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Oakland Township building at WoodbinePhoto: Nyttend · Public domain
A−Cost of living
Cost of living in Oakland Township

Measured against area pay, Oakland Township costs less to live in than 80% of U.S. towns

It ranks #138 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania for affordability. Home prices around Oakland Township have risen about 36% over the past 5 years. Builders were permitted 1 new home in 2025.

Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Pittsburgh, PA metro area ($76K). How TownRatings grades cost of living

Typical home value
$250K
▲ 3% in a year · PA $303K
Estimate
Homes sold
1
in May 2026 · 7 for sale
2-bedroom rent
$1,090
a month, utilities in · HUD
Median tax bill
$2,484
PA $3,311
Area income (the grade’s yardstick)
$76K
Pittsburgh-area median

Only 1 sale in May 2026: in a market this size, monthly medians swing a lot, so the typical value is the steadier guide.

Why Oakland Township gets an A−

The grade compares costs with what households across the Pittsburgh metro earn ($76K, Census 2020–24). The typical home costs 3.0 years of metro income, and 35% of renters pay 30% or more of income for housing.

In dollars

  • $1,090a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
  • 95prices across the Pittsburgh metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 72)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024

In paychecks the grade

  • 3.0 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$76K, Pittsburgh-area income
  • 12%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
  • 19%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
What stands out

What stands out about housing in Oakland Township

Cost of living grade

What’s behind Oakland Township’s grade

Measured against what households in the area earn, Oakland Township is more affordable than 80% of U.S. towns, #138 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. Property tax pulls the grade down most; rent holds it up.

All U.S. towns we grade (21,243)More affordable than 80%
CostlierMore affordable
Pennsylvania towns we grade (1,035)More affordable than 87%
How sure. Oakland Township’s Census figures cover about 1,019 households. At the ends of the Census margins (area income ±$672, owners paying 30%+ ±6.1 points), Oakland Township could be anywhere from B+ to A.

How TownRatings grades cost of living →

Price trend

Home prices up 36% in 5 years

The federal house price index for the ZIP codes around Oakland Township rose 36% over the past 5 years, slower than across Pennsylvania (48%). Last year prices rose 3%. Carrying the Census median home value forward with that index puts the typical Oakland Township home at roughly $250,000 today.

Oakland Township areaPennsylvania
0%+50%+100%+150%+200%200020052010201520202025
+3%
past year
+36%
past 5 years
+55%
past 10 years
Estimated value

Carrying the Census median forward with the index puts a typical home at about $250K.

Federal Housing Finance Agency House Price Index (annual) for the ZIP codes around Oakland Township, weighted by land area. It tracks repeat sales of the same homes, so it shows how prices changed, not what homes cost.

Affordability

A year’s rent takes 12% of area income

The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Oakland Township’s own median, or type yours.

Household income a year
$
Pittsburgh-area median household income, as in the grade
You could afford about
$287,000
Typical Oakland Township home $250K

That covers a typical Oakland Township home, with $38K to spare.

The typical home, each month
$1,540
Loan $1,240Tax $230Insurance $70

A two-bedroom rents for about $1,090 a month here, $450 less than owning.

Where your budget reaches nearby

An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Oakland Township’s typical property tax (1.11% of value a year, from the Census) and insurance of about 0.35%. Mortgage insurance, HOA fees and other debts aren’t included.

Renting

A two-bedroom rents for about $1,090

Renters already here pay a median of $788, so moving in tends to cost more than staying put.

Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included

Studio$830
1 bedroom$900
2 bedrooms$1,090
3 bedrooms$1,390
4 bedrooms$1,490
21%
of households rent · PA 31%
172
renter households
35%
of renters spend 30%+ of income on rent · PA 48%
18%
of the median income, for a two-bedroom
$788
median rent paid today · Census

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (Pittsburgh, PA 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.

New construction

1 new home permitted in 2025

Builders were permitted 1 new home in Oakland Township in 2025. That's 0.4 per 1,000 residents, slower than across Pennsylvania (2). Over the past 10 years, Oakland Township has permitted 28 homes in all.

Single-family
051015200020052010201520202025
1
new homes permitted in 2025
2
2026 so far (Jan–Aug)
0.4
per 1,000 residents · PA 2
28
homes in the past 10 years
Homes vs. people, 2010–2020
Residents−218
New homes+24

Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Oakland Township's population fell by 218 even though 24 new homes were permitted. Homes are holding fewer people: households are getting smaller, or more homes are used part of the year. Across Pennsylvania: 1.4 new residents per new home.

Every year as a table
YearNew homesSingle-family2+ per buildingValue
2026 (Jan–Aug)220$809,000
2025110$250,000
2024550$2 million
2023330$776,000
2022110$150,000
2021440$477,000
2020880$1.2 million
2019220$505,000
2018000—
2017220$200,000
2016220$200,000
2015440$759,000
2014550$912,000
2013220$405,000
2012330$551,000
2011220$290,000
2010220$375,000
2009000—
2008990$2 million
200712120$2 million
2006770$1 million
2005000$101,000
200412120$1.3 million
200314140$1.6 million
2002770$574,000
200112120$1.2 million
2000990$1.1 million

Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.

Property taxes

Property tax runs below the Pennsylvania norm

The median bill is $2,484 (Pennsylvania: $3,311), 1.11% of a home’s value a year, against 1.30% statewide.

$2,484
median bill a year · PA $3,311
1.11%
of a home’s value a year · PA 1.30%

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+”.

Beyond rent and mortgage

The rest of a budget near Oakland Township

Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Pittsburgh, PA metro area, or Pennsylvania. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.

CostHereCompared withAreaSource
Prices overall
U.S. = 100
95PA 98metroBEA, 2024
Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…)
U.S. = 100
101PA 99metroBEA, 2024
Utilities
U.S. = 100
108PA 109metroBEA, 2024
Other services
U.S. = 100
98PA 100metroBEA, 2024

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.

Next door

Oakland Township vs. its neighbors

Zillow publishes no value for Oakland Township. Center Township and Donegal Township and Summit Township and Concord Township have no Zillow value, so they are in the table only.

Cost next door · one source per column

TownCostTypical home
Zillow, latest
Median value
Census 2020–24
Tax rate
bill ÷ value
2-bed rent
HUD 2026
Oakland TownshipA−—$224K1.11%$1,090
Summit TownshipB+—$209K1.00%$1,060
Concord TownshipA−—$185K1.00%$1,120
Donegal TownshipA−—$230K0.85%$1,060
Center TownshipB—$253K1.09%$1,190

“—” under Zillow: Zillow publishes no value for that town, so it’s left blank rather than mixed with Census figures.

Questions about the cost of living in Oakland Township

Is Oakland Township expensive to live in?

Measured against what households in the area earn, Oakland Township costs less than 80% of U.S. towns: an A− for cost of living, #138 of 1,035 in Pennsylvania. The typical home costs 3.0 years of the median household income of the Pittsburgh, PA metro area ($76K).

How much is rent in Oakland Township?

HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $1,090 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $788 (Census 2020–24).

What are property taxes in Oakland Township?

The median bill is $2,484 a year, 1.11% of the median home value (Pennsylvania: $3,311, 1.30%), from the Census 2020–24.

Neighbors talk housing

What Oakland Township buyers, sellers and renters are saying.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

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.