Update: I posted about this topic in much more detail in my How Expensive it is to Live in Seattle post.
One of the most annoying differences about Seattle and Texas is that things here are more expensive.
For example, our apartment costs 64% more than our apartment did in Irving. Of course, we also get in-unit washer & dryer, a spectacular view, getting to live in an actual city, and the convenience of not having to drive everywhere, but that's still a much larger chunk of money to have to go toward rent each month. And it wouldn't be much better if we decided to buy a condo - $300,000 is where the least expensive condos seem to start, and home prices start in the same range.
While our rent cost has added more to our monthly expenses than anything else, it's not the only thing that has gone up. We've been eating out less than we used to and we're spending a little more than we used to each month. Restauarants just seem more expensive here. Sure, there are fast food places and other inexpensive chain restaurants whose prices are about the same, but you don't find as many restaurants where entrees are under $10. On top of that, things are more expensive at the grocery store, too. Surprisingly, milk is cheaper than it was when we left Texas (we pay $2.69/gallon, rather than the $4 we were paying in Texas), but that's the only bargain we've found. Things like Dr Pepper, which we could find on sale for $2/12-pack are never on sale that cheap, the cheapest we've found is $2.75/12-pack. Oatmeal was occasionally $2/box in Irving, but we hardly ever see it for less than $4/box here. A lot of things are priced pretty similarly to what we paid in Texas, and things don't cost twice as much here, but we've been spending about twice as much money on groceries since we've been here.
Of course we do save some money on automobile ownership. While having only one car hasn't saved as much in insurance costs as we'd hoped, we save a lot of money by driving so much less. In Texas we paid more than $150 per month for gas, now we pay less than $50 per month, and that's with gas prices going up by 1/3. Plus, driving less means that we don't have to get the car serviced as often. Sure, we have to pay $125/month to park at our apartment, but that's about what it cost Lesley to park at work in downtown Dallas.
So, overall, we are spending a bit more than what we were spending in Dallas, with the biggest increases coming from rent and food. But, in this case I believe that it's true that you get what you pay for.
We moved to Seattle in February 2008 and shared blog posts and photos during our first few years in Seattle.
- Troy & Lesley H
Friday, June 13, 2008
It's expensive to live here
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
6 comments:
I believe your electricity is less expensive.
Yes, electricity is much less expensive, but overall it's more expensive to live here.
Click here to read our post about cheap electricity.
Yeah, it's a little more expensive, but it's definitely worth it to me.
I'm still in Texas guys. I believe you about the houses and rent spaces, but I dont know when the last time you were down here was. Groceries have gone way up here too. Youre right on about the $4 milk. Dr pepper $3-4, and i could go on but basically the groceries are very high here to, atleast much more than they were even a couple years ago. Eat outs at decent restaurant chains here in the houston area are 12-15 dollar plates. I will say you can find some surprisingly low apartment rates here if you know how to look(and i mean the ones that arent in ghettos.. believe me houston has some rough neighborhoods). Thats the biggest difference from what I keep hearing.. is that houses and rent are soo damn expensive there. bummer, but hows the rate of pay at jobs I wonder? Good read. Love the pictures!!!
I travel between Seattle, Dallas, and Houston often for work, usually once a month. I used to live in Dallas, but now I live in Seattle (and I wouldn't trade it for anything). Without question, Seattle is far more expensive than Dallas or Houston - and I do mean far more expensive. Take, for example, the cost of dining out - The typical dinner at a decent restaurant is going to cost about $55/person. This number has been very consistent since having moved here. This price would include a drink ($9), a starter salad ($12), and entre ($22+/-), tip ($8), tax ($4.30 at 10% sales tax rate). This is for a DECENT restaurant - not a high-end or "nice" restaurant. A high-end restaurant is going to easily run a person from $100/head (like Zoe or Daniel's) upward of $200/head (like El Gaucho or Canlis). Housing is insanely expensive in Seattle, especially downtown (where I currently live). My condo, which is a luxury space, was $1,325,000, and it includes a WHOPPING 1 parking space and 1,750 square feet of living space (a mansion by downtown Seattle standards, so I've learned). There are no such thing as three-bedroom condos in downtown Seattle, unless one would want to shell out well over $2,500,000 to get one. Groceries easily are running 30-40% higher than in Dallas or Houston. Utilities are less than half of what they ran me in Texas, but fuel prices for my car are 1/3 higher in Seattle than in Texas. Overall, my cost of living has increased about 75% since moving here from Dallas for a similar lifestyle. However, with all these increases in costs, there is NO WAY one can put a price tag on the natural beauty around us (two mountain chains and ever-present water), the culture of the city, the highly-educated population, the charm of the Farmer's Markets and quaintness of the area in general, the mild climate, and the neighborly actions I witness of others around me each day. Seattle is a paradox, really. I suspect you can pick up a report on any given day that would show Seattle a little over the national average cost of living, and then the next day pick up a report that would show it far exceeding the national average. So, I've learned to stop reading those reports and start believing my bank account LOL My bank account and receipts prove the cost of living here is far, far, far more expensive (and yes, I also believe it is more expensive in Seattle than L.A. - a current debate on the West coast).
It depends on your occupation. Seattle is expensive. My friend pays about 2000 for a micro studio with a community kitchen.
Post a Comment