Folks had something to say about Washington D.C. being the most expensive – Susie wanted to make sure Honolulu was considered, and so did the WSJ.com:
http://blogs.wsj.com/
As it happens, the Department of Commerce directly measures price levels for different regions. These price levels are the average prices paid by consumers for the things they consume. That’s probably what most people mean when they say a place is expensive.
These data show that the most expensive region in the U.S. is Honolulu, followed by New York. The D.C. area is seventh.
The Council for Community and Economic Research produces an index measuring the cost of housing, utilities, grocery items, transportation, health care and goods and services. This is pretty close to the concept people are curious about when they want to know how expensive different cities are. It scores Manhattan as 117% more expensive than most cities (more than double) and Brooklyn 67% more expensive. D.C. is only 38% more expensive, according to their rankings.
Funny… I don’t see Boise in there. 😉
Surprised to see my name! For the record, we didn’t live in Honolulu, but the Big Island. I knew Hawaii should be included on the list and alerted you, Jim, because we actually lived there.
And it’s not just the housing! It’s the cost of food! When we first arrived, we met some new friends and we decided to hit the beach. I said I’d go pick up some sodas and chips while everyone sat in the car. The guy said,”Be sure to bring a $20!” I looked at him in surprise, but chuckled when I came out with the few items. I had a bit of change, but not much.
As for housing, we didn’t buy; we built. A real estate agent we had met said we should just build because my late husband was one of the best finish guys ever. And that’s what we did. A lot of sweat equity, and only 1,248 sf with only a carport. Why do I love real estate so? It doubled in only four years…
TJ, Did you see me winking at you? 🙂