Anonymous
Post 06/08/2026 15:09     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
Anonymous wrote:All repair services charge a "McLean Tax" for close-in areas.


Same for N Arlington but when they show up and realize we’re close to 50 and not “north north” they usually adjust down a bit after the service
Anonymous
Post 06/08/2026 13:40     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
All repair services charge a "McLean Tax" for close-in areas.
Anonymous
Post 06/08/2026 13:38     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
My parents live in a MCOL area (cheaper than here but not “low”) and because they have a much lower immigrant population things like lawn, handyman, renovation and nail/spa devices actually cost more there. They also are not as able to get good discounts on new cars because there are fewer dealers to compete for business.

Their groceries and clothing and vacations are the same. So it’s really just housing.
Anonymous
Post 06/08/2026 13:33     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
Location is key. I'm in Bethesda and the exact same services cost more here than in cheaper parts of the area: home repairs, dog boarding, etc.
Anonymous
Post 06/08/2026 13:29     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
You'd be surprised. I've noticed the price of groceries from the same store can vary depending on which suburb I'm in.
Anonymous
Post 06/08/2026 13:13     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:We live in the Midwest now, and things are cheaper across the board. Parking, everything related to childcare, kid activities, camps, groceries, restaurant meals, therapy, taxes, gym membership, pool membership, etc.


But are salaries generally lower or about the same as the coasts? Moreover, I think the costs are just different. DH and I own a SFH in Arlington, which is expensive, but own one 10-year old car, which is paid off. People in the Midwest seem to spend less on housing but a fortune on cars.


i don’t know where in Arlington you live but where im at nobody is driving an old crappy car. Hell my neighbor has a G wagon, it probably cost her 200k. My car isn’t that crazy but still a genesis that cost 80k 2 years go.


Cherrydale. I don’t think our car is crappy—it’s 10 years old, yes, but we bought it new for $30K and it’s clean and well-maintained. I see high schoolers driving older sedans to and from W-L, so I don’t think luxury cars are the only cars in Arlington.
Anonymous
Post 06/07/2026 23:22     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
When we've traveled to LCOL area it's everything. Cost of comparable restaurants and takeout, etc. in part because you don't have to play the employees as much when they can access housing that isn't a horrible commute or in bad shape. So housing trickles to a lot of other costs as well.

I'm not talking really rundown areas but just smaller cities that still have nice areas.
Anonymous
Post 06/07/2026 22:44     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:We live in the Midwest now, and things are cheaper across the board. Parking, everything related to childcare, kid activities, camps, groceries, restaurant meals, therapy, taxes, gym membership, pool membership, etc.


But are salaries generally lower or about the same as the coasts? Moreover, I think the costs are just different. DH and I own a SFH in Arlington, which is expensive, but own one 10-year old car, which is paid off. People in the Midwest seem to spend less on housing but a fortune on cars.

They work at car companies
Anonymous
Post 06/07/2026 22:42     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I mean, is a box of a Cheerios really cheaper in Peoria than NOVA?


How do you expect the grocer to make the extra money to cover the increased rent due to higher property values? And how do you expect the bodega in ny to cover the cost of the tolls and congestion charges just to get into the city? Not to mention spending more on wages because their labor also needs to spend more on rent and their material goods. It’s a complex world out there.

They're all national chains these days
Anonymous
Post 06/07/2026 22:31     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:We live in the Midwest now, and things are cheaper across the board. Parking, everything related to childcare, kid activities, camps, groceries, restaurant meals, therapy, taxes, gym membership, pool membership, etc.


But are salaries generally lower or about the same as the coasts? Moreover, I think the costs are just different. DH and I own a SFH in Arlington, which is expensive, but own one 10-year old car, which is paid off. People in the Midwest seem to spend less on housing but a fortune on cars.


i don’t know where in Arlington you live but where im at nobody is driving an old crappy car. Hell my neighbor has a G wagon, it probably cost her 200k. My car isn’t that crazy but still a genesis that cost 80k 2 years go.
Anonymous
Post 06/07/2026 22:27     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
Anonymous wrote:I mean, is a box of a Cheerios really cheaper in Peoria than NOVA?


oh honey..:taxes, hiring co tractor, getting your hair done including all
personal grooming, restaurants, i struggle to find what ISNT more expensive. Can’t name anything that takes any sort of labor to accomplish.
Anonymous
Post 06/07/2026 19:40     Subject: Re:Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:So if your salary in the middle of nowhere, as a nurse (let's say), is 50k a year and your salary as a nurse in NYC is 200k a year, those 150 dollar jeans are going to seem ridiculously expensive on a 50k salary but not so much on a 200k salary. Even if each nurse puts 40% towards housing.... which will of course cost way more in NYC... think of what is leftover for cheerios, clothes, plane tickets, car payments, etc for nurse 1 as opposed to nurse 2.


On $200k, who is buying $150 jeans.


(Looks around, raises hand...)


I was gonna say.... our combined HHI is about 225 and I don't think 150 dollars is unreasonable for a pair of jeans once a year? What am I missing?


Ours is about $180k and we would never pay $150 for jeans. If we made $20k more i think we still wouldn't. (Probably wouldn't cheap out on shoes quite so much though.)
Anonymous
Post 06/07/2026 19:31     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
Taxes are different. And what you get for those taxes is also quite different. For example the quality of schools in-state colleges. But day to day, things like how in really rural areas you plow your own driveway or pay someone to do it, you might be responsible for your own septic tank, there are just a lot more DIY costs that people might not be aware of if they haven't experienced it. And weather matters too-- heat, AC, snow tires, etc
Anonymous
Post 06/07/2026 19:07     Subject: Re:Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
I paid $5 for a aperol spritz and $10 for a pasta dish so no it’s not just housing.
Anonymous
Post 06/07/2026 19:06     Subject: Aren't cost of living differences really just housing?
Anonymous wrote:We moved to a LCOL area and literally everything is cheaper. Gas, food, clothes, restaurants, childcare, any type of service, etc. Weirdly, the LCOL doesn't impact wages as much. Let's say COL is 20% cheaper. DH and I make only about 5% less than what we did with a higher COL.


Yes. We were a military family for more than 20 years and we’ve lived all over the country. We have definitely seen differences in the prices of everything, especially when we’ve moved from California to northern Florida or the Norfolk area and then to the DC area. Big differences in prices of everything in places like that.