In the United States, housing prices and cost of living vary greatly from state to state, even with similar incomes, leading to different qualities of life.
For many Chinese, when thinking about living in the United States, the first places that come to mind are California and New York, as well as famous cities like New York City, San Francisco, or Los Angeles. However, living in major metropolitan areas in the U.S. is generally not cheap. Data shows that these three cities are among the most expensive cities in the world in terms of cost of living, with high housing prices and significant expenses for daily groceries.
The U.S. Department of Labor released data on Thursday (July 11) showing that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for June decreased by 0.1% month-on-month but increased by 3% year-on-year, marking the lowest annual growth rate in over three years. Housing costs have been a key factor for the Federal Reserve in addressing inflation issues, as housing carries significant weight in the CPI. The latest report indicates that the increase in housing costs in June slowed compared to May, rising by 0.2% month-on-month and 5.2% year-on-year.
According to a recent report from the White House, food prices have significantly cooled off since reaching their peak in 2022. Coupled with rising wages and declines in prices for some categories of goods, this means that the impact of high food inflation on Americans is gradually decreasing. However, surveys show that consumers are still struggling to adapt to the high prices of food today.
Joanne Hsu, Director of Consumer Research at the University of Michigan, stated, “Consumers are still very concerned about high prices, with a significant proportion telling us that high prices are eroding their quality of life. High prices will continue to affect the lives of many people.”
Fortunately, there are some states in the U.S. with lower average costs of living, allowing residents to maintain a high quality of life.
CNBC reported on July 12 that they ranked the cost of living in each state based on the Price Index for various goods and services calculated by the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER), while also considering housing affordability. The new situation in 2024 is that with the worsening housing insurance crisis, the cost of insuring a medium-priced home is being factored in using the latest available data.
Here are the top ten most expensive and cheapest states to live in the U.S. in 2024 according to CNBC’s rankings:
– The San Francisco Bay Area boasts some of the highest housing prices in the country, with an average price of $1.7 million in San Jose, according to CNBC.
– Honolulu ranks fourth in the world for housing prices according to the Demographia International Housing Affordability annual report. Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego also rank in the top ten globally for housing prices.
– According to calculations by the “Blueprint” financial team of USA Today, residents in Massachusetts have an average annual income of $86,840, the highest in the U.S.
– Boston, a major city in Massachusetts, has an average housing price of over $960,000 according to CNBC’s data.
– The average housing price in Honolulu, Hawaii’s capital, exceeds $1.67 million.
– Bozeman, a city in the state widely known as the “Queen City of the Rockies” neighboring Yellowstone National Park, has an average housing price of over $790,000 according to CNBC.
– Denver, a well-known city in the state, has an average housing price of over $650,000 according to CNBC.
– Seattle has an average housing price exceeding $1 million according to CNBC.
– Providence in Rhode Island has an average housing price close to $500,000 according to CNBC.
– Manhattan leads the Cost of Living Index by the Council for Community and Economic Research.
– Manhattan’s steep prices are also influenced by wealth concentration, with New York City having the highest number of millionaires in the country at 350,000, many of whom live in Manhattan.
– The average housing price in Manhattan is a staggering $2.67 million according to CNBC.
The escalating insurance crisis in Florida has worsened factors against homeowners, with a Redfin survey showing that nearly three-quarters of homeowners report rising insurance costs or changes in coverage.
– Salt Lake City has an average housing price of $640,000 according to CNBC.
And the top ten most affordable states to live in the U.S. in 2024 are:
1. West Virginia
2. Iowa
3. Michigan
4. Ohio
5 (tied). Illinois
5 (tied). Indiana
7. Pennsylvania
8. Missouri
9. Kansas
10. Wisconsin