What it's like to live in Reading
Reading is a small city in Ohio with rent below the national average, home prices that remain within reach, commutes that run shorter than most cities, 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. Reading deals with household incomes below the national average, air quality that falls short of national benchmarks, and cold winters.
The good
- Rent below the national average
- Affordable home prices
- Short commutes
- Average class sizes
The not so good
- Below-average household incomes
- Air quality concerns
- Cold winters
How Reading compares
Median household income
Median rent (per month)
Median home value
What it takes to move to Reading
Based on Reading's median rent, home value and household income
To rent
$1,880
up front: first month plus a typical one-month deposit
- Income to keep rent under 30%: $37,600 a year
- 42% of Reading renters spend 30% or more of their income on rent
To buy
$42,260
a 20% down payment on the median home
- With 10% down: $21,130
- Homes cost 3.4× the typical local household income (US: 4.1×)
Moving costs, closing costs and taxes not included.
The details
Cost of living▼ 33% below US
$940/mo median rent
Rent here is genuinely low, with median rent around $940 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 $211,300. That kind of affordability is rare in today's market.
Median home value $211,300 · 42% of renters cost-burdened
Job market
4.6% county unemployment
Unemployment in Hamilton County is 4.6%, close to the national average of 4.3%. That's the county-wide rate; BLS doesn't measure a place this size on its own.
Hamilton County (county-wide)
Safety▼ 14% below US
284 violent crimes per 100k
Crime runs about typical for a city this size. Some neighborhoods are safer than others, and one overall rate doesn't tell the whole story, so a neighborhood-level look matters more than the headline stat.
Property crime 2120/100k · Reading Police Department · 2025 data
Getting around▼ 30% below US
18 min average commute
Commutes are reasonable, averaging 18.1 minutes. Nothing heroic, and there's still time left over for a life after work. 8 in 10 workers drive to work; 20% work from home.
How workers get to work
Climate
Summers are warm, with highs around 85°F, and winters are cold, with lows around 26°F and snow a regular occurrence. Rainfall is regular throughout the year.
Average month
30-year averages, 1991–2020
Education & workforce▼ 32% below US
25% bachelor's degree or higher
College degree attainment runs below average at 25%. That tends to reflect a more trade and working-class economy, which can be great or limiting depending on the industry.
Schools
3 public schools inside the boundary
There are 3 public schools inside the boundary and 2 private schools. 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 William Howard Taft National Historic Site (8 miles away). There are 5 national parks and sites within a day's drive.
Bottom line
Reading'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 air quality that falls short of national benchmarks. A year of median rent ($940/mo) equals 18% of the median household income here, less than the 21% typical nationwide. It tends to suit people watching their budget, remote workers (20% of workers here already work from home), and people who want short commutes.
Other places near Reading
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