What salary do you need to live in Reno, NV?

What housing costs in Reno

Census figures put the median gross rent in the Reno, NV metro at $1,328 for a one-bedroom, $1,630 for a two-bedroom and $1,951 for a three-bedroom. Moving from one to two bedrooms adds $302 a month, and the third bedroom another $321.

Buying is the other half of the housing picture: owners put the median home in Reno, NV at $502,300. Set against the $87,485 median household income, that is a ratio of 5.7×, which keeps the buying part of the score low for most incomes.

BEA's Regional Price Parity for the metro is 101.0, where 100 is the US average. In plain terms, the full basket of goods, services and housing costs 1.0% more than average, so $100,000 here buys roughly what $98,996 would at average US prices.

Income needed for each grade in Reno

For two bedrooms, $256,000 is where Reno turns Comfortable. Below that, $128,000 marks the start of Okay and $64,000 the start of Tight; under $64,000 the score reads Stretched. Rent at the Comfortable line is 8% of gross pay.

The Royal grade is within reach at $741,000 a year, where both rent and the median home price look small next to income.

Each figure is the lowest income, to the next $1,000, at which the calculator itself would show that grade for a two-bedroom in Reno.

Four salaries, three home sizes in Reno

On $75,000, a one-bedroom scores 33 and a three-bedroom 27, both Tight; the extra bedrooms cost points but not a grade.

None of the four salaries reaches Comfortable for two bedrooms; even $150,000 scores 50, Okay, which fits the $256,000 line above.

How Reno ranks among 387 metros

Out of 387 metros, Reno has the 67th highest price parity and the 42nd highest two-bedroom rent, which puts it in the most expensive quarter on overall prices and in the most expensive quarter on rent.

For a sense of scale, the metros just above and below it on two-bedroom rent are Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA ($1,632) and New Haven, CT ($1,621).

Reno in a Nevada context

How Reno stacks up against its state: $1,630 for a two-bedroom against Nevada's $1,541, $502,300 for the median home against $435,400, and a price level of 101.0 against 100.0.

Scored the same way, the statewide figures turn Comfortable at $228,000, so Reno needs $28,000 more than Nevada overall.

Nevada has only 2 other metros in the data, Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV and Carson City, NV, so the closest match elsewhere, Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL, is included too.

Does the typical Reno income clear the bar?

A household at the Reno median income of $87,485 would see a two-bedroom score of 34 — Tight — with rent at 22% of income. Put differently, Reno's typical household is $168,515 below the $256,000 it takes to read Comfortable on two bedrooms. For Nevada as a whole, the median household income of $78,260 scores 35 against statewide rents. Keep in mind a household median often combines two incomes.

Estimates use pre-tax income and public data; they are not financial advice.