Richmond Ranks 4th on Cost of Living Year-End Wrap Up for 2017
COST OF LIVING INDEX
This report represents the eleventh edition of a new format for the Cost of Living Index. Beginning with the fourth quarter of 2007, C2ER has annually published an unweighted average of prices accumulated from the previous three quarters. The data presented represent average prices submitted for the first three quarters of 2017. For further details on the annual average methodology, please visit our website at coli.org.
Among the 269 urban areas that participated in the 2017 Cost of Living Index, the after-tax cost for a professional/managerial standard of living ranged from more than twice the national average in New York (Manhattan), NY, to more than 20 percent below the national average in McAllen, TX. The Cost of Living Index is published quarterly by C2ER – The Council for Community and Economic Research.
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The Ten Most and Least Expensive Urban Areas in the Cost of Living Index (COLI) Year-End Review of Three Quarters in 2017 National Average for 269 Urban Areas = 100 | |||||
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Most Expensive |
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Least Expensive | |||
| COL | COL | ||||
| Ranking | Urban Areas | Index |
Ranking | Urban Areas | Index |
| 1 | New York (Manhattan) NY | 238.6 |
1 | McAllen TX | 76.1 |
| 2 | San Francisco CA | 192.9 |
2 | Conway AR | 78.2 |
| 3 | Honolulu HI | 188.3 |
3 | Harlingen TX | 78.6 |
| 4 | New York (Brooklyn) NY | 182.0 |
4 | Richmond IN | 79.0 |
| 5 | Washington DC | 155.7 |
5 | Kalamazoo MI | 79.5 |
| 6 | Orange County CA | 152.6 |
6 | Tupelo MS | 80.1 |
| 7 | Oakland CA | 149.5 |
7 | Wichita Falls TX | 81.7 |
| 8 | Seattle WA | 149.0 |
8 | Knoxville TN | 82.2 |
| 9 | Boston MA | 148.2 |
9 | Hattiesburg MS | 82.7 |
| 10 | Los Angeles-Long Beach CA | 148.0 |
10 | Ashland OH | 82.9 |
The Cost of Living Index measures regional differences in the cost of consumer goods and services, excluding taxes and non-consumer expenditures, for professional and managerial households in the top income quintile. It is based on more than 50,000 prices covering almost 60 different items for which prices are collected three times a year by chambers of commerce, economic development organizations, or university applied economic centers in each participating urban area. Small differences in the index numbers should not be interpreted as significant.
The composite index is based on six components – housing, utilities, grocery items, transportation, health care, and miscellaneous goods and services.