Cost of homeownership in Lafayette Parish, Louisiana
Real dollar cost of ownership, rent-vs-buy analysis, and flood risk, backed by Census ACS, FEMA, and FHFA data. Population: 243,175.
Total annual ownership cost
Breakdown of what owning a typical home in Lafayette Parish costs each year.
- Property taxes$1,246
- Insurance estimate$1,500
- Utilities / energy$1,358
- Maintenance (1% of value)$2,224
- Total$6,328/yr · $527/mo
Insurance and energy figures typically vary by property. Adjust in the calculators for a personalized estimate.
Rent vs. buy in Lafayette Parish
Pre-filled with local median home value, median gross rent (Census ACS / HUD FMR), and current FRED rate.
Flood risk
Historical signal from FEMA National Flood Insurance Program.
Risk bucket is normalized as historical claims per 1,000 housing units, not raw count, so dense urban counties aren't penalized for size alone. Buckets: low (<1), moderate (1–10), high (10–50), very-high (50+). Lafayette Parish: 20.03 per 1,000. Historical claims do not capture uninsured properties. For parcel-level flood-zone designations, use FEMA's Map Service Center.
Full flood-risk breakdown →Home price trend in Louisiana
FHFA House Price Index, quarterly.
Property tax above state average.
Share of units owner-occupied (Census ACS).
Census ACS 5-year estimate.
Housing cost burden in Lafayette Parish
Share of households paying 30% or more of income on housing (HUD CHAS 2017-2021). HUD does not publish county-level CHAS rollups through the public API, so Louisiana state data is shown for local context alongside the US average.
Affordability by income bracket
Monthly 30% housing budget at each income vs the median owner cost in Lafayette Parish. Bars above the dashed line can absorb this county's typical ownership cost.
HUD area median income (4-person household) for Louisiana: $82,100. Income limits define 80% AMI at $65,700 and 50% AMI at $41,050.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to own a home in Lafayette Parish?
Based on Census ACS, typical total annual cost in Lafayette Parish is around $6,328 ($527 per month), covering property tax, insurance estimate, utilities, and 1% maintenance. Your actual cost varies by home age, size, and location within the county.
What is the property tax in Lafayette Parish?
Median annual property tax is $1,246 on the county's median home value of $222,400 (Census ACS).
Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Lafayette Parish?
On a monthly cash-flow basis, the typical owner-cost-with-mortgage in Lafayette Parish runs about 51% above the county's median rent. That comparison doesn't account for the opportunity cost on your down payment, maintenance reserve, transaction costs, or how long you plan to stay — use the calculator below to model your specific break-even year against your time horizon.
What is the flood risk in Lafayette Parish?
high historical flood-risk signal from FEMA NFIP: 1957 claims (20.03 per 1,000 housing units), average claim $52,950. Bucket reflects claim density, not absolute claim count.
Data sources
- Census ACS 5-year: FIPS 22055
- FEMA NFIP: flood claims aggregation
- HUD Fair Market Rents
- HUD CHAS: cost-burden rollups
- HUD Income Limits
- FHFA HPI
- FRED MORTGAGE30US: as of 2026-05-07