Cost of living for a family of 6 (Minneapolis, St. Paul: best neighborhoods, rentals)

[afurtado]

Hi, I've been offered a job in Minneapolis and was wondering if we could make it on a $80K salary a year. We've been living abroad for the past ten years and are considering relocating back to the US. What are the best neighborhoods/burbs within 30-40 minutes from town? I'd be working near Gold Medal Park and elder kids would go to university either in MNU or Saint Thomas.

Thanks!

[golfgal]

I think if you didn't mind a commute of 40 minutes you could live in one of the farther out towns and drive in and afford things on the 80K. The hard part will be qualifying to buy a house (if that is your intent) or finding a place to rent large enough to house everyone. If you are only making 80K and 2 in college--especially attending St. Thomas, there is a good chance that the kids could qualify for a fair amount of financial aid and it might be less expensive for them to live on campus that way. Something to look into anyway.

[GBCommenter]

Somewhat a hard question to answer because obviously part of the answer depends on your preferences and spending habits. That said, $80K is roughly $6600/month before taxes and deductions, so let's estimate 20% for combined taxes and deductions. That runs $5300/month.

I think, as Golfgal mentions, if you're willing to live a bit further out you'll be more likely to find less expensive housing (though, of course, you'll have higher transportation costs). If you wanted to keep housing costs to a traditional 1/3 of take-home pay, that means rent or house payment shouldn't exceed about $1800/month. A quick look on Craigslist for 5BR with rent at $1800 did actually find a place in the New Brighton/Mounds View/Fridley area which wouldn't be terribly far away. Pictures looked nice, but realize it's not as though they'll highlight any bad stuff.

As far as suburbs, there are few I can immediately think of that I would dismiss out of hand other than perhaps Brooklyn Park or Brooklyn Center (unfortunately - for suburbs - tends to have higher crime), but it also depends on what you find important. SW burbs will tend to be most expensive, N to NE suburbs (such as the New Brighton/Mounds View/Fridley area above) tend to be less expensive. North suburbs, fairly or not, tend to be characterized as more blue collarish (which doesn't make them bad, IMHO, but a different feel).

Richfield or Bloomington are nice traditional post-war suburbs, though you may have more difficulty finding larger houses, exactly because they are traditional ramblers (mostly). If you can find the right house, however, worth a look and balance between suburban and near the main city.

[Cruz Azul Guy]

Since you're living on a budget wouldn't it make sense to live closer to where you're working in order to save on gas money? I'm not sure what vehicle you drive, but even if it's a car that gets good gas mileage, finding a place that's really close to where you're working as opposed to a place 40 minutes away would likely result in savings of thousands of dollars a year in commuting expenses. Finding an arrangement where you can take public transportation would create alot of additional savings as well. Just a thought.

[GBCommenter]

It is a worthwhile point to consider - do you save money on rent/mortgage but give it back in gas/maintenance/parking (though insurance might be cheaper living further out - would have to ask your agent on that question). It would come down to preferences.

I think ultimately, given current cost of living, the general answer is you should be able to get by on $80K with 6 somewhere in the metro area. As far as neighborhood or suburb, you start forging into territory where we would need to know more about your preferences as far as what you like or don't on amenities.

[xandrex]

Considering the median salary in this country sits somewhere in the $40Ks range, I'm sure that roughly double that ($80,000) would be what many families in the metro make. Perhaps, if your children are already in college, you could consider getting a smaller house? I'm sure that there are many place fairly close to where you work that would have a decent price. The last thing you want right now is to have a house way out in the exurbs with volatile gas prices. I saw something not that long ago that many families are spending upwards of 20-30 percent of their income on transportation. Living 30-40 minutes out of town might very well put you towards the higher end of that range. You might even be able to limit cars or car usage (which would lower your insurance premiums) if you and/or your spouse (maybe even children) use public transportation to get to work or random places.

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by GBCommenter

Somewhat a hard question to answer because obviously part of the answer depends on your preferences and spending habits. That said, $80K is roughly $6600/month before taxes and deductions, so let's estimate 20% for combined taxes and deductions. That runs $5300/month.

I think, as Golfgal mentions, if you're willing to live a bit further out you'll be more likely to find less expensive housing (though, of course, you'll have higher transportation costs). If you wanted to keep housing costs to a traditional 1/3 of take-home pay, that means rent or house payment shouldn't exceed about $1800/month. A quick look on Craigslist for 5BR with rent at $1800 did actually find a place in the New Brighton/Mounds View/Fridley area which wouldn't be terribly far away. Pictures looked nice, but realize it's not as though they'll highlight any bad stuff.

As far as suburbs, there are few I can immediately think of that I would dismiss out of hand other than perhaps Brooklyn Park or Brooklyn Center (unfortunately - for suburbs - tends to have higher crime), but it also depends on what you find important. SW burbs will tend to be most expensive, N to NE suburbs (such as the New Brighton/Mounds View/Fridley area above) tend to be less expensive. North suburbs, fairly or not, tend to be characterized as more blue collarish (which doesn't make them bad, IMHO, but a different feel).

Richfield or Bloomington are nice traditional post-war suburbs, though you may have more difficulty finding larger houses, exactly because they are traditional ramblers (mostly). If you can find the right house, however, worth a look and balance between suburban and near the main city.

I think this figure is overly generous for a family that size and if they have health insurance taken from that amount.

As for the gas/commute question. Rent near the city is going to be $2000 or so for a minimum of a 3 bedroom place to live in a safe neighborhood with good schools. Many landlords (commercial especially) will not allow you to rent a place with fewer bedrooms then you have children--thus they MIGHT need a 4 bedroom place and good luck finding that. They will most likely have to go with a private home rental which puts you in the 2K range+. Living out in the smaller burbs that figure will probably be closer to 1K. There is no way they will spend a grand in gas each month.

Insurance in Minneapolis is DOUBLE what you find in the outer ring suburbs and more than double the farther out you go. That savings alone could pay for gas, or much of the gas they use monthly. There is also the option to take the express buses from the various suburbs-even driving a short distance to one of the transit stations from say, Montgomery or Faribault to Lakeville (for one example). If you don't have to pay for parking in Minneapolis though, taking the bus is more expensive then driving.

[xandrex]

Originally Posted by golfgal

I think this figure is overly generous for a family that size and if they have health insurance taken from that amount.

As for the gas/commute question. Rent near the city is going to be $2000 or so for a minimum of a 3 bedroom place to live in a safe neighborhood with good schools. Many landlords (commercial especially) will not allow you to rent a place with fewer bedrooms then you have children--thus they MIGHT need a 4 bedroom place and good luck finding that. They will most likely have to go with a private home rental which puts you in the 2K range+. Living out in the smaller burbs that figure will probably be closer to 1K. There is no way they will spend a grand in gas each month.

Insurance in Minneapolis is DOUBLE what you find in the outer ring suburbs and more than double the farther out you go. That savings alone could pay for gas, or much of the gas they use monthly. There is also the option to take the express buses from the various suburbs-even driving a short distance to one of the transit stations from say, Montgomery or Faribault to Lakeville (for one example). If you don't have to pay for parking in Minneapolis though, taking the bus is more expensive then driving.

Where have you found a 4 or 5 bedroom for $1,000 in the outer burbs? I just did a look on Craigslist search and there was nothing at $1,000, even quite a ways out. I'm sure they exist, but it's not going to be luxury. In the same search, I found plenty of city and inner-burb rentals for under 2k.

Depending on where these people lived before, they may not be bringing a car with them. If that's the case, to live way out in the inner burbs, they'd likely need to purchase several cars. Living closer in could certainly save money.

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by xandrex

Where have you found a 4 or 5 bedroom for $1,000 in the outer burbs? I just did a look on Craigslist search and there was nothing at $1,000, even quite a ways out. I'm sure they exist, but it's not going to be luxury. In the same search, I found plenty of city and inner-burb rentals for under 2k.

Depending on where these people lived before, they may not be bringing a car with them. If that's the case, to live way out in the inner burbs, they'd likely need to purchase several cars. Living closer in could certainly save money.

With 4 kids-at least 2 teenagers, no car??? Doubt it.


New Prague Newspaper has 3 listings for 3 bedroom rentals for $1000K or less, Northfield News has 6 3+ rentals for 1000 or less, Delano newspaper has several 3+ BR for under $900-heck you could get two two BR's there for $500 each....

[Cruz Azul Guy]

Originally Posted by golfgal

With 4 kids-at least 2 teenagers, no car??? Doubt it.


New Prague Newspaper has 3 listings for 3 bedroom rentals for $1000K or less, Northfield News has 6 3+ rentals for 1000 or less, Delano newspaper has several 3+ BR for under $900-heck you could get two two BR's there for $500 each....

FYI - Craigslist has 120 listings in Minneapolis and 82 listings in St. Paul that are 3+ bedroom rentals for under $1000/month.