New England- How expensive is it???

**Mamaof2rugrats** · 10-24-2007, 11:54 AM

I've always heard about the high cost of living in New England. I've never really considered a move out of the south until recently but I would have family in the Boston area.
Do most jobs make more up there so as to off set the cost? Seems to be so much higher than what I'm used to.
What about everyday things?

**DAAC3DEC** · 10-24-2007, 01:11 PM

food is pretty much the same, rent and housing--unbelievable---utitilites are on the high side as well...........

**boogiemum** · 10-24-2007, 01:15 PM

I am from right outside of Boston and think most things seem relative in prices to the South, except housing and taxes. Those are way higher. The pay rates seem maybe a little higher for some professions, but it all depends what field you work in... I have compared many professions and find the rate of pay is usually about the same as here in Florida, with a few exceptions...

**Cricket1** · 10-24-2007, 02:10 PM

I live in NH and visited Virginia last year. I was told that I would find food cheaper there and I didn't. In fact, some things (milk) seemed more expensive. Housing/rent is VERY expensive here and moreso on the coast. If you head to a large city (Boston) the pay is much better. Many people that live in my area commute to Boston. I guess it's all relative except for housing/taxes. NH doesn't have a sales tax, either.

**pkellyc** · 10-24-2007, 05:34 PM

Housing, utilities and taxes are much higher. The Boston area is so expensive that a happy meal at some of the McDonald's restaurant's cost $8 or more a meal.

**Mamaof2rugrats** · 10-24-2007, 07:06 PM

$8.00 for a happy meal? Wow, that is just outrageous.

**Rompers1** · 10-25-2007, 08:28 AM

I've been to Boston with my kids and never paid $8.00 for a happy meal. I'm in NH and I'd say most places pay higher than minimum wage if you're just getting a regular job. I agree with the others, housing is expensive!

**Cricket1** · 10-25-2007, 08:43 AM

In the section of NH I'm in, a 3 bedroom, 1 bath ranch house goes for approx. $290,000.

**pita1213** · 10-25-2007, 04:12 PM

it all depends on which state you decide to live in and then which area you decide to live in. housing in the cities is going to be more expensive than the country as will most other things. some states are more expensive than other too. CT and MA are going to be more expensive than ME. we lived in CT for 3 years and are now back in VA. utilities ran about the same. food about the same. housing and taxes were a lot higher in CT than VA. we are thinking of moving to ME. there are some nice houses there that are in our price range, while not much here is in our price range.

**pkellyc** · 10-25-2007, 06:05 PM

I paid $8 in Boston for a happy meal on a field trip with my daughter. I forget exactly where but I will ask her when she gets in. We will never forget it.

**claimsgirl66** · 10-25-2007, 09:00 PM

I am in ME. The housing prices in Southern Maine ( where most of the jobs are) are crazy. Up until recently, you could not find anything for under $250K. If you live in a more rural area, can likely find something around $220K. though, or buy land and build. However with prices leveling off in the real estate market, they may come down a bit. I am seeing a lot of "for sale" signs lately.

Not a lot of major employers, so finding a decent job with benefits is a challenge, IMHO. Property taxes have gone up quite a bit, so do your research on that. Alot of folks from MA have migrated to ME and the market has reflected the popularity...and then property taxes, especially along the coast, have sky rocketed.

As much as I love it here, the taxes are really quite ridiculous....there are also excise taxes on cars, which is a real deterrent sometimes when buying a car. I have visited my sister in Buffalo and traveled and $ of food etc, seems to be pretty much the same.

**quiltingmommy** · 10-26-2007, 08:22 AM

I grew up in NH and since they do not have a state tax, the property taxes are higher. I have lived in MA for 13 years now and my property taxes are half/thousand what my IL's pay. I live in the south western part of the state near RI and housing prices are starting to come down (although when I bought my house 10 years ago, it is now worth 3x what I paid...and it's a small house) I live in a fairly small town that has a commuter rail for Boston that is quite heavily travelled. Most people purchase outside of the 128 beltway and commute into Boston. If you were to live in western MA, the housing prices would be much, much lower, but you would not have as many choices for work.

**krissyre** · 10-26-2007, 12:21 PM

I live 10 miles south of Boston, and my husband commutes there each day for work.

I agree with what most of the other posters have said:

Food is reasonably priced... at least compared to some of the prices I've seen other folks post! For example, at my BJ's, a gallon of 1% milk goes for $3.19. I know that people in other parts of the country pay a lot more than this. Also, every grocery store in my neck of the woods doubles coupons up to $.99, which is helpful.

Rent and housing prices are absolutely outrageous, on the other hand. A 1200sq ft, two bedroom apartment in the suburbs near me rents for $1900+, and includes NO utilities. They even make you pay for your own water and sewer. A 3-bed, 1200 sq. ft. house in a town with a good school system costs $325,000 and up. They say that housing prices are dropping, but they seem to impact the McMansions first, and take a long time to trickle down to the moderately priced homes. A bit further away from the city, the rents and home prices are a little bit lower, but you have to factor in commuting costs (the subway, commuter rail, parking) if you plan to work in the city (where you can get the highest salaries).

Ironically, a lot of people around here toy with the idea of moving south... specifically to North Carolina. Supposedly, the cost of living is much lower there and the salaries are more in line with living expenses. I wonder if that's true?

I would suggest looking on Monster.com to find out what kind of salary you might expect for a job around here, and then check out a realty site to find home prices in the town you're looking for. You can even check tax rates at domania.com.

**quiltingmommy** · 10-26-2007, 02:28 PM

That's the other thing with living near Boston...if you live near Boston and your water is from the MWRA (Mass. Water Resource Act) your water bills are outrageous! I knew someone who paid well over $150/mo for water...in my town (the town has numerous wells and are not on the MWRA) we pay approx. 30/mo or less for water. DH and I were very careful when looking for our house to not be in a town with MWRA!