‘Gilmore Girls’: What Would Lorelai Gilmore’s House Be Worth Today?

Gilmore Girls fans have often swooned over the house that Lorelai and Rory Gilmore shared. It’s quaint and cute and perfectly fits their personalities. It is also the perfect example of the contrast between the mother-daughter duo and their family members, Richard and Emily Gilmore, who’s expansive home had 12 different secret escape routes. While the home, itself, doesn’t exist, it’s pretty easy to figure out just how much a house with similar specs would have cost when purchased and what it would be worth today if it were real.

What town is Stars Hollow based on?

Stars Hollow is a fictional town, but Amy Sherman-Palladino has been pretty open about the fact that Washington Depot, Connecticut, is the real town that Stars Hollow is based on. According to the New York Times, Sherman-Palladino created the village after staying at a five-star inn in the small hamlet. The rest is history. While Stars Hollow may be fictitious, there is enough information about Washington Depot to figure out how much Lorelai and Rory’s adorable home would cost.

While Stars Hollow was portrayed as a small working-class town, its inspiration is decidedly upper-middle-class. The average household income in Washington Depot in 2018 was more than $181,000 per year, and the majority of the town’s 1,074 residents were employed in white-collar lines of work.

How much would Lorelai’s home have cost?

Lorelai’s house was relatively small in comparison to homes that exist in the show’s inspiration town. In Washington Dept, new construction that offers over 5,000 square feet of living space appears to be the norm. Older homes, however, can be found in the greater Washington-area.  The larger Washington, Connecticut area has an average home price of around $600,000. Two-bedroom properties in the area have an average sale price of approximately $415,000 currently, according to Zillow.

Lorelai never mentions how much she paid for her home, but it is stated that she purchased the property after saving up enough money from working at the Independence Inn. Rory and Lorelai lived on the inn’s property, presumably rent-free until Rory was about 11. Looking at property records dating back to the 1990s, it’s safe to assume Lorelai probably plunked down around $200,000 for the fictional, two-bedroom living space.

Could Lorelai afford to live in her home?

Assuming that Lorelai saved enough money for a hefty down payment, she could theoretically swing her house payment, but not much else. Lorelai likely made around $50,000 as a manager at the Independence Inn, after taxes, she’d be taking home about $3,000 per month. Lorelai would be paying roughly $1,000 just to keep her home and an additional $4,000 per year in property taxes. Utilities would likely cost an additional $500 per month.

While the numbers make sense, what would have likely broken the bank was Lorelai and Rory’s propensity to eat out and order take out. The duo never cooked in their home, save for a frozen pizza here and there. Their addiction to junk food and take out would have easily tacked an additional $1,000 onto their monthly budget if they ate out for two meals each day, every day of the workweek.