Are you thinking about relocating to an entirely new city or even a state? Maybe out of pure wanderlust or relocation from work, perhaps even educational opportunities, a fresh start is always a good idea. However, before starting that new chapter of your life, moving has its aspects you should learn about before making the decision. Things like: What is its culture like? What will you do there? Is it a good fit for your lifestyle? And probably the most important one: Can you afford to live there?
What is Cost of Living?
Whether you can afford to live in a certain place or not is mostly determined by the cost of living in that particular city. The cost of living is calculated as how much money you would need to sustain yourself living in a specific location while maintaining a certain standard of living. This type of data will show you if you can sustain yourself in the city you’re planning to move to. Whether you are earning enough, thus you are or aren’t financially ready to relocate. To figure out if you can afford to live in a certain city, the most important thing you should focus on is the overall price index. This measure shows the relative cost of living by comparing the costs of food and basic services that you need daily – the essentials one cannot live without. Comparing the index of the place where you currently live to the place where you want to relocate to will give you an insight into whether you are financially ready to move.
How this works is by comparing the values of cost of living index where the primary values (of the place you currently live in) are all constant at 100. In contrast, the values for certain goods and services for the other place are higher or lower, depending on how expensive it is. If most of the values are below 100, then that place is cheaper than your current location, and you can afford living there comfortably. In contrast, on the other hand, if most of the values are above 100, you should reconsider whether you should allocate or not.
So, if you’re considering packing up and moving to Minnesota and looking at Minneapolis real estate already, we have done all the research for you regarding lifestyle costs and the general cost of real estate and other needed markers. Keep reading if you’d like to find out whether you could afford to live in the Twin cities and what it takes cost-wise.
Cost of living in Twin Cities, Minnesota
Before we start, it is essential to note what we’ve based our statistics on and what the most common expenses are. Based on those we have looked into the average monthly costs such as:
– 1-bedroom apartment rent
– Utilities
– Gasoline
– Food (home cooking plus occasional restaurant meals)
– Internet
Surely, the cost of living can depend primarily on you as you can either cook all your meals at home and use public transportation, or you can drive a car everywhere and order food all the time. With that said, these calculations are merely guidelines and not certain predictions.
With that in mind, let’s get to our rankings.
Minneapolis cost of living
In the city of Minneapolis, Minnesota, the cost of living is 5% higher than the average cost of living in the US. In the following table, you will see the cost of living in Minneapolis compared to the US average of 100. Anything which is below 100 means that it costs less than in the other US cities, while those above 100 mark where Minneapolis, Minnesota, is more expensive.
So, your total cost of living per month (if you are renting) will be approx. $2,104.69. In this, you have the rent, which is $1,435.28, with utilities of $144.18. The food will cost you $331.65 per month, and you will have an additional $137.7 for gas and $55.88 for the internet. On the other hand, St. Paul comes to approx. $1,934.11 monthly with rent being $1,272.22. Gas is $132.6 and food $326.11 while utilities $144.18 and internet costs about $59 per month.
Namely, although the Twin Cities have a reputation of being cheaper than the other big cities in the country, they still fall under the top 75 cities in the US according to the cost of living. Minneapolis is at No. 28, while St. Paul is listed as No. 36 on the list of expensive cities.
Housing here makes all the difference because the median price of a house in Minneapolis is $270,800, while in St. Paul comes around $239,600. Regarding the rents, they go from $1,264.71 to $1,386.54 for a one-bedroom apartment in the city center, and between $1,006.00 and $1,051.67 outside of the center. Renting a three-bedroom apartment will cost you from $2,166.67 to $2,507.41 in the city center and between $1,520.00 and $1,746.96 outside of the center. If you’re looking to buy property in the twin cities, the prices are as following: in the center prices per square meter go from $2,408.96 to $3,076.03 while further from the center, they drop to $1,655.25 or $1,775.45.
The mortgage interest rates go between 4.31% and 4.26% yearly on a fixed rate for 20 years.
If you are moving and changing your job in the twin cities, you can expect a monthly salary of an average of $3,437.50 to $4,031.03 after tax.
Cost of basic and recreational services
To give you an idea of how much are basic services and things you might use at least a couple of times a week, here is an approximate price based on people’s input. For instance, gym and fitness come between $50 and $55 per month while cinema tickets are between $10 and $12, and the national average is $10.28. You can get a regular haircut for $22, while the national average is $16.09. Bowling is $5.33, while the national average is $4.93.
Lastly, if you’d like to save a little more and hear some great simple tips on living frugally, have a look at the following video:
All in all, the Twin Cities are one of the more affordable places to live in the US. If you’re considering moving, feel free to contact us for all consultation and recommendations based on your needs and preferences.
The Cost of Living in the Twin Cities Area Related Information
Find the Best Homes for Sale in MinnesotaHospitals in Minnesota
Schools in Minnesota
University
Nokomis