44 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • MARCH 2021
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HOW LI’S COST OF LIVING COMPARES
continued from page 43
If those are the chief complaints, maybe
Long Islanders have it good. How does
Long Island stack up? The Press, using
Bert Sperling’s bestplaces.net 2021 Cost
of Living Calculator, compared the
cost of living and quality of life in two
Long Island communities, Long Beach
and Huntington, to popular cities nationwide:
Atlanta, Austin, Charlotte,
Nashville, and San Francisco. Here’s
what we found.
ATLANTA
Atlanta has more going for it than just
a warmer climate. According to Bert
Sperling’s bestplaces.net’s 2021 Cost of
Living Calculator, overall, Atlanta is
36.5 percent cheaper than Long Beach.
The median home cost, $584,300,
is the biggest factor in the cost of
living difference. The median home,
at $259,000, is 56 percent cheaper in
Atlanta. Transportation is 31 percent
cheaper in Atlanta, food and groceries
9 percent and you’ll pay 18 percent less
for health care.
AUSTIN
Austin is a mecca for music lovers.
You won’t need a hefty salary to enjoy
it either. Bestplaces.net compares
Huntington to Austin. While they
may do things big in Texas, you can
live there on less than in Huntington.
The median house in Huntington is
$508,800, compared to $369,000,
which is nearly 28 percent less in
Austin. What else won’t cost you as
much in Austin? Food and groceries,
10 percent, utilities 21 percent, and
health care 15 percent.
CHARLOTTE
You likely know someone who exited
Long Island for North Carolina, especially
Charlotte. The numbers favor
Charlotte over Long Beach. It’s 42 percent
cheaper to live there. Again, it’s
primarily the median home cost. Long
Beach is $584,300, vs. $228,800, some
60 percent less. Transportation costs
are a notable 45 percent less, taxing
and health care, 11 percent.
NASHVILLE
Living in Nashville won’t have you
singing the country blues. Compared to
Huntington, you’ll have more money in
your pocket. The biggest difference is
the median cost of a home, $508,800 in
Huntington instead of $262,000, almost
50 percent of Huntington’s median.
Utilities is where there are other big
savings, 21 percent less. The cities
are similar when it comes to food and
groceries. Nashville is only 5 percent
cheaper.
SAN FRANCISCO
This is the only city of the five that is
more expensive than Long Island. The
Silicon Valley crowd has rendered the
Golden City most fit for royalty. The
median home is $1,378,300, a significant
135 percent above Long Beach’s
$584,300. Generally, San Francisco
is 59 percent more pricey than Long
Beach, primarily because of housing
costs. Long Beach also is more affordable
when it comes to utilities (22
percent less), and 11 percent less for
transportation.
There’s no place like Long Island, but
it comes with a price tag. However,
Lisa Maysonet of Group Maysonet at
Sotheby’s International Real Estate,
who specializes in East End properties,
sums it up well for many locals.
She says, “I don’t see any other city that
offers the culture, variety, sophistication,
diversity, and access to a global
hub as well as Long Island does.”
Long Island's natural beauty is a big
draw for residents, but is it enough to
keep them paying more to live here?
(Getty Images)
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