17 The Thomasville-Lexington area has the lowest costs at a whopping 27% less than average. Once again, Kill Devil Hills has the highest costs at 7% above average. In North Carolina, you can expect to pay 3% less for these things than in the average U.S. Transportation costs include things like gasoline and oil changes. 14 The one exception? In Raleigh, groceries cost 12% less than average. The most expensive groceries in the state are in Chapel Hill, and even then you’ll only pay about 2% more than the national average. Wherever you do your shopping, groceries cost about the same here as they do throughout the U.S.Īnd grocery prices hold pretty steady across North Carolina. North Carolina’s got some grocery stores you may never have heard of-like Publix, Harris Teeter and Food Lion. 12 (That’s the price you pay for living right on the ocean.) But utilities cost 10% less than average in Durham-Chapel Hill. Utilities cost nearly 8% more than the national average in Kill Devil Hills. Of course, like housing prices, utility prices vary based on where you live. So you’ll either be cranking up the AC or dialing up the heat! Fortunately, you’ll pay almost 6% less for utilities here than in the average U.S. North Carolina’s got hot, humid summers if you live in the Piedmont region or on the beach-and cold, snowy winters in the mountains. Remember, if it’s more than 25%, you may need to look for a different house or even a different city in North Carolina. Just plug in a home price and your 10–20% down payment to see what your monthly mortgage would be if you actually bought that house. To get a better idea of how much house you can afford, use our mortgage calculator. But the 25% rule helps you make sure you have enough money left each month to cover emergencies, pay off debt, save for retirement, and enjoy your new city. If you overspend on housing, you won’t have anything left to live on. That may sound extreme, but there’s a reason behind it. We teach people to spend 25% or less of their take-home pay on housing-and that includes insurance, HOA fees and property taxes. But whichever you choose, you should always stick to the 25% rule. When you move, you’ll have to decide if you should rent or buy. So how do you find housing that fits into your budget? That’s up next. *Median Apartment Rent numbers refer to two-bedroom apartments. 7, 8 But move to the mountains, the beach or a big metro area like Raleigh, and you’ll see way higher housing prices. You could enjoy low housing prices if you move to a smaller city like Greenville, where a home costs around $252,000 and an apartment costs about $875 a month. But remember, housing prices vary depending on where you go in the state. Those low prices could have you speeding over to North Carolina like you’re on a NASCAR pit crew. 5 That’s 11% lower than the national median of $1,286. 4Īnd good news for renters: The median monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment in North Carolina is $1,137. 3 That’s 1% lower than the national median price of $375,000. And in early 2022, the median price of a single family home was $369,500. North Carolina has some amazing places to live. So what do all those numbers mean? Let’s dig into each category and find out. Anything above 100 means North Carolina is more expensive. Anything below 100 means North Carolina is cheaper than average in that category. On the index, the number 100 represents the national average cost of living. How do we know? We look at a cost of living index that compares nine cities in North Carolina with hundreds of other cities around the country. But if you already live someplace really cheap, your cost of living will likely go up in North Carolina.įind expert agents to help you buy your home in North Carolina. If you currently live someplace expensive, you can expect to save a little money by moving to N.C. 1 So North Carolina is sort of like a Goldilocks state: It isn’t too expensive or too cheap to live here. The cost of living in North Carolina is about 4% lower than in the average U.S. What’s the Average Cost of Living in North Carolina? We’ll walk you through how much you can expect to pay for things like housing, utilities, transportation or even just a haircut. Let’s look at the true cost of living in North Carolina. But before you go, you’ve gotta know: Just how much is all that living going to cost? North Carolina could be a great place for you to live. Rock on! It’s a great state with a lot to offer, like the Blue Ridge Mountains, the Outer Banks islands, and some awesome art, music and sports teams. So you’re thinking about moving to North Carolina.
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