In Austin, Texas, the difference isn’t quite so startling. It is possible to lease something with similar square footage in Austin, Texas for $1,895 per month. However, buying a home in Austin actually costs less. I could get a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home in Austin, with the same square footage, for $169,900 instead of the $186,900 I am paying for my current home. In Texas, though, electricity costs less. The Energy Information Administration estimates that, in Texas, the average cost is $0.916 per Kilowatt-Hour.

My family’s other monthly expenses include the following:

• $45 on high-speed Internet and phone.
• $55 for satellite television.
• $150 eating out (usually lunch, with one nice dinner per month).
• $600 on groceries, personal care and household items.
• $150 on entertainment.
• $339 car payment (2007 Prius).
• $155 auto (two cars) and life insurance
• $400 health insurance
• $ 60 gas for two cars.

We also try to set aside $1,000 a month for retirement accounts and the emergency fund. This brings the total to $4,424. Of course, recently, we’ve been saving most of the leftover $576 to pay for putting in a sprinkler system ($3,600, including parts and labor) and hydroseeding the lawn ($400).

Here in Logan, we can live a pretty nice life—with no credit card debt—for $5,000 a month. The Salary.com Cost of Living Calculator tells me that in order to maintain our current lifestyle in New York City, we would need $115,861 per year. In Austin, we would only need a little more: $64,293 per year.