Cheapest Places To Live In Nevada For 2020

The 10 Cheapest Places To Live In Nevada For 2020

Coming in hot as the cheapest place to live in Nevada is Caliente, the smallest city in the state. Homes in Caliente go for a median price of $118,300, the fourth cheapest in the state. The median rent in Caliente is also staggeringly low at only $599, less than half the average rent in Nevada. For both renters and buyers, Caliente has the second best housing to income ratio in the state. And if you're worried about moving out into the desert, Kershaw-Ryan State Park is a rugged oasis with plenty of verdant beauty on display.

The median household income in Caliente comes in at $57,218 and the median home value is $118,300 for 2020. The unemployment rate sits at 14.3%.

Known as the place "where the train stops and the Gold Rush begins," Carlin is the second most affordable place to live in Nevada. From ghost towns to nature areas replete with fishing, biking, and camping opportunities, you'll always have plenty to do in Carlin if you know where to look. While the rent is quite steep in Carlin at $1,053, the city has some of the cheapest homes on the market in Nevada at $118,100. Even more importantly, Carlin's residents are the best-paid populace on this list, with a median income of $79,740. That means folks pay the smallest proportion of their income on homes statewide, so the mortgage gets paid off in Carlin before the new paint has time to dry.

The median household income in Carlin comes in at $79,740 and the median home value is $118,100 for 2020. The unemployment rate sits at 9.0%.

Located 90 miles northeast of Reno, Lovelock ranks as the third cheapest place in Nevada. Lovelock got its name from the tradition of securing locks to a chain to signify unending love, so kind of makes sense that we named it one of the best cities for singles in Nevada. If you find someone special in this super-affordable city, definitely add a lock to the collection at Lover's Lock Plaza. And when it's time to really settle down, know that Lovelock has the cheapest homes for sale in Nevada, so you and your lock-mate won't have to break the bank to buy a place together.

The median household income in Lovelock comes in at $41,696 and the median home value is $90,000 for 2020. The unemployment rate sits at 9.4%.

Located in east-central Nevada, Ely is far from any big cities. But don't let that fool you into thinking there's nothing to do here. Between a railway museum, a historic state park, a renaissance village, and a gambling hall, we're not exaggerating when we say there's something for everyone in Ely. And at rock-bottom prices, no less. The median rent in Ely is $651, the second lowest you'll see on this list. Combined with a median income of $58,200, and Ely has the third best rent to income ratio in Nevada.

The median household income in Ely comes in at $58,200 and the median home value is $139,100 for 2020. The unemployment rate sits at 4.9%.

When you come to West Wendover, you'll immediately feel a sense of welcome. Maybe it's the friendly locals or the relaxed atmosphere...or maybe it's Wendover Will, the 63-foot tall neon cowboy that greets people entering the city. In any case, West Wendover has the fifth cheapest homes in Nevada, at a median price of $135,500. And with a median rent of $734, West Wendover is safely in the top 5 for housing to income ratios, regardless of if you're buying or renting.

West Wendover is located in northeastern Nevada, on the border of Utah.

The median household income in West Wendover comes in at $56,029 and the median home value is $135,500 for 2020. The unemployment rate sits at 1.4%.

6. Winnemucca

Winnemucca ranks as the sixth most affordable place to live in Nevada. Homes are a bit pricier in Winnemucca than the preceding cities on this list, with a median price tag of $195,300. However, because Winnemucca is the richest place in Nevada, with a median income of $71,518, residents have an easy time getting their mortgages paid. And for such an affluent place, the median rent of $748 is crazy cheap. In fact, Winnemucca enjoys the best rent to income ratio in Nevada. Winnemucca is home to the Winnemucca Sand Dunes, the largest dunes in Nevada and a prime spot for ATVing.

The median household income in Winnemucca comes in at $71,518 and the median home value is $195,300 for 2020. The unemployment rate sits at 4.8%.

Located in northeastern Nevada at the junction of I-80 and Route 93, Wells comes in as the seventh least expensive place in the state. Don't bother getting a hot tub if you're living in Wells, because you've got 12 Mile Hot Springs right in your backyard. Now that's savings. Wells has low prices on housing, with a median home price of $140,700 and a median rent of $736. Regardless of your housing situation, Wells is safely in the top ten statewide for housing to income ratio.

The median household income in Wells comes in at $54,545 and the median home value is $140,700 for 2020. The unemployment rate sits at 2.5%.

Located an hour and a half southeast of Reno, Yerington ranks as the eighth cheapest place to call home in Nevada. Yerington has the second least expensive homes for sale statewide, with a median price of $98,400. Yerington residents also pay the seventh smallest percentage of their salaries on homes statewide. Which leaves plenty of money left over to take advantage of all the charming things to do in Yerington. On the downside, Yerington is the least affordable place for renters on this list.

The median household income in Yerington comes in at $36,047 and the median home value is $98,400 for 2020. The unemployment rate sits at 12.6%.

9. Elko

With a population of 20247, Elko is the largest city to make this list. And with that size comes plenty to do on a budget; from learning about Western history at the California Trail Center or Northeastern Nevada Museum or experiencing the natural beauty at Humboldt National Forest, there's plenty to keep you occupied in Elko. Maybe that's why we named it the best place to raise a family in Nevada.

Elko's economy is heavily tied to gold mining, which means there's always a risk of getting caught in the wrong end of a boom/bust cycle living here. In any case, Elko stands out with as having the second best-paid population on this list, with a median income of $77,011. This contributes to Elko having the sixth most affordable rent in Nevada, even with a median rent over $1,000/month.

The median household income in Elko comes in at $77,011 and the median home value is $228,900 for 2020. The unemployment rate sits at 5.5%.

10. Fernley

Rounding out our list of cheapest places to live in Nevada is Fernley, a city located a half hour east of Reno. Fernley has the most expensive median rent on this list at $1,104, but that's still well below the statewide average. And Fernley makes up for it by having the ninth cheapest homes in Nevada, with a median price tag of $187,200. And with countless casinos nearby, you'll never lack for entertainment options in Fernley.

The median household income in Fernley comes in at $63,880 and the median home value is $187,200 for 2020. The unemployment rate sits at 8.2%.

How We Determined The Most Affordable Places To Live In The Silver State For 2020

The two most important things to think about when it comes to being able to afford if you can live comes down to:

1. How much do money do I make?
2. How much do I have spend to live there?

You need to understand your costs in the context of how much money you make.

For example, if the median household earns $100,000 and spends $40,000 on housing it's actually cheaper to live there than a place with a median income of $50,000 and housing costs of $21,000. You might spend more on housing, but you have more money overall to play with.

With that example in mind, we derived several statistics from the latest Census American Community Survey 2014-2018 around incomes and costs. They are:

• Median Home Price / Median Income (lower is better)
• Median Income / Median Rent (Higher is better)
• Median Home Price

We added simply median home price because high home prices generally correlate with higher expenses for all costs related to homes (heating, electricity, etc).

You can then compare these metrics in each of the places in Nevada to figure out which is the least expensive.

What you are left with is a "Cost of Living Index" by taking the average rank of each of these metrics for each city.

So we used that cost of living index in order to rank all of the 19 places in Nevada that have more than 1,000 people.

The place with the lowest cost of living in Nevada according to the data is Caliente. You can download the data here.