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However, if you want affordable housing and four seasons look into Pittsburgh..
Pittsburgh is great if you like cloudy and rainier summers. See Weather Sevice link Buffalo Summer Weather
Buffalo gets 30% more sunshine than Pittsbugh in the Summer (52%*1.30=67%) and Pittsburgh gets 23% more rain (8.69*1.23=10.70)
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vex
I really think cost of living calculators grossly underestimate Western NY. .
Yes I am sure they must use a different basis for calculating the cost of living in Buffalo compared to the other 375 metros in the USA - that could be the only possible reason Buffalo would look less expensive than anywhere else.
Personally, it's a wide variety of factors....the heat and humidity, I miss winter, and let's just say my luck hasn't been the best since I moved down here.
Yes I am sure they must use a different basis for calculating the cost of living in Buffalo compared to the other 375 metros in the USA - that could be the only possible reason Buffalo would look less expensive than anywhere else.
I'm saying that cost of living calculators are based on model that likely has its flaws. Likely, there is a hypothetical "basket" of goods. How is this basket constructed? Is is based on the national average of goods/energy consumed? If so, are there any biases inherent in this model that could understate the true cost of living in Buffalo?
If the cost of heating a home is calculated based on the national average of natural gas consumed times the price of gas in Buffalo, the calculated figure would understate the true cost in Buffalo; Buffalo having both a colder climate than the national average and an older, less energy efficient housing stock.
Furthermore, to what extent are housing prices (no doubt the largest item within the basket) skewed by the over 10,000 abandoned homes in Buffalo? Yeah you can buy a house on the East Side for < $10,000, but who would want to? Also, to what extent is the national average housing price skewed by outliers like NYC, LA & DC? Would representational faithfulness be better achieved by using the median national housing price?
Additionally, how are taxes and fees treated?
I'm sorry that I don't blindly trust any figure I read, especially when it feels bogus. There's no need to be snide about it.
In this area as Realtors, we really don't do rentals, some do, but it's not as big as it is in the nyc area. Here you can own a home for the price of a rental, so most go with owning (unless bad credit or here for a short time)
I would recommend craigslist.org for a list of rentals. Most people aside from the East Amherst folks don't hire us as Realtors to do their rentals, and those are pricey!!
I'm saying that cost of living calculators are based on model that likely has its flaws. Likely, there is a hypothetical "basket" of goods. How is this basket constructed? Is is based on the national average of goods/energy consumed? If so, are there any biases inherent in this model that could understate the true cost of living in Buffalo?
If the cost of heating a home is calculated based on the national average of natural gas consumed times the price of gas in Buffalo, the calculated figure would understate the true cost in Buffalo; Buffalo having both a colder climate than the national average and an older, less energy efficient housing stock.
Furthermore, to what extent are housing prices (no doubt the largest item within the basket) skewed by the over 10,000 abandoned homes in Buffalo? Yeah you can buy a house on the East Side for < $10,000, but who would want to? Also, to what extent is the national average housing price skewed by outliers like NYC, LA & DC? Would representational faithfulness be better achieved by using the median national housing price?
Additionally, how are taxes and fees treated?
I'm sorry that I don't blindly trust any figure I read, especially when it feels bogus. There's no need to be snide about it.
This can go both ways, as people tend to stress the issue of taxes here, but never mention fees like highway/toll taxes, vehicle fees that are much higher or HOA's. What about what it costs to use Air Conditioners or even what you get for services? Keep in mind that housing makes up a big percentage of costs too. So, you have to take a balanced approach when looking at these calculators.
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