David Shankbone
It's hard to beat the low cost of living
in Dixie. Most of the places on our annual list of the ten cheapest U.S.
cities to live in are located in the South or Southwest. Four are in
Texas, thanks in large part to the Lone Star State’s affordable housing
and super-low grocery bills.
We compiled our list based on the Council for Community and Economic
Research’s calculations of living expenses in numerous metropolitan
areas. (We weeded out cities with populations below 50,000.) Its Cost of
Living Index measures relative price levels for housing, utilities,
transportation, grocery items, health care, and miscellaneous goods and
services.
A Cost of Living Index score of 100 reflects the national average.
Little Rock, Ark., and Cleveland scored 99.9 and 100.1, respectively,
making them average in terms of living costs. The further a score falls
below 100, the lower the cost of living. Population and median household
income data are from the U.S. Census Bureau. Average home prices were
provided by the Council for Community and Economic Research.
10. Winston-Salem, N.C.
My Winston-Salem
Cost of Living Index: 87.5
City Population: 229,617
Median Household Income: $41,483 (U.S. median: $51,914)
Average Home Price: $199,118 (U.S. average: $283,529)
Winston-Salem is far and away the most budget-friendly big city in the Tar Heel State, with Raleigh a distant second.
The average home sells for under $200,000, and a typical apartment rents for just $590 a month.
Cheap housing is offset somewhat by the highest grocery and health-care
expenses of our cheapest 10 cities. Wake Forest University and
cigarette maker Reynolds American are among the area's biggest
employers.
9. Springfield, Ill.
Éovart Caçeir
Cost of Living Index: 87.1
City Population: 115,121
Median Household Income: $47,209
Average Home Price: $210,673
Costs in the capital of Illinois are low, much lower in fact than in Chicago to the north. Take housing, for example.
The average home price in Springfield is $150,000 less than the cost of a typical home in the Windy City.
That’s a nice draw for families, as is the area's low unemployment
rate. Living is made even more affordable by utilities costs—gas,
electric, phone service, etc.—that fall nearly 15% below the national
average.
8. Wichita Falls, Texas
Billy Hathorn
Cost of Living Index: 86.9
City Population: 104,066
Median Household Income: $40,670
Average Home Price: $264,000
Wichita Falls has the highest average home price on our list of cheap
cities, but low unemployment means more income-producing jobs to pay for
those mortgage payments. Alternatively, renting is dirt cheap.
A typical apartment in Wichita Falls goes for just $566 a month, nearly $300 less than the national average.
To put that figure in perspective, the average apartment in Manhattan
rents for $3,777. Other living costs are reasonable across-the-board.
Grocery, utility, transportation and health care expenses are all 10% or
more below the U.S. average. The Wichita Falls area boasts four
airports plus Sheppard Air Force Base.
7. Pueblo, Colo.
David Shankbone
Cost of Living Index: 86.2
City Population: 105,957
Median Household Income: $34,323
Average Home Price: $196,330
Although it's just 100 miles from Denver, Pueblo is an economic hub of
southeastern Colorado with a much lower cost of living. Homes here are
cheaper, on average, than in the rest of the state—and the nation.
In fact, you can get a house in Pueblo for $87,000 less than the U.S. average.
That’s a good thing since the city’s median household income is the
lowest on our list, and grocery, utility and transportation costs are
among the highest. There’s no charge, of course, for mountain views, and
several national parks and forests are within easy driving distance.
6. Conway, Ark.
Photolitherland
Cost of Living Index: 86.2
City Population: 56,255
Median Household Income: $41,917
Average Home Price: $230,199
Conway is just 30 miles north of Little Rock, but it's a world away from
the Arkansas capital when it comes to living costs. Nestled between
Lake Conway and the Arkansas River, Conway's average home price is
$50,000 less than Little Rock's. Other costs in Conway, especially for
health care, are lower, too.
A visit to the doctor runs nearly 15% less than the national average, and a dental check-up costs almost 25% less. Even a bottle of ibuprofen is priced $1.15 lower than you'd typically find elsewhere ($8.29 vs. the U.S. average of $9.44).
5. Temple, Texas
Billy Hathorn
Cost of Living Index: 85.7
City Population: 63,548
Median Household Income: $47,240
Average Home Price: $206,602
Housing prices in Temple are more than $75,000 below the national
average—even though the median household income is the highest on this
list. Health-care costs also run low here. One reason: Temple is a
regional medical center and has more physicians per capita than any
other community in the U.S.
Groceries, at 18% under the U.S. average, are the cheapest among these 10 cities.
Located 65 miles north of Austin, the state capital, the Temple
metropolitan area includes Killeen and Fort Hood, two cities that also
score high marks for affordability.
4. Fayetteville, Ark.
Fayetteville Convention & Visitors Bureau
Cost of Living Index: 84.6
City Population: 71,770
Median Household Income: $37,113
Average Home Price: $228,200
This low-cost city lies in the northwest corner of Arkansas near the
borders of Missouri and Oklahoma. The Ozark National Forest is a short
car ride away. But Fayetteville is best-known for being home to the
University of Arkansas, a big draw as an employer and an even bigger
draw during football season.
Unemployment in the Fayetteville area is below the national average thanks to the strong local economy. It doesn’t hurt that Wal-Mart is based in nearby Bentonville.
3. McAllen, Texas
Martyn Goddard/Corbis
Cost of Living Index: 83.8
City Population: 125,590
Median Household Income: $39,547
Average Home Price: $178,000
You’d better be a fan of Tex-Mex if you live in McAllen. The city is
situated in the southern tip of Texas along the Rio Grande. It’s a
closer drive to Monterrey, Mexico (about three hours away) than to San
Antonio (four hours) or Houston (six hours).
Being a far-flung border town has its advantages. Take cost of living.
Housing costs are by far the lowest on our list, and grocery prices are
among the lowest. Low cost of living has attracted retirees and snow
birds. The McAllen metro area, which includes Edinburg and Mission, has
one of the fastest-growing populations in the U.S.
2. Memphis, Tenn.
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Cost of Living Index: 83.7
City Population: 654,876
Median Household Income: $36,473
Average Home Price: $180,375
Memphis is both the largest city in Tennessee and third-largest in the
South. But it doesn't have big-city prices. Housing costs are the
second-lowest on this list (after McAllen, Texas).
You can buy a home in Memphis for over $100,000 less than the U.S. average.
The Mississippi River port city is a hub for the shipping and
transportation industries. Memphis is home to three Fortune 500
companies, numerous colleges and universities and, of course, Graceland.
1. Harlingen, Texas
Harlingen Convention & Visitors Bureau
Cost of Living Index: 82.8
City Population: 64,186
Median Household Income: $34,748
Average Home Price: $229,558
Head east from McAllen, number three on our cheapest-cities list, toward
the Gulf of Mexico, and in a half-hour or so you’ll run into Harlingen,
another South Texas city with ultra-low living costs. Housing prices
are a big factor in making it the most affordable city to live in on our
list. The cost of groceries, transportation and health care also fall
below the national average. But affordability doesn't necessarily equate
to prosperity.
The median household income for Harlingen comes in $17,000 shy of the U.S. median, and unemployment hovers in the double-digits. Mexico is just a stone’s throw away, as is Brownsville, another border city with similarly low living costs.
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