{"id":4826,"date":"2016-04-29T06:57:51","date_gmt":"2016-04-29T06:57:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/foundation\/?p=4826"},"modified":"2016-04-29T06:57:51","modified_gmt":"2016-04-29T06:57:51","slug":"best-cities-live-make-50k-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/","title":{"rendered":"Best Cities to Live in If You Make Under $50K a Year"},"content":{"rendered":"

The median household income in the US is just over $50,000. While this is a comfortable wage in many places, there are parts of the country where the cost of housing alone would devour that salary. In 2013, the Bureau of Economic Analysis recently released data adjusting a city\u2019s median income to the actual cost of living in that city. For example, while the median personal income in San Francisco is a healthy $41,000 (compared to the overall US median of $27,000), due to the sky-high costs of housing and other living expenses, that salary adjusts to a \u201creal\u201d figure of about $32,000. We\u2019ve used this information, combined with other metrics, to create a list of the 10 best cities to live<\/a> in if you have a household income close to the national average.<\/p>\n

Memphis, TN<\/b><\/p>\n

\"best<\/p>\n

Hailed as the \u201cbirthplace of and rock and roll,\u201d Memphis is one of the South\u2019s storied cities. It\u2019s also surprisingly affordable. The overall cost of living is 27 percent below the national average. Utilities cost 16 percent less here, and groceries average out to 8 percent less than the rest of the country. Home prices are where you\u2019ll see the biggest savings, though. Incredibly, the cost of housing is 61 percent below the US mean. The median list price for a house is $98,000, and hundreds of desirable homes are available for less than $200,000. BEA data shows that Memphis\u2019s median personal income of $28,600 spends more like $29,500 when adjusted for cost of living.<\/p>\n

Louisville, KY<\/b><\/p>\n

Raise a mint julep to Louisville, where the median income of $29,000 translates to about $30,300 real dollars. Though the city\u2019s median home price of $139,000 is slightly higher than Kentucky\u2019s overall median of $120,000, it still beats the national median of $181,000 by a country mile. The overall cost of living in Louisville is about 10 percent below average. Outside of housing, your biggest savings will come from utilities and grocery costs.<\/p>\n

Dayton, OH<\/b><\/p>\n

Dayton\u2019s median income of $27,000 gains about $1,100 when adjusted. The cost of living here is 24 percent below average. Though utility costs in Dayton run about 10 percent higher than average, that is easily offset by saving in other areas, like groceries. Milk, beer, and pizza are up to 10 percent cheaper here. Your biggest bonus will come from Dayton\u2019s housing index, which is a shocking 73 percent below the national average with a median home price of about $73,000.<\/p>\n

Pueblo, CO<\/b><\/p>\n

In Pueblo, the median income is about $25,600, but thanks to a cost of living index that\u2019s 17 percent below the national average, that income stretches to about $26,400. Healthcare costs and utilities, like water and electric, are about eight percent cheaper than average in Pueblo. You\u2019ll save an additional six percent at the grocery store, while housing will run you 38 percent less than the national average. The median home price is about $117,000, less than half Colorado\u2019s median of $237,000.<\/p>\n

Akron, OH<\/b><\/p>\n

\"best<\/p>\n

Moving to Akron will save you about 20 percent against the national average cost of living. While utilities, transportation, and grocery costs are equal to or slightly above the US mean, housing proves once again to be the area of greatest savings. Akron\u2019s housing cost index is 65 percent below average, with a median home price of about $87,000. More good news: $29,000 in Akron dollars works out to about $31,500 real dollars.<\/p>\n

Detroit, MI<\/b><\/p>\n

It costs about 27 percent less than average to live in the Motor City. While the median list price for a home in Michigan is $129,000, in Detroit, that figure is just $60,000. That\u2019s one-third of the national median. Out of 207 metropolitan areas ranked by median home price, Detroit came in at number 203. The only downside is that, according to BEA data, the median Detroit income of $31,000 drops slightly, to about $29,700, when adjusted.<\/p>\n

Danville, IL<\/b><\/p>\n

Your salary makes the greatest leap in Danville, where the median income of $30,000 jumps to $36,000 when adjusted for cost of living. That\u2019s like getting a 20 percent raise. While the state\u2019s median home price is just over $190,000, in Danville, it\u2019s $66,000. Overall, the cost of living is 19 percent below average. Groceries and health care costs are about 10 percent lower than average.<\/p>\n

Buffalo, NY<\/b><\/p>\n

You can enjoy the beauty of Lake Erie and Niagara Falls without breaking the bank. The cost of living in Buffalo is 26 percent below the national average. While the median home price for New York State is $295,000, Buffalo\u2019s median list price is less than a quarter of this figure at $67,000. While your paycheck only adjusts up by about $400, the incredible savings offered by the real estate market should more than compensate.<\/p>\n

South Bend, IN<\/b><\/p>\n

\"best<\/p>\n

Moving to South Bend on the Saint Joseph River could save you some considerable cash. Its cost of living is 17 percent below the national average. Utilities are one impressive savings area, cutting about 20 percent off your bills compared to the US mean. Housing prices aren\u2019t too shabby either; at a median $86,000, they\u2019re about half the national figure. The median income here adjusts to about $1,000 extra per year as well.<\/p>\n

Brownsville, TX<\/b><\/p>\n

Despite its sprawling metropolitan regions, Texas has a surprisingly low overall median when it comes to housing costs, about $128,000. In the border city of Brownsville, it\u2019s even lower, with a median list price of just $80,000. Overall, the cost of living is about 24 percent below average. It\u2019s another great dollar-stretcher city, where the median income of $20,000 adjusts to just over $22,000.<\/p>\n

2 Point Highlight<\/h2>\n

Your salary makes the greatest leap in Danville, where the median income of $30,000 jumps to $36,000 when adjusted for cost of living.<\/p>\n

Out of 207 metropolitan areas ranked by median home price, Detroit came in at number 203.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The median household income in the US is just over $50,000. While this is a comfortable wage in many places, there are parts of the country where the cost of housing alone would devour that salary. In 2013, the Bureau of Economic Analysis recently released data adjusting a city\u2019s median income to the actual cost of living in that city. For example, while the median personal income in San Francisco is a healthy $41,000 (compared to the overall US median of $27,000), due to the sky-high costs of housing and other living expenses, that salary adjusts to a \u201creal\u201d figure […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4827,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[256],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4826","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-real-estate-concepts","post--single"],"yoast_head":"\nBest Cities to Live in If You Make Under $50K a Year<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"We analyzed government data to compile a list of the 10 best cities to live in if you're on a modest budget.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Best Cities to Live in If You Make Under $50K a Year\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"We analyzed government data to compile a list of the 10 best cities to live in if you're on a modest budget.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Movoto Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MovotoRealEstate\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-04-29T06:57:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Movoto Editorial Team\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@movoto\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@movoto\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Movoto Editorial Team\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Movoto Editorial Team\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/06693b6bfbd6fec38952da620bd47c0e\"},\"headline\":\"Best Cities to Live in If You Make Under $50K a Year\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-04-29T06:57:51+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/\"},\"wordCount\":941,\"commentCount\":2,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"\",\"articleSection\":[\"Real Estate Concepts\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/\",\"name\":\"Best Cities to Live in If You Make Under $50K a Year\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-04-29T06:57:51+00:00\",\"description\":\"We analyzed government data to compile a list of the 10 best cities to live in if you're on a modest budget.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"\",\"contentUrl\":\"\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Best Cities to Live in If You Make Under $50K a Year\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Movoto Blog\",\"description\":\"Jump-start your real estate journey with expert guidance\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Movoto by OJO\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/movoto.kinsta.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/movoto-by-ojo-blog.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/movoto.kinsta.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/movoto-by-ojo-blog.png\",\"width\":220,\"height\":100,\"caption\":\"Movoto by OJO\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MovotoRealEstate\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/movoto\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/movotorealestate\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/movoto\",\"https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/movoto\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/movotorealestate\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/06693b6bfbd6fec38952da620bd47c0e\",\"name\":\"Movoto Editorial Team\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f61431c9d28f042e0ef7d955ee3844a375bfe80a21e14f5f20e2045633240dd4?s=96&d=monsterid&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f61431c9d28f042e0ef7d955ee3844a375bfe80a21e14f5f20e2045633240dd4?s=96&d=monsterid&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Movoto Editorial Team\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/author\/revans\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Best Cities to Live in If You Make Under $50K a Year","description":"We analyzed government data to compile a list of the 10 best cities to live in if you're on a modest budget.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Best Cities to Live in If You Make Under $50K a Year","og_description":"We analyzed government data to compile a list of the 10 best cities to live in if you're on a modest budget.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/","og_site_name":"Movoto Blog","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MovotoRealEstate\/","article_published_time":"2016-04-29T06:57:51+00:00","author":"Movoto Editorial Team","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@movoto","twitter_site":"@movoto","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Movoto Editorial Team","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/"},"author":{"name":"Movoto Editorial Team","@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/06693b6bfbd6fec38952da620bd47c0e"},"headline":"Best Cities to Live in If You Make Under $50K a Year","datePublished":"2016-04-29T06:57:51+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/"},"wordCount":941,"commentCount":2,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"","articleSection":["Real Estate Concepts"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/","url":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/","name":"Best Cities to Live in If You Make Under $50K a Year","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"","datePublished":"2016-04-29T06:57:51+00:00","description":"We analyzed government data to compile a list of the 10 best cities to live in if you're on a modest budget.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#primaryimage","url":"","contentUrl":""},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/best-cities-live-make-50k-year\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Best Cities to Live in If You Make Under $50K a Year"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/","name":"Movoto Blog","description":"Jump-start your real estate journey with expert guidance","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Movoto by OJO","url":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/movoto.kinsta.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/movoto-by-ojo-blog.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/movoto.kinsta.cloud\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/movoto-by-ojo-blog.png","width":220,"height":100,"caption":"Movoto by OJO"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/MovotoRealEstate\/","https:\/\/x.com\/movoto","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/movotorealestate\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/movoto","https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/movoto\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/movotorealestate"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/06693b6bfbd6fec38952da620bd47c0e","name":"Movoto Editorial Team","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f61431c9d28f042e0ef7d955ee3844a375bfe80a21e14f5f20e2045633240dd4?s=96&d=monsterid&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f61431c9d28f042e0ef7d955ee3844a375bfe80a21e14f5f20e2045633240dd4?s=96&d=monsterid&r=g","caption":"Movoto Editorial Team"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/author\/revans\/"}]}},"featured_media_src_url":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4826","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4826"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4826\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4826"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4826"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.movoto.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4826"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}