A Couple Reminders that Where You Live Can Cost You Dearly

I've talked quite a bit about the fact that where you live can make a big impact on your finances (in fact, moving to a lower cost-of-living city is one of my most-hated money saving tips.) And recently, I ran into a couple of articles that reminded me of this fact. Here are some highlights from each of them:

• Where Everyday U.S. Costs Are Cheapest and Priciest -- Yes, some cities are more expensive to live in (no surprise here.) These cities also generally have higher salaries, so some of the high costs are offset. But as I've shown, the higher salaries don't make up for the higher costs.

• The Best Places to Raise Your Kids -- Combines information to get "best" and "most affordable" all in one shot. Interesting piece.

Obviously there are tons of other reasons you might live in one place versus another (family, weather, enjoyment of city's entertainment opportunities, etc.), but if you have a choice, cost-of-living is certainly one factor you'll want to consider since it can make a HUGE impact on your net worth over the long haul.

Comments

[Mel]

Just wanted to say that I have moved to a lower cost area and LOVE it. Long Island to Phoenix is a BIG change in cost of living. Yes, I had to give up some things (nearby family chiefest among them) but I now live in a reasonable amount of space for my family (rather than an overpriced shoe-box) and can afford to do some of those things I like to do, like go out to stage shows and take my kid to the zoo.

And now I have the opportunity to think about buying a house in a few years rather than 10...

Don't knock it people, it works.

[PennySeeds.com]

You could try finding a smaller, and lower cost city that's very close to a large bustling one. I live in a tiny town, but it's right smack in the middle of two larger ones.

The cost of living for housing is cheaper here than in the town I work - and consequently the pay is also better there.

[Miss M]

Yeah, I'm probably one of the haters! J/K. I'm one of those who lives in a really high priced area and often laments how it impacts my finances. But again, our careers are here (and one of us is unemployable in the rest of the country), our families are here and I like 80 degrees in Decemeber. We're still eating out of the vegetable garden, which will continue to produce tomoatoes and eggplants through the winter. Also, my career requires I live in a somewhat major city. Until I retire the country life is not in the cards.