CitytisticsShortlist

Cost of living, pay and housing

26.12° N · 97.49° W · GEOID 4841728

Laureles

Cameron County, Texas · part of the Brownsville, TX metro

Limited data population under 5,000, core figures borrowed from county or metro: median_household_income

TexasLaureles, TXLaurelesLaureles

The short answer

Laureles is home to 4,224 people. Median household income is $52,601 a year and median rent is $873 a month, 19.9% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is lighter than in most places. The median home is valued at $152,400, about 2.9x annual median household income.

Median gross rent
$873
36% below the median place
Median household income
$52,601
34% below the median place
Median home value
$152,400
52% below the median place
Unemployment
5.9%
21% above the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about Laureles

  • Households average 4.03 people, larger than in 99% of the 2,480 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 3rd-highest of 415 Texas places.
  • 35.4% of residents live below the poverty line, more than in 98% of places its size.
  • The median resident is 29.9 years old, younger than in 95% of places its size.
  • 28% of residents were born outside the US, more than in 92% of places its size.
  • The median home is valued at $152,400, less than in 84% of places its size.
01

Moving to Laureles

Cameron County loses about 4.5 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in9,343
Moved out10,918
Net−1,575

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Within Texas, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within TexasOther statesAbroad

Income per tax return

Arrivals$63K
Leavers$54K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of Cameron County; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
2.8% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 0.0% from another state. County figure.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into Cameron County report $63,100 a year in income on average; those leaving, $53,600, so newcomers earn more than leavers.
Income you would need
$34,900 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $873 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $1,233 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $152,400.
Getting to work
26 minutes each way on average; 20.9% work from home.
If it is close but not quite
Eagle Pass, TX matches it on character. Compare the two
Moved from another state1
0.0%
below the median place (median 2.0%)
Moved here in the past year1
2.8%
51% below the median place
Income of households moving out6
$53,607
24% below the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureLaurelesAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year1County figure2.8%51% below
Moved from another state10.0%below (median 2.0%)
Net movers per 1,000 people6County figure-4.5below (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in6County figure$63,10911% below
Income of households moving out6County figure$53,60724% below
02

What it costs to live here

Property tax paid (median) is $1,102, 66% below the median place.

Laureles19.9%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$34,920
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
19.9%
2% below the median place
Home price to income
2.9x
24% below the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
20%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$46,300
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Laureles, $873 a month, and local prices for everything else (91.8 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Like Laureles, but easier on the budget

Close matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, where rent takes a clearly smaller share of income.

PlaceRent to incomeMore left a year
Marshall, MO16.8% vs 19.9%n/aCompare
Atchison, KS16.2% vs 19.9%n/aCompare
Magnolia, AR13.5% vs 19.9%n/aCompare

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Laureles.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Laureles? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Property tax paid (median)1
$1,102
66% below the median place
Median home value1
$152,400
52% below the median place
Owner costs with a mortgage1
$1,233
34% below the median place
All 15 cost and housing measures
MeasureLaurelesAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$87336% below
Rent to income119.9%2% below
Property tax rate10.7%21% below
Home price to income12.9x24% below
Prices vs US average2Metro figure86.015% below
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$1,04235% below
Property tax paid (median)1$1,10266% below
Median home value1$152,40052% below
Home prices, 1-year change4County figure0.1%96% below
Home prices, 5-year change4County figure55.1%7% above
Homeownership181.4%23% above
Renters paying 30%+1County figure49.8%2% below
Owner costs with a mortgage1$1,23334% below
Vacant homes1County figure13.3%89% above
Median year built119951% above
03

Work and pay

Commutes by transit is 0.0%, below the median place (median 0.8%).

Commutes by transit1
0.0%
below the median place (median 0.8%)
Income per person1
$13,389
67% below the median place
Poverty rate1
35.4%
228% above the median place
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureLaurelesAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1County figure$52,60134% below
Income per person1$13,38967% below
Unemployment1County figure5.9%21% above
Average annual pay5County figure$47,04229% below
Pay growth, 1 year5County figure5.5%49% above
Jobs5County figure154,6733% above
Poverty rate135.4%228% above
Mean commute126 min4% above
Works from home120.9%67% above
Commutes by transit10.0%below (median 0.8%)
04

Who lives here

No health insurance is 41.7%, above the median place (median 6.4%).

No health insurance1
41.7%
above the median place (median 6.4%)
High school or higher1
47.5%
49% below the median place
Household size1
4.0
61% above the median place

More about who lives here, against the typical place

Median age29.9 −23%
Born abroad27.8% 3.1×
Homes with broadband88.4% −4%
All 8 people measures
MeasureLaurelesAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population14,2246646th largest
Median age129.923% below
Bachelor's or higher1County figure22.1%31% below
High school or higher147.5%49% below
Household size14.061% above
Born abroad127.8%214% above
No health insurance141.7%above (median 6.4%)
Homes with broadband188.4%4% below
05

Life in Laureles

36 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places, 4 of them National Historic Landmarks.

Out the door, against the typical place

Parks per 10k residents4.7 −53%
Playgrounds per 10k0.0 −100%
Grocery stores per 10k0.0 −100%
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k0.0 −100%
Libraries per 10k0.0 −100%
Named paths and bike trails2 km +5%
Bus and rail stops per sq mi0.0 −100%

Mapped by volunteers in OpenStreetMap inside the city limits (Census boundaries), so coverage is fuller in some places than others. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars17.8 −14%
Shops24.3 −20%
Arts, recreation and fitness1.6 −61%
Doctors' offices and clinics17.7 −12%
Child care centers3.7 +61%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k7
1.6
61% below the median place
Child care centers per 10k7
3.7
61% above the median place
Public schools10
172
above the median place (median 9)
All 16 schools and local life measures
MeasureLaurelesAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools10County figure172above (median 9)
Public school students10County figure95,317above (median 4,897)
Students per teacher10County figure15.21% below
Restaurants and bars per 10k7County figure17.814% below
Shops per 10k7County figure24.320% below
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k7County figure1.661% below
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k7County figure17.712% below
Child care centers per 10k7County figure3.761% above
Parks per 10k84.753% below
Playgrounds per 10k80.0below (median 9.4)
Grocery stores per 10k80.0below (median 2.1)
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k80.0below (median 11.2)
Libraries per 10k80.0below (median 0.9)
Named paths and bike trails82.15% above
Transit stops per sq mi80.0below (median 0.2)
National Register listings9County figure36177% above
06

Safety, weather and risk

Average temperature is 75°F, 36% above the median place.

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Laureles. Larger places are fetched first.

Average temperature11
75°F
36% above the median place
January average low11
51°F
104% above the median place
Hurricane risk12
99.0
40% above the median place
All 11 weather and risk measures
MeasureLaurelesAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high11County figure94°F9% above
January average low11County figure51°F104% above
Average temperature11County figure75°F36% above
Annual precipitation11County figure25.6 in42% below
Natural hazard risk12County figure97.35% above
Hurricane risk12County figure99.040% above
Tornado risk12County figure85.25% above
Wildfire risk12County figure83.837% above
Heat wave risk12County figure97.38% above
Median air quality index13County figure5733% above
Good air days13County figure29.9%56% below
08

Laureles in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 31% of the median income in 2030, up from 30% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$873/mo (2024)$1,120/mo$920 to $1,360/mo+4.2%
Median household income$34,771 (2024)$43,500$37,000 to $51,500+3.9%
Median home value$152,400 (2024)$250,000$181,000 to $344,000+8.6%

The median home would be worth 5.7 years of the median income in 2030, against 4.4 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like Laureles

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Eagle Pass, TX$880$57,207Compare
Newberry, SC$831$51,260Compare
Emporia, KS$815$52,704Compare
Brownsville, TX$923$52,130Compare
Brownsville, TXEmporia, KSNewberry, SCEagle Pass, TXLaureles, TXLaurelesEagle PassNewberryEmporiaBrownsvilleLaurelesEagle PassNewberryEmporiaBrownsville

Common questions

Is Laureles a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. Households average 4.03 people, larger than in 99% of the 2,480 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the 3rd-highest of 415 Texas places. 35.4% of residents live below the poverty line, more than in 98% of places its size. On cost, space and class size it scores 77 out of 100 for families. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Laureles expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 19.9% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a lighter load here than usual. The median home is valued at $152,400.

What salary do you need to live in Laureles?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $34,920 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Laureles?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Eagle Pass, TX, Newberry, SC, Emporia, KS and Brownsville, TX.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  5. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  6. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  7. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  8. OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
  9. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  10. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  11. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  12. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps
  13. Air Quality System, annual AQI by county · US Environmental Protection Agency · 2025 dataAirData download files

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares Laureles with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Laureles itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/laureles-texas

Citytistics. “Laureles, Texas.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/laureles-texas/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.