September 2026 Monthly Margin Report
Figures from values 8baab6e146a3bfc1c41c6cf1857224b9223bea4cb64e496bb712ed00b3618e84 · build 6a8a1263.
One adult, renter track, national monthly margin -$2,480.99.
September 2026 CPI-U 12-month change is 3.74 percent.
National monthly margins for all four housing paths. Figures are monthly dollars. This summary remains available if the interactive report does not load. The ZIP lookup uses the federal list that matches ZIP codes to congressional districts, not the Census ZIP areas on the map.
| Income group | Renter | Homeowner (median cost) | Homeowner with Mortgage | Homeowner, Mortgage Paid Off |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| One adult | -$2,480.99 | -$1,794.43 | -$2,366.59 | -$971.45 |
| Two adults | -$1,974.66 | -$1,288.11 | -$1,860.26 | -$465.13 |
| Median household | -$965.14 | -$278.58 | -$850.74 | $544.40 |
| Senior 65+ | -$534.54 | $152.02 | -$420.14 | $975.00 |
| Senior couple 65+ | -$484.29 | $202.26 | -$369.89 | $1,025.24 |
| Social Security | -$2,938.55 | -$2,252.44 | -$2,824.60 | -$1,429.46 |
| Two Social Security | -$3,851.81 | -$3,165.70 | -$3,737.86 | -$2,342.72 |
National published costs
| ZORI rent | $1,932.72 |
|---|---|
| Blended SMOC | $1,527.59 |
| Marketplace premium, one person | $735.50 |
| Medicare Part B | $202.90 |
| Essentials, one person | $2,891.91 |
| Essentials, two people | $4,723.07 |
Median household margins by state
Monthly margins for the median household in every state, September 2026 edition, monthly dollars. A negative number means required costs are larger than net income. Each state name opens that state’s page with its districts. The list of all states and the district directory cover every state and congressional district.
| State | Renter | Homeowner (median cost) | Homeowner with Mortgage | Homeowner, Mortgage Paid Off |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | -$1,383.48 | -$655.82 | -$1,188.76 | -$199.54 |
| Alaska | -$732.26 | -$128.05 | -$772.05 | $766.95 |
| Arizona | -$635.26 | -$18.11 | -$549.03 | $751.40 |
| Arkansas | -$1,564.64 | -$881.15 | -$1,380.26 | -$462.25 |
| California | -$1,317.06 | -$534.62 | -$1,203.41 | $969.21 |
| Colorado | -$143.67 | $220.39 | -$271.29 | $1,397.76 |
| Connecticut | -$1,140.50 | -$695.48 | -$1,233.82 | $205.81 |
| Delaware | -$1,287.71 | -$431.36 | -$884.36 | $369.64 |
| Florida | -$1,615.10 | -$576.85 | -$1,209.20 | $102.48 |
| Georgia | -$1,082.62 | -$424.25 | -$919.33 | $347.02 |
| Hawaii | -$1,312.02 | -$193.37 | -$1,109.15 | $1,110.60 |
| Idaho | -$537.00 | $259.61 | -$237.67 | $957.08 |
| Illinois | -$1,058.67 | -$423.19 | -$946.66 | $273.32 |
| Indiana | -$620.81 | -$45.61 | -$400.87 | $493.70 |
| Iowa | -$183.25 | $201.62 | -$229.49 | $692.29 |
| Kansas | -$857.54 | -$416.39 | -$935.36 | $129.44 |
| Kentucky | -$1,411.03 | -$758.41 | -$1,241.75 | -$276.06 |
| Louisiana | -$1,498.63 | -$803.92 | -$1,458.09 | -$300.07 |
| Maine | -$1,826.48 | -$776.92 | -$1,307.22 | -$206.33 |
| Maryland | $447.48 | $760.92 | $313.80 | $1,919.42 |
| Massachusetts | -$445.59 | $380.88 | -$186.34 | $1,511.44 |
| Michigan | -$820.27 | -$186.58 | -$658.09 | $320.60 |
| Minnesota | -$158.25 | $255.20 | -$221.14 | $1,039.41 |
| Mississippi | -$1,950.58 | -$1,070.64 | -$1,662.67 | -$698.10 |
| Missouri | -$854.28 | -$317.71 | -$756.08 | $231.06 |
| Montana | -$1,184.94 | -$364.58 | -$1,031.56 | $201.95 |
| Nebraska | -$658.26 | -$322.26 | -$815.30 | $242.10 |
| Nevada | -$614.95 | -$117.52 | -$570.83 | $810.13 |
| New Hampshire | $232.77 | $916.01 | $352.69 | $1,721.16 |
| New Jersey | -$639.78 | -$28.53 | -$664.56 | $956.37 |
| New Mexico | -$1,627.88 | -$800.99 | -$1,447.67 | -$325.82 |
| New York | -$2,199.23 | -$743.13 | -$1,511.63 | $142.45 |
| North Carolina | -$1,101.23 | -$391.14 | -$885.11 | $263.30 |
| North Dakota | $165.84 | $541.85 | -$183.15 | $988.85 |
| Ohio | -$666.82 | -$122.56 | -$531.54 | $403.59 |
| Oklahoma | -$1,099.43 | -$565.81 | -$1,102.34 | -$86.56 |
| Oregon | -$1,121.60 | -$655.91 | -$1,199.78 | $268.71 |
| Pennsylvania | -$836.09 | -$187.94 | -$732.19 | $402.21 |
| Rhode Island | -$769.59 | -$153.11 | -$576.74 | $757.25 |
| South Carolina | -$1,136.94 | -$223.57 | -$748.86 | $341.23 |
| South Dakota | -$209.71 | $240.62 | -$342.38 | $720.62 |
| Tennessee | -$1,175.17 | -$406.35 | -$944.55 | $168.23 |
| Texas | -$476.28 | -$112.51 | -$815.73 | $627.08 |
| Utah | $323.71 | $704.67 | $288.50 | $1,741.26 |
| Vermont | -$1,951.39 | -$958.66 | -$1,427.66 | -$357.66 |
| Virginia | -$238.72 | $366.73 | -$160.78 | $1,426.63 |
| Washington | -$41.42 | $394.52 | -$191.91 | $1,525.05 |
| West Virginia | -$2,590.91 | -$1,708.28 | -$2,297.31 | -$1,431.38 |
| Wisconsin | -$756.15 | -$287.40 | -$732.62 | $304.92 |
| Wyoming | -$1,587.13 | -$907.88 | -$1,511.88 | -$302.88 |
The margin is net income minus required costs.
Where rankings appear, they are produced by the same formula for all 435 districts, never by editorial selection.
The basket is a market-price standard: current asking rent and unsubsidized average marketplace premiums. It can run above what a settled household pays, and the methodology states this.
The market-rent line is the one non-federal input, the Zillow Observed Rent Index, labeled wherever it appears. Each report uses the newest Zillow rent release available when it is built, and the report names the Zillow data month.
The Social Security row uses the SSA average retired-worker benefit. The Senior couple 65+ row uses Census household income for householders 65 and older, scaled to two-or-more-person senior households using the stated ACS and PUMS sources. The Two Social Security row uses the Social Security Administration published aged-couple average benefit. Neither row doubles a one-person figure.
September 2026 district directory · Methodology · Open report-data.json · Public data · Corrections · Verify