Los Angeles vs Rochester Hills
The short version
- Rochester Hills is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 12% lower than in the Los Angeles area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $409,800 in Rochester Hills and $921,200 in Los Angeles.
- Households earn more in Rochester Hills ($120,694 vs $81,939 median).
- Los Angeles has the warmer winter: January highs of 68°F vs 31°F.
- Rochester Hills gets far more snow: 36 inches a year vs 0.
- Rochester Hills is growing faster: +1.6% since 2020 vs -0.8%.
- Commutes are shorter in Rochester Hills (24 vs 31 minutes each way).
Side by side
| Los Angeles, CA | Rochester Hills, MI | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 3,869,089 | 77,539 |
| Growth since 2020 | -0.8% | +1.6% |
| People per square mile | 8,223 | 2,364 |
| Median age | 37.2 | 41.0 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 39% | 61% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $81,939 | $120,694 |
| Median home value | $921,200 | $409,800 |
| Home value to income | 11.2× | 3.4× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $1,933 | $1,644 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 113.6 | 100.3 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 170.4 | 94.7 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $85,200 | $75,200 |
| Homeowners | 36% | 77% |
| Top state income tax | 13.3% | 4.25% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.03% | 6% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 30.7 | 24.3 |
| Work from home | 20% | 24% |
| Take public transit | 6% | 0% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 8.2% | 4.1% |
| Poverty rate | 16.5% | 5.2% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 68° / 49° | 31° / 17° |
| July high / low | 82° / 65° | 82° / 63° |
| Precipitation per year | 14 in | 34 in |
| Snowfall per year | 0 in | 36 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 26 | 10 |
| Nights below freezing | 0 | 135 |
| Comfortable months | 12 | 5 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Very High | Relatively High |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 100.0 | 97.5 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 11% | 36% |
| Home prices, past year | +1.2% | +4.4% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +31.9% | +39.6% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: Los Angeles: January to December. Rochester Hills: May to September.
Full monthly tables: Los Angeles weather by month and Rochester Hills weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $85,200 in Los Angeles and $75,200 in Rochester Hills. Moving from Los Angeles to Rochester Hills, you would need about $66,200 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Los Angeles and Rochester Hills
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Los Angeles and Rochester Hills.
Which would you pick?
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