Is Idaho expensive to live in?

On the MERIC index Idaho scored 99.4 in Q2 2026, just under the U.S. average of 100, and ranked 30th among states. Housing alone scored 98.4.

How much debt does the average Idahoan have?

About $69,500 per person with a credit score in 2025, with mortgages making up about 72.5% of household debt (USAFacts, citing New York Fed data).

What is the median home value in Idaho?

The Census puts the median value of owner-occupied homes at $418,600 (ACS 2020 to 2024). The median listing price was $593,000 in September 2026 (Realtor.com via FRED).

Can home equity help with credit card debt?

It can replace high-interest card debt with a secured loan at a potentially lower rate, but your home becomes collateral. Compare a HELOC, a home equity loan and a cash-out refinance, and only borrow what you have a plan to repay.

Idaho debt and cost of living in 2026: what the numbers say

Updated October 21, 2026

Short answer

Idaho has grown fast, home values have climbed faster than incomes, and the average Idahoan with a credit file carries about $69,500 in debt, mostly mortgage (USAFacts, citing New York Fed data, 2025). Overall living costs sit near the national average (MERIC, Q2 2026). The pressure point for many households is high-interest card debt, while the equity in their homes sits untouched.

By Good Co. Broker Club (company NMLS #2440270)

Idaho kept growing

Idaho had an estimated 2,029,733 residents on July 1, 2025, up 10.4% from the April 2020 count of 1,839,123 (U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts). If it feels like there are more trucks on Highway 20, the census agrees.

Home values ran ahead of paychecks

Idaho median household income: $77,800 in 2024 dollars (Census ACS 2020 to 2024).
Median value of owner-occupied homes in Idaho: $418,600 (Census ACS 2020 to 2024). That is about 5.4 times the median household income, by our math from those two Census figures.
Idaho homeownership rate: 72.1% (Census ACS 2020 to 2024).
Idaho median listing price: $593,000 in September 2026 (Realtor.com, via FRED series MEDLISPRIID).
Idaho Falls median sale price: $393,233 for January to March 2026, down 2.9% from $404,933 a year earlier (Redfin data reported by Stacker, April 30, 2026).

Everyday costs are about average. Debt is the squeeze.

Idaho's cost of living index was 99.4 in Q2 2026, where the U.S. average is 100, ranking 30th among states; the housing index was 98.4 (MERIC). So Idaho is not an expensive state on paper. The squeeze shows up in debt. The average Idaho resident with a credit score carried about $69,500 in debt in 2025, and mortgages made up about 72.5% of household debt (USAFacts, citing the New York Fed Center for Microeconomic Data).

The part that hurts is the card balance. Commercial bank credit card accounts that were charged interest carried an average rate of 22.15% in Q2 2026 (Federal Reserve G.19, released October 7, 2026). As plain arithmetic, a $20,000 balance at 22.15% costs about $369 a month in interest alone, before a dollar of principal.

Meanwhile, the equity sits there

Nationally, mortgage holders had about $11.7 trillion in tappable equity in Q2 2026, roughly $212,000 per mortgage holder on average, and total mortgage-holder equity hit a record $18 trillion (ICE Mortgage Monitor, August 2026). ICE does not publish an Idaho breakout, but with Idaho values where they are, many Idaho owners who bought or refinanced years ago are sitting on real equity.

What Idaho families can do about it

List every balance with its rate. Most people have never seen the total on one page.
Pay the highest-rate balance first if you can clear it in about a year and a half. If you can, you may not need to borrow at all.
If the balance is bigger than that, compare the tools that use home equity: a cash-out refinance, a home equity loan, or a HELOC. Each trades your home as collateral for a potentially lower rate, so it is a serious decision. See HELOC vs cash-out refinance in Idaho.
Run your own numbers before talking to anyone. The free Payment Truth calculator compares your current card payments with a fixed payment, and it does not ask for a phone number.
Talk with someone local. We are one of you, not an ivory tower banker, and as a broker we compare options from several lenders.

Common questions

Is Idaho expensive to live in?: On the MERIC index Idaho scored 99.4 in Q2 2026, just under the U.S. average of 100, and ranked 30th among states. Housing alone scored 98.4.
How much debt does the average Idahoan have?: About $69,500 per person with a credit score in 2025, with mortgages making up about 72.5% of household debt (USAFacts, citing New York Fed data).
What is the median home value in Idaho?: The Census puts the median value of owner-occupied homes at $418,600 (ACS 2020 to 2024). The median listing price was $593,000 in September 2026 (Realtor.com via FRED).
Can home equity help with credit card debt?: It can replace high-interest card debt with a secured loan at a potentially lower rate, but your home becomes collateral. Compare a HELOC, a home equity loan and a cash-out refinance, and only borrow what you have a plan to repay.

Sources

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