What do people mean when they say that DC is a “high cost of living“ area?

[Anonymous]

Others have already covered housing so I won't go there.

Childcare is SOOO expensive here. I was talking about nanny rates with my sister almost 10 years ago. She thought I was talking about daily rates. Nope, I was talking hourly rates. The same is also true of day care centers. I have a sister who worked in day care elsewhere. She was floored when I told her how much centers cost here.

Also kid activities. This summer we're going to be staying with family long enough that I'm putting my kids in some sports lessons. Lessons are literally half the cost.

I've even noticed small price differences between chains in Fairfax vs. Arlington.

[Anonymous]

I could sell out 1970s just ok outer suburbs house for 600k and actually live in a really nice house on an acre for 300k. And I would rarely have to pay for parking anywhere I went, I would have cheaper groceries and gas (we stock up when out of town when we can).

[Anonymous]

I moved to the DC area (Nova) from Pittsburgh. Not only were housing prices doubled and more, but food and clothing were taxed, and there was a personal property tax on cars, that had to be paid each year. It also cost a lot to ride the subway in the DC area.

[Anonymous]

A high cost area can actually be a very low cost area depending on your situation, I lived in a very high cost area in a small mortgage free house with low property taxes I bought in 1999 in a blue collar area and drove used cars. kids in public school and wife did not work.

Yet I was making $330k a year. I was paid a lot due to cost of living. But my cost of living was low.

I think most of my neighbors who bought pre 2002 or 2009-2012 are similar. Even if dual income kids are Older with no daycare. Most have no mortgage or refinanced in 2021.

[Anonymous]

State tax rates are very high in all 3 jurisdictions, especially DC and MD. Real estate obviously. Commuting - tolls, parking, gas. Food - both restaurant and groceries. Services, like home maintenance.

And frankly there is an opportunity cost - everything here takes longer because of traffic, crowds, etc. Running errands here, compared to the small town where my summer home is, is more time consuming. Of course there are far more resources here, so it balances out in some ways.

[Anonymous]

Real man of the people, OP!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’ll bite. I moved from NOVA to a LCOL area.

We ended up spending about the same amount on our house, but for a house that is twice as big. However, our property taxes are one quarter what they were in NOVA.

The private school my DC attends is 1/3 the cost.

Those two things alone reduce our COL by more than $40,000 a year.

Some things are not appreciably cheaper — nice restaurants, for example. Dry cleaning is about the same. Stuff you buy at places like Target or things like appliances. Air travel can be slightly more expensive since we don’t live near an airport hub.

Pretty much everything else is cheaper. Food, kid’s activities, summer camps, the slip fees where we dock our boat, etc. If a country club or yacht club would have a high five figure or six figure initiation fee in DC, it will be low five figures or even four figures here.

Anything service related is definitely cheaper — hair cuts, house cleaning, appliance repair, lawn service, car maintenance, etc.

And little things — I never pay to park, for example.

Part of the calculation involves what kind of lifestyle you lead in DC. If you have a less expensive house & lower taxes, use public schools, don’t have a house cleaner, keep your own yard, etc., — in other words, you don’t spend as much to begin with — you might not notice the change quite as much. It would still be there, though.

You capture it perfectly. I don't understand people like OP - are you really that dumb?

[Anonymous]

Don't forget childcare. Infant care at local daycare centers runs $2800-$3200 per month near me. It's insane. Add a toddler and you could easily be paying $5k per month.

[Anonymous]

That’s a lot of difference in housing!

But, besides that:
1. Transportation - gas is often cheaper as are mechanics. But also, mass transit is cheaper in other places. If you live out on the end of the metro line where housing might be a bit cheaper, it can be $17. a day to park at the metro and take the train to work. Or you can drive and pay around $20 for parking. Compare that to places where there’s no paid parking and public transportation is maybe $2 each way.
2. Childcare is cheaper other places, so are schools and kids’ afterschool activities.

Those are all everyday expenses. And yes, those are make or break for most people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’ll bite. I moved from NOVA to a LCOL area.

We ended up spending about the same amount on our house, but for a house that is twice as big. However, our property taxes are one quarter what they were in NOVA.

The private school my DC attends is 1/3 the cost.

Those two things alone reduce our COL by more than $40,000 a year.

Some things are not appreciably cheaper — nice restaurants, for example. Dry cleaning is about the same. Stuff you buy at places like Target or things like appliances. Air travel can be slightly more expensive since we don’t live near an airport hub.

Pretty much everything else is cheaper. Food, kid’s activities, summer camps, the slip fees where we dock our boat, etc. If a country club or yacht club would have a high five figure or six figure initiation fee in DC, it will be low five figures or even four figures here.

Anything service related is definitely cheaper — hair cuts, house cleaning, appliance repair, lawn service, car maintenance, etc.

And little things — I never pay to park, for example.

Part of the calculation involves what kind of lifestyle you lead in DC. If you have a less expensive house & lower taxes, use public schools, don’t have a house cleaner, keep your own yard, etc., — in other words, you don’t spend as much to begin with — you might not notice the change quite as much. It would still be there, though.

You capture it perfectly. I don't understand people like OP - are you really that dumb?

I agree---some people appear to be fairly clueless. I live in another VHCOL area. Just moved DC into first apartment post college in Madison WI area (in a suburb). DC is in a 800 sq ft, 5 yo 1 bedroom/1Bath apartment with LVP floors everywhere except bedroom, granite counters, W/D in unit, tons of amenities in the apartment complex. Basically a newer "luxury" apartment with an included underground heated Assigned parking space. Rent is $1300. Where we live a similar apartment is currently going for $2600/month.

Then consider Auto insurance. Difference between being on OUR plan and DC (age 22, male, single) on his own plan: $2K per year. So one of the highest age groups to insure (single male under 25) is over $2K/year cheaper for similar coverage on his own.

So housing and auto insurance alone is $~18K per year difference.

Really not that difficult to understand that everything is cheaper in a LCOL area. That is why the middle income/lower income really struggle in H/VHCOL areas.

[Anonymous]

"It's one banana, Michael. What could it cost, $10?"

[Anonymous]

Daycare is WAY cheaper. Basically any services are much cheaper outside of HCOL areas.

You don't have to spend as much to get a nice house in a nice school district. Here you can easily spend 1.5m and still end up in a failing school rife with gangs.

And a lot of LCOL areas have much cheaper food. They're closer to farms and the grocery store has cheaper rent/building costs.

[Anonymous]

I was just looking at a thread about grooming costs on a doodle Facebook page I am on and I was amazes at what others are paying in other areas of the country. Some people are paying as little as 25% of what I am paying in a UMC DC suburb!!

[Anonymous]

The DC area also routinely ranks in the top 5 (sometimes only top 10) highest food cost in the country. When you're paying $6lb for chicken breast and elsewhere they're paying $3lb. Or your milk is almost double the cost.

You get the idea.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just comparing Northern VA to Richmond, gas is atleast 50 cents cheaper per gallon in Richmond. Eggs, milk, bread are also cheaper. There are more options for cheaper daycare and camps. I have friends who pay less to get their hair done at comparable salons. These things add up.

I'm in Moco.. Gas here is about $5/gallon. Gas in CA is about $6.50ish/gallon.

Eating out become more expensive because of higher wages and higher rent costs for the restaurant.

Everythingin HI is more expensive because 99% of their stuff has to be shipped in, so the transportation cost is baked into the final cost.

These are just some of the things that cause an area to be considered "hcol".