace of New York as a whole. Over the past 10 years, Onondaga has permitted 148 homes in all.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Onondaga's population fell by 164 even though 210 new homes were permitted. Homes are holding fewer people: households are getting smaller, or more homes are used part of the year. 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) | 69 | 69 | 0 | $57.4 million |
| 2025 | 46 | 46 | 0 | $40 million |
| 2024 | 35 | 35 | 0 | $11.9 million |
| 2023 | 26 | 26 | 0 | $9.2 million |
| 2022 | 22 | 22 | 0 | $9.3 million |
| 2021 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2020 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2019 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2018 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2017 | 19 | 19 | 0 | $4 million |
| 2016 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2015 | 21 | 21 | 0 | $5.3 million |
| 2014 | 25 | 25 | 0 | $4.3 million |
| 2013 | 24 | 24 | 0 | $5 million |
| 2012 | 31 | 31 | 0 | $7.2 million |
| 2011 | 37 | 37 | 0 | $7.4 million |
| 2010 | 53 | 53 | 0 | $9.5 million |
| 2009 | 50 | 50 | 0 | $10.7 million |
| 2008 | 53 | 53 | 0 | $11.4 million |
| 2007 | 79 | 79 | 0 | $16.9 million |
| 2006 | 59 | 59 | 0 | $13.3 million |
| 2005 | 204 | 92 | 112 | $19 million |
| 2004 | 85 | 85 | 0 | $13.9 million |
| 2003 | 78 | 78 | 0 | $12.1 million |
| 2002 | 70 | 70 | 0 | $10.3 million |
| 2001 | 76 | 72 | 4 | $11.4 million |
| 2000 | 90 | 90 | 0 | $12.8 million |
Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.
Low tax bills, but a high tax rate
The median bill is $5,480, under the New York median of $6,582, because homes cost less. As a share of value it’s 2.23% 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 Onondaga
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Syracuse, NY metro area, or New York. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prices overall U.S. = 100 | 96 | NY 108 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…) U.S. = 100 | 100 | NY 107 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Utilities U.S. = 100 | 133 | NY 134 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Other services U.S. = 100 | 98 | NY 104 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| 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.
Onondaga vs. its neighbors
Zillow publishes no value for Onondaga. Otisco and Marcellus and LaFayette and Camillus 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Onondaga | C | — | $246K | 2.23% | $1,540 |
| Syracuse | B− | $223K | $138K | 2.32% | $1,360 |
| Nedrow | – | $191K | $107K | 2.51% | $1,420 |
| Marcellus | C+ | — | $246K | 2.42% | $1,400 |
| LaFayette | B− | — | $229K | 2.12% | $1,640 |
| Camillus | C | — | $209K | 2.51% | $1,560 |
| Otisco | C+ | — | $264K | 2.03% | $1,500 |
“—” 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 Onondaga
Is Onondaga expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Onondaga costs more than 70% of U.S. towns: a C for cost of living, #440 of 757 in New York. The typical home costs 3.3 years of the median household income of the Syracuse, NY metro area ($75K).
How much is rent in Onondaga?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $1,540 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $1,333 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Onondaga?
The median bill is $5,480 a year, 2.23% of the median home value (New York: $6,582, 1.55%), from the Census 2020–24.
Neighbors talk housing
What Onondaga buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research. 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. Price trend: Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index. 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.