Massachusetts Named One of the Most Expensive States For Monthly Bills

Work. Get Paid. Pay the bills. Go back to work because you are broke.

Does that sound like your life? If you live in Massachusetts, it could well be because we "Massholes" have the third-highest monthly debt load in the nation.

Only residents of California and Hawaii have a higher monthly debt load than we do, but not by much.

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Massachusetts Ranks Third in Nationwide Bill Burden

doxoINSIGHTS reported that the median monthly bill total in Massachusetts is $2,668, or 29.5 percent of your total household income. That's 28 percent higher than the national average. That's $32,016 per year, some $6,875 more than the national average.

How Other New England States Compare

Connecticut is eighth with a monthly bill total of $2,392. New Hampshire is tenth ($2,321), and Rhode Island is eleventh ($2,290). Vermont is in 22nd place ($2,020), and Maine is 26th ($1,864).

Massachusetts Residents Pay The Third-Highest Monthly Bills

Housing and Utilities Drive High State Expenses

MassLive took a deep dive into the report's findings on the cost of living in Massachusetts each month: "Most of that money is soaked up in rent or mortgage payments," it reported. "The report analyzes 13 of the most common bills Americans spend on, including housing, utilities, insurance, cable and satellite, and other expenses."

The study finds that the average monthly mortgage payment in Massachusetts is $2,346 and that 42 percent of households own their own home, while 36 percent of households rent at an average of $1,783 per month.

Auto loans, auto insurance, electric, cable and satellite, water and sewer, and gas – in that order – are some of the top monthly expenses for Massachusetts households. That's followed by waste and recycling, mobile phone, life insurance, health insurance, and alarm and security.

doxoINSIGHTS found that Americans spend $3.73 trillion on household bills annually.