Even on the area’s higher pay, Lima costs more to live in than 79% of U.S. towns
Up 7% in a year, 42% above the Wisconsin typical home.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Janesville-Beloit, WI metro area ($76K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
The grade measures what housing costs against what households in the area earn. Lima’s area earns well above the typical U.S. town ($76K against $74K), but homes, rent and taxes here run higher still. Owners keep up better than renters: 34% of owners pay 30% or more of income for housing (typical U.S. town: 20%), against 51% of renters.
In dollars
- $478Ktypical home, 42% above the Wisconsin typical homeZillow, September 2026
- $1,130a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
- 94prices across the Janesville metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 80)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
In paychecks the grade
- 3.7 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$76K, Janesville-area income
- 19%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 34%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
The short version on homes in Lima
Renting costs far less than owning
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,130 a month. Owning the typical Lima home, with 20% down at the calculator’s rate, runs about $3,050 with tax and insurance: more than twice as much. Can I afford it? ↓
A median income doesn’t stretch to the towns next door
At Lima’s median income, the calculator’s budget of about $238K covers neither the typical home here ($478K) nor in any of the four neighboring towns. The least expensive is Milton at $348K. Can I afford it? ↓
Written from the data on this page. Home values are the Zillow Home Value Index; permits are Census figures through 2013 (2013 partly estimated); incomes, rents paid, taxes and ownership come from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind Lima’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Lima is more affordable than 21% of U.S. towns. The share of households paying 30%+ for housing pulls the grade down most; rent holds it up.
Up 7% in a year
Faster than Wisconsin (5.1%).
Show as a table
| January | Lima | Wisconsin |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $426,000 | $296,000 |
| 2025 | $450,000 | $314,000 |
| 2026 | $463,000 | $330,000 |
| September 2026 | $478,000 | $337,000 |
A typical Lima home worth $427K in December 2023 is worth about $478K today.
Zillow Home Value Index: the typical value of all homes (middle third), smoothed and seasonally adjusted, through September 2026.
A typical home costs 3.7 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Lima’s own median, or type yours.
That’s $200K short of a typical Lima home.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,130 a month here, $1,920 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Lima’s typical property tax (1.35% 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 $1,130
Renters already here pay a median of $1,176.
Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (Janesville-Beloit, WI MSA): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
No new homes permitted in 2013
No permits for new homes were issued in Lima in 2013. The last year with any was 2011 (2 new homes).
Every year as a table
| Year | New homes | Single-family | 2+ per building | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2012 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2011 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $336,000 |
| 2010 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $336,000 |
| 2009 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $336,000 |
| 2008 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $279,000 |
| 2007 | 3 | 3 | 0 | $419,000 |
| 2006 | 4 | 4 | 0 | $558,000 |
| 2005 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $698,000 |
| 2004 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $340,000 |
| 2003 | 7 | 7 | 0 | $939,000 |
| 2002 | 6 | 6 | 0 | $805,000 |
| 2001 | 3 | 3 | 0 | $304,000 |
| 2000 | 4 | 4 | 0 | $558,000 |
Lima's permit office hasn't appeared in the Census permit files since 2013, so these are its newest figures.
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 Wisconsin norm
The median bill is $3,787 (Wisconsin: $3,792), 1.35% of a home’s value a year, against 1.42% 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 Lima
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Janesville-Beloit, WI metro area, or Wisconsin. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prices overall U.S. = 100 | 94 | WI 94 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…) U.S. = 100 | 94 | WI 94 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Utilities U.S. = 100 | 90 | WI 90 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Other services U.S. = 100 | 99 | WI 100 | metro | BEA, 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.
Lima vs. its neighbors
Of the 2 towns here with a Zillow value, Lima has the 2nd-lowest. Koshkonong and Whitewater and Milton have no Zillow value, so they are in the table only.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lima | C− | $478K | $281K | 1.35% | $1,130 |
| Johnstown | – | $459K | $340K | 1.18% | $1,340 |
| Whitewater | C+ | — | $360K | 1.25% | $1,090 |
| Milton | C− | — | $348K | 1.33% | $1,210 |
| Koshkonong | B− | — | $392K | 1.18% | $1,160 |
“—” under Cost: not graded (too little Census data, or under 1,000 residents). “—” 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 Lima
Is Lima expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Lima costs more than 79% of U.S. towns: a C− for cost of living. The typical home costs 3.7 years of the median household income of the Janesville-Beloit, WI metro area ($76K).
How much does a house cost in Lima?
About $478K, Zillow’s typical value for September 2026, up 7.0% in a year. The Wisconsin typical home is $337K.
What salary do you need to live in Lima?
To buy the typical home with 20% down at 6.3%, about $131,000 a year, keeping the payment (about $3,050 a month with tax and insurance) at 28% of income. To rent a two-bedroom at 30% of income, about $45,000.
How much is rent in Lima?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $1,130 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $1,176 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Lima?
The median bill is $3,787 a year, 1.35% of the median home value (Wisconsin: $3,792, 1.42%), from the Census 2020–24.
Neighbors talk housing
What Lima 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. 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.