Home / Chicago Home Sellers / Chicago home tips / Moving To A New City? Check The Local Cost Of Living First.
It’s not only the real estate markets that differ from town to town — the Cost of Living does, too.
Insurance costs, tax bills and just plain, day-to-day living will dent a household budget differently depending on where that household is. It can be a nerve-wracking fact for families moving across state borders.
As an aid for the budget-aware, Bankrate.com keeps a Cost of Living Comparison Calculator on its website. The calculator asks 3 questions: (1) Where do you live now, (2) To where you are moving, and (3) What is your salary. It then spits out a detailed, 58-item cost comparison list between the two cities.
Some of the key costs compared include:
The Cost of Living Comparison Calculator is thorough, with data culled from the ACCRA. You’ll be surprised at how granular the list can get. On the ACCRA website, you can buy a similar report for $5.
On the Bankrate.com site, the data is free.
March 15th, 2010 at 8:21 pm
Great reminder - this was quite noticeable when I moved from Chicago to a small town in Michigan. At first I was surprised at how low the average job paid, but it does equal out both in housing as well as general living expenses. I imagine going the other way (small town to big city) would be a shock as well!