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Well, put it this way. Right now I'm living off a salary of $75K in Norwalk as a single householder and I'm only living in a modest apartment because that's all I can afford. I wish I made at least $10K more to live comfortably.
I also agree with 225 for towns like Ridgefield and Fairfield, with your list of requirements. But in actuality, one should be able to do okay in most of Fairfield County with around 75-90K.
I disagree. A five figure income in Fairfield County is really tough.
The only thing you'll notice being more will be home prices and gas prices. Groceries, utilities, etc will be the same as most other places in CT.
Using Ridgefield as an example, the average 3 bedroom house sells for approximately $550k, and the average 4 br house will sell for about $725k. The median sales price in Ridgefield is in the mid $600s. So, if your budget allows you to spend anywhere between 500-750k, you can easily live comfortably in Ridgefield. Easton is similar in price. Fairfield and Norwalk are more densely populated and the housing stock is very different than in the previous two towns.
Towns like Newtown (avg sale price $335k), Trumbull ($363k), Monroe (321k) and Shelton ($285k) will be a lot more affordable for Fairfield County than adjacent towns to the south.
What is gas going for in FFC these days? I paid $2.799 on the Berlin Turnpike in Newington earlier this week with a credit card, but the cheapest I've seen in western New London County (Old Lyme, East Lyme, Waterford, New London, etc) has been $3.039 for cash and $3.059 for cash or credit. Seems like most of western NLC is closer to $3.20 or so, still.
Why everyone want to live in Fairfield County ? No love for New Haven or New London County
There is some prestige associated with it, plus part of FFC is commutable to the biggest jobs center in North America in the NYC metro area, as well as the cultural center of the country.
There are plenty of nice towns in New Haven County and New London County, but it's not as easy to get to NYC from there.
For those 4 towns, minimum 150k per year combined or single.
I agree with you. The OP is talking about living relatively modestly. Even their home can be relatively modest. I would say that $150,000 is about right. Jay.
I agree with you. The OP is talking about living relatively modestly. Even their home can be relatively modest. I would say that $150,000 is about right. Jay.
You've lived in CT too long when you think a yearly vacation to Europe and 'hired help' is relatively modest. Definitely need more than 150K for that lifestyle, but a true modest lifestyle is definitely doable at <100K - don't know what nep is talking about.
What is gas going for in FFC these days? I paid $2.799 on the Berlin Turnpike in Newington earlier this week with a credit card, but the cheapest I've seen in western New London County (Old Lyme, East Lyme, Waterford, New London, etc) has been $3.039 for cash and $3.059 for cash or credit. Seems like most of western NLC is closer to $3.20 or so, still.
About 3.15 - 3.20 in Norwalk - Westport and Fairfield
I'll go in with an agree for $150k. I feel though that a lot of it is how much you're able to save before purchasing a home in order to reduce the mortgage. We lived in an awful basement apartment in Norwalk to save up for our down payment for Stratford, and since that house was cheap, was then able to save up for the down payment for Fairfield.
Another x factor to throw into the mix is whether people have childcare costs.
I would also look at median home price rather than mean, since the presence of large multi-million dollar communities can significantly skew the data.
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