What it's like to live in Lorain
Lorain is a smaller city in Ohio with rent below the national average, home prices that remain within reach, and schools with class sizes near the national average. Those factors carry real weight for anyone weighing where to move next.
The tradeoffs are worth naming plainly. Lorain deals with household incomes below the national average, crime rates above the national average, college degree attainment below the national average, and hospital ratings below the national average.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Affordable home prices
- Average class sizes
The not so good
- Below-average household incomes
- Crime above national average
- Low college degree attainment
- Below-average hospital ratings
- High poverty rate
- High rent burden for renters
How Lorain compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Lorain
Based on Lorain's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$1,774
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $35,480 a year
- 51% of Lorain renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$27,840
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $13,920
- Homes cost 2.9× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▼ 37% below US
$887/mo median rent
Rent here is genuinely low, with median rent around $887 a month. Factoring in local incomes, the value gets even better. Money stretches further here than in most of the country. Home prices here are genuinely accessible, with a median around $139,200. That kind of affordability is rare in today's market.
Median home value $139,200 · 51% of renters cost-burdened
Job market▲ 23% above US
5.3% unemployment
Unemployment here is 5.3%, somewhat above the national average of 4.3%. Lining up work before the move is the safer route.
City-level (BLS)
Safety▲ 71% above US
565 violent crimes per 100k
Crime is worth weighing seriously here. Rates run above the national average, and while plenty of residents live comfortably, neighborhood selection matters a lot more than it does in a safer city.
Property crime 1356/100k · Lorain Police Department · 2025 data
Getting aroundNear US average
25 min average commute
Commutes run about average, at 24.9 minutes. Fine day to day, but it adds up over a year, and where someone lives relative to where they work starts to matter. 9 in 10 workers drive to work; 7% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are warm, with highs around 80°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 22°F and snow a regular occurrence.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Healthcare
2 hospitals
There are 2 Medicare-certified hospitals inside city limits. They average 2.0 out of 5 on Medicare's star rating.
Medicare-certified hospitals
Education & workforce▼ 59% below US
15% bachelor's degree or higher
This is a working-class city, and college degree rates reflect that. Trades, manufacturing, and service industries tend to dominate the local economy, which is a strength for some fields and a real constraint for others.
Schools
22 public schools inside the boundary
There are 22 public schools inside the boundary and 1 private school. The student-to-teacher ratio is 17:1, close to the national average of 16:1.
Parks & recreation
The nearest national park or historic site is Cuyahoga Valley National Park (34 miles away). There are 5 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Lorain's strongest points are rent below the national average and home prices that remain within reach; the main tradeoffs are household incomes below the national average and crime rates above the national average. A year of median rent ($887/mo) equals 22% of the median household income here, about the same as the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget. It may be a harder fit for anyone who doesn't drive.
Other places near Lorain
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