Cost of Living and Housing in Imperial, California

Imperial has about 21,430 residents. Median gross rent is $1,255 per month and median household income is $90,195.

Comparison scope: “dataset median” below means the median among 1,211 cities across 10 states in this dataset. It is not presented as a nationwide Census median. The figures use 2020-2024 ACS 5-Year estimates and may lag current listings.

Median Gross Rent $1,255/mo 24% below the dataset median

Median Home Value $360,900 4% below the dataset median

Median Household Income $90,195 7% above the dataset median

Owner-Occupied Homes 69% Share of occupied housing units

Rent-to-Income Baseline 17% Annual median rent ÷ household income

Home Value-to-Income 4.0x Median value ÷ household income

How Imperial compares

Rent is 24% below the dataset median, while household income is 7% above the dataset median. Within California, Imperial ranks #18 from lowest to highest rent and #217 from highest to lowest household income among 347 cities in this dataset.

The rent-to-income figure compares two citywide medians. It is useful for broad comparison, but it is not an individual household budget or a measure of renter cost burden.

Similar-size cities in California

Frequently asked questions

What is the median rent in Imperial?

Median gross rent is $1,255 per month in the 2020-2024 ACS 5-Year estimates.

What is the median home value in Imperial?

The median value of owner-occupied homes is $360,900 in the 2020-2024 ACS 5-Year estimates.

What is the median household income?

Median household income in Imperial is $90,195 per year.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2020-2024 ACS 5-Year Estimates. Local database refreshed 2026-07-11.