The total number of housing units in this community, as of the 2000 census, is 270,536 with 258,510 (96%) occupied and 12,026 (4%) vacant. There are 270,536 (100.00%) urban housing units with 270,536 (100.00%) inside urbanized areas.

Occupied Housing

Among the occupied housing units (total 258,510), 125,151 (48%) are owner occupied and 133,359 (52%) are renter occupied. The status of the vacant housing units (total 12,026) are: for rent 5,101 (42%), for sale only 2,011 (17%), rented or sold (not occupied) 1,671 (14%), for seasonal/recreational/occasional use 1,990 (17%), other reasons units are vacant 1,253 (10%).

Household Size

The average household size of occupied housing units is 2.3 people for owner occupied and 1.8 people for renter occupied. For owner occupied housing units (total 125,151), the number of occupants per room is: 0.50 or less occupants 102,877 (82.20%), 0.51 to 1.00 occupants 19,378 (15.48%), 1.01 to 1.50 occupants 1,712 (1.37%), 1.51 to 2.00 occupants 886 (0.71%), 2.01 or more occupants 298 (0.24%). For renter occupied housing units (total 133,359 (106.56%)), the number of occupants per room is: 0.50 or less occupants 76,704 (61.29%), 0.51 to 1.00 occupants 46,972 (37.53%), 1.01 to 1.50 occupants 3,290 (2.63%), 1.51 to 2.00 occupants 4,715 (3.77%), 2.01 or more occupants 1,678 (1.34%). For all housing units, the median number of rooms is 4.4.

Number of Units

The number of units in the structure are: 1 unit–detached 132,908 (49.13%), 1 unit-attached 5,919 (2.19%), 2 units 9,684 (3.58%), 3 or 4 units 12,178 (4.50%), 5 to 9 units 18,935 (7.00%), 10 to 19 units 23,852 (8.82%), 20 to 49 units 33,991 (12.56%), 50 or more units 31,708 (11.72%), mobile home units 581 (0.21%), boat/RV/van/etc units 780 (0.29%).

Utilities, Cars and Kitchens

For occupied housing units, the type of heating fuel is: utility gas 91,726 (35.48%), bottled/tank/LP gas 2,051 (0.79%), electricity 126,143 (48.80%), fuel oil/kerosene/etc 33,889 (13.11%), Wood 689 (0.27%), solar energy 38 (0.01%), Other fuel 2,753 (1.06%), No fuel used 1,210 (0.47%). For occupied housing units, the number of vehicles available is: No vehicle 42,180 (16.32%), 1 vehicle 109,813 (42.48%), 2 vehicles 77,961 (30.16%), 3 vehicles 20,897 (8.08%), 4 vehicles 5,385 (2.08%), 5 or more vehicles 2,274 (0.88%). Among all housing units, the number of units lacking complete kitchen facilities is 2,778 (1.03%). The number of occupied housing units without complete plumbing facilities is 1,983 (0.77%).

Rent

The median gross rent, which includes utilities, is $721.

Value and Mortgages

The range of values for owner occupied housing units, as of the 2000 census, are: lower quartile $191,400, median $259,600, upper quartile $370,800. The mortgage status for owner-occupied housing units (total 102,718) is a mixture of mortgages (primary), second mortgages and home equity loans. The number of housing units with a mortgage, contract to purchase, or similar debt is 74,340 (72.37%). The number with either a second mortgage or home equity loan, but not both is 16,906 (16.46%). Those with second mortgages only equals 7,751 (7.55%). Those with home equity loan only equals 9,155 (8.91%). The number with both a second mortgage and a home equity loan is 429 (0.42%). Those with no second mortgage and no home equity loan equals 57,005 (55.50%). The number of housing units without a mortgage is 28,378 (27.63%).

Ownership Costs

The median monthly owner costs for owner-occupied housing units is $1,497 for units with a mortgage and $406 for units without a mortgage. The median monthly owner costs as a percentage of household income is 24.10% for units with a mortgage and 11.50% for units without a mortgage. The median household income for owner-occupied units is $66,248and for renter-occupied units is $31,764. The median real estate taxes for owner-occupied units is $2,436.

Note: Housing and Rental prices are based on the 2000 census, thus they may not represent current prices.