Wilmette Ranks As 5th Most Expensive Town In Illinois For Household Bills

WILMETTE, IL — According to a recent report, Illinois residents pay an average of 4 percent more on household bills than the U.S. average, while Wilmette residents pay even more.

Doxo, an online bill payment service, released a report ranking the highest and lowest towns and cities in Illinois for household expenses.

DoxoInsights took a look at 227 towns and cities in Illinois, as well as the rest of the country, for the report.

According to the report, the average household in Wilmette pays $3,318 per month ($39,811 per year) on the 10 most common household bills, which ranks it as the 5th most expensive town in Illinois. Nationally, Americans pay $2,126 monthly on average for all services.

In addition, Wilmette's household bills are 56 percent higher than the U.S. average in the "Cost of Bills Index" — household bills expense per month, including housing.

Bills in Wilmette households are $14,298 per year higher than the U.S. average.

According to the report, household bills account for 22 percent of annual household income, which averages $179,700 in Wilmette.

The report looked at mortgage, rent, auto loans, utilities, auto insurance, health insurance, mobile phone, cable and internet, alarm and security and life insurance.

Not all of them are above the national average — Wilmette residents pay less than average on utilities, health insurance and mobile phones than the average American household.

Here is a breakdown of how much households in Wilmette pay every month for each service compared to the rest of the country.

• Mortgage — Wilmette residents pay $3,778 monthly vs. national average of $1,402 per month
• Rent — residents pay $1,918 vs. national average ($1,300)
• Auto loans — residents pay $509 vs. national average ($496)
• Utilities — residents pay $300 vs. national average ($362)
• Auto insurance — residents pay $208 vs. national average ($209)
• Health insurance — residents pay $102 vs. national average ($114)
• Mobile phone — residents pay $118 vs. national average ($121)
• Cable and internet — residents pay $122 vs. national average ($122)
• Life insurance — residents pay $88 vs. national average ($87)
• Alarm and security — residents pay $91 vs. national average ($85)

Four of the other top 10 highest-spending towns in Illinois are located north of Wilmette on Chicago's North Shore. (Note: Kenilworth is not included in the ranking.) According to the report, the most expensive cities/towns for household bills in Illinois are:

1. Hinsdale — $3,551 in household bills per month
2. Winnetka — $3,541
3. Deerfield — $3,464
4. Barrington — $3,355
5. Wilmette — $3,318
6. Highland Park — $3,314
7. Lake Zurich — $3,271
8. Lake Forest — $3,255
9. Yorkville — $3,020
10. Mokena — $2,977