According to U.S. News and World Report, San Diego was ranked the most expensive city to live in, followed by some notoriously pricy cities like LA, Honolulu, and even New York City.
Let’s take a look at how they broke it down.
There were a few different metrics the report used to get its top 25 most expensive places to live in the nation. Median gross rent and annual housing costs for mortgage-paying homeowners was taken into consideration and by these metrics, the following cities require the most wealth to have a comfortable life.
The report also ranked based on these four factors:
- Quality of Life Index – 36%
- Value Index – 23%
- Desirability Index – 22%
- Job Market Index – 19%
With all that in mind, these were the 25 most expensive cities in the U.S.
- #1 – San Diego
- #2 – Los Angeles
- #3 – Honolulu
- #4 – Miami
- #5 – Santa Barbara, California
- #6 – San Francisco
- #7 – Salinas, California
- #8 – Santa Rosa, California
- #9 – San Juan, Puerto Rico
- #10 – Vallejo and Fairfield, California
- #11 – New York City
- #12 – Boston
- #13 – Seattle
- #14 – San Jose, California
- #15 – Sacramento, California
- #16 – Denver
- #17 – Stockton, California
- #18 – Washington, D.C.
- #19 – Modesto, California
- #20 – Fresno, California
- #21 – Portland, Oregon
- #22 – New Haven, Connecticut
- #23 – Boulder, Colorado
- #24 – Trenton, New Jersey
- #25 – Eugene, Oregon
Are you surprised to see San Diego at the top? We sure were, but this is how the report broke it down:
The annual median salary is $67,200, while the median monthly rent was $1,842. This does not include the homeowner association fees that downtown renters have to pay, used to maintain common areas.
San Diegans are willing to pay these elevated prices, though, often referring to the cost-of-living differences as the “sunshine tax,” or the price of enjoying a year-round temperate climate.”
In 2022 the national average housing costs were $383,883 while San Diego’s numbers were $919, 507. With no end in sight for inflation, we’re not sure what to expect for San Diego in the next couple of years, but do you think year-round sunshine, amazing entertainment and things to do are worth it?