These California cites ranked among ‘most expensive’ urban places to live, study says
Four California cities were considered to be the “most expensive” urban areas based on cost of living expenses.
The Council for Community and Economic Research recently published its quarterly Cost of Living Index for urban areas across the county. The composite index is based on six categories: housing, utilities, grocery items, transportation, health care, and miscellaneous goods and services.
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“The Cost of Living Index measures regional differences in the cost of consumer goods and services, excluding taxes and non-consumer expenditures, for professional and managerial households in the top income quintile,” a news release stated.
Price items for 61 different items were collected quarterly by chambers of commerce, economic development organizations, and university applied economic centers in each participating urban area, according to the report.
About 274 urban areas nationwide participated in the second quarter report for this year. To determine which areas exceeded or were below the national average for cost of living expenses, researchers determined that a score of 100 would represent the national average.
Angelenos who make $70,000 a year are still considered ‘low-income’
These are the most and least expensive urban areas, according to the report
Most Expensive | COL | Least Expensive | COL |
Manhattan, New York | 225.8 | Decatur, Illinois | 78 |
Honolulu, Hawaii | 181.7 | Harlingen, Texas | 79 |
San Jose, California | 174.9 | Conway, Arkansas | 81.6 |
San Francisco, California | 169.6 | McAllen, Texas | 81.8 |
Brooklyn, New York | 163 | Tupelo, Missouri | 82.2 |
L.A/ Long Beach area | 148.8 | Ponca City, Oklahoma | 82.7 |
Washington D.C | 147,8 | Kalamazoo, Michigan | 82.8 |
Orange County, California | 147 | Florence, Alabama | 83.1 |
Boston, Massachusetts | 144.5 | Pittsburg, Kansas | 83.1 |
Seattle, Washington | 143.8 | Muskogee OKlahoma | 83.5 |
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