Most expensive US cities

Priciest U.S. towns
The five most expensive places to live in the United States
City Annual cost Percent above mean
Manhattan $146,060 137.9 %
San Francisco $122,007 98.7 %
Los Angeles $117,726 91.8 %
San Jose $108,506 76.8 %
Washington, D.C. $102,589 67.1 %
Source: Runzheimer International

That’s according to a new survey by Runzheimer International, a Wisconsin-based management consultant. The study considered what a typical family of four earning $60,000 annually spends and compared the costs of maintaining that lifestyle in more than 300 U.S. locations.

In Manhattan, that family would need to spend $146,060, 137.9 percent more than in the average American town. It topped runner-up San Francisco by more than $24,000 to earn the dubious distinction of being the nation’s priciest town.

In the top five locations, which also included Los Angeles, San Jose, and Washington D.C., housing costs make up the lion’s share of total living costs. The survey factored in local and state income taxes, costs associated with owning two cars (except in Manhattan), public transportation costs, goods and services, sales taxes, and costs to own a 2,500 square foot house (mortgage payment, insurance, real estate taxes, utilities and maintenance).

In Manhattan the survey figured those housing costs amounted to a whopping $100,532 annually and accounted for nearly 69 percent of all living costs. In San Francisco, similar housing would cost $79,156.

                 

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