Chicago ranked among the most overpriced U.S. cities in new study
Analyzing a diverse range of metrics that consider not only the cost of living but also the quality of life in the Windy City—including the exorbitant expense of housing, earned income, relative safety, traffic and so on—the study sourced its data from the likes of the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Zillow real estate stats.
While Newark, New Jersey earned the number one spot for being the most overpriced city in the U.S., earning a perfect score of 100 (not an A+ in this case), followed by New York City with a score of 98.17, Chicago sailed in at No. 7 with an overall score of 89. Given that Chicago is a major city with 2.75 million people, the third largest in the U.S., those expensive results aren't entirely surprising.
According to the study, rent plus cost of living will set you back $3,704 in the Windy City. With a median household income of $74,474, the dollar doesn't stretch too far in Chicagoland. The safety index comes in at 33.9, quite a low score; pollution rates at 50.69; and the traffic index comes in at 189.12—all of this is to say that Chicago can be a tough place to thrive, especially if you're not a high-income earner. (The 5.3-percent unemployment rate, the worst on the list, doesn't help matters).
'Cost of living alone doesn't define the value of a city,' a spokesperson for Highland Cabinetry told ZeroHedge. 'What our data shows is that several high-cost urban areas come with serious trade-offs, whether it's long commutes, safety issues, or environmental stress. For many residents, the price tag isn't the only consideration—it's what that money gets you. And in many cases, the return on investment just isn't there.'
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