Is Working in a High-Cost-of-Living Area Worth It?

Jane Genova

The median rent for a one-bedroom apartment in HCOL (high cost of living) Manhattan is $4,950 and in San Franciso it's $3,250. In contrast are such LCOL (low cost of living) areas as Indianapolis, where rent is $1,375 and Tucson, where it will set you back $1,300. Abroad, a one-bedroom in a metro area in Ecuador runs $200 to $600. In Sicily, Italy it is a bit over $500.

Meanwhile inflation, while abating some, isn’t going away. Housing costs, along with those for taxes and transportation, probably will continue to increase, especially during the Trump Administration. Technology makes it possible to do work anywhere. Organizations which pay well, such as large public companies and privately held professional services firms, have located throughout the US as well as beyond domestic borders.

So, it’s making sense to consider exiting HCOL areas. Historically, that kind of uprooting to downsize fixed expenses used to be a retirement rite of passage. Now, it could be smart during any career phase.

Scrutiny of HCOL

Both the media and professional anonymous networks such as Reddit, Fishbowl, Blind and Glassdoor have put HCOL under the microscope. The issue is: Is it “worth it” to live in HCOL areas, even if you have a plum position with wonderful compensation and prestige? On Glassdoor is a typical kind of post about that:

“Worth it is hard to nail down. I’ve worked in PA in both a medium/low COL midwestern city and a high cost of living city in the northeast. Living in the smaller city the money went much further… Living in my [HCOL] current city the comp differential doesn’t really cover the actual higher cost of living”

An additional issue can be the stress from the competitive environment. HCOL areas tend to attract the hyper ambitious.

Already there’s a trend, reports Yahoo, of Millennials seeking out no-name rural areas.

Had to be there, had to stay there

The Bright Lights Big City had been the dream for work. At one time the advice for those laid off or whose business was failing had been: You have to do what it takes to remain in those HCOL locations. Otherwise, went the thinking, your brand will be permanently damaged.

Timehackhero points to the large number of quality jobs/contract assignments and the high compensation in HCOL. Even remote freelancers, documents Netspend, have higher earnings in HCOL metros.

There is also, as NCECS explains, the edge coming from physical proximity. The highly credentialed tend to cluster in HCOL areas. Having direct access to them can boost your own success. They might mentor you. Also, you might be competitively driven to be more productive and innovative.

I would add the prestige factor. Working in New York or San Francisco confers status.

There are also the amenities such as world-class culture and fine restaurants.

No single model of LCOL

There’s that old adage: It takes money to make money. So, you were expected to pay whatever in housing and taxes to be able to work in HCOL locations. But that may no longer be applicable in a post-COVID inflationary era.

The reality is that there’s a broad range of versions of what it is to earn a living in LCOL areas. Some are pitiful. Some lucrative. To set yourself up for the latter requires research. For example, you investigate which cities or regions are best for public relations. A candid source is Reddit.

The work setting could be a small public relations firm which pays peanuts or the communications department of an elite large law firm such as Paul Weiss in its Wilmington, Delaware location or Jones Day in Buffalo, New York. For those firms there’s usually some modification of the New York compensation scale but the salary is still relatively high.

If the organization (such as a large law firm,) is prestigious, you share in the aura. Actually, you can twinkle more brightly in LCOL than in HCOL because there are fewer in your category of expertise.

As for less stress, that could be spot-on. But for the ambitious there always will be the extreme drive to succeed.

You could be doing public relations grunt work or providing a high-demand skill such as applying AI products in public relations operations.

In LCOL Las Vegas—median rent $1,408—your startup could specialize in the in-demand niche of special events. As Forbes advises, you first have to research what the state mandates in regulations such as licensing, zoning and permits and the tax system. Those factors can cancel out any financial saving from a relocation.

Risks Specific to LCOL

As with any pivot, opting for LCOL brings risks.

At the top could be this: You’ve been operating remote. The organization providing your source of income enforces RTO. According to Resume Builder, 90 percent of those surveyed plan RTO in 2025. Only six percent are leaving it total WFH.

Many of those models are hybrid, though. A possible solution, for example, is to relocate in a location like Bradley Beach, New Jersey—average monthly rent $1,928—with proximity to where the Manhattan employer wants you to be several days a week. You can still have your big check and it can still go further in LCOL.

A second risk is the loss of the job. There may even be a regional downturn. That could leave you stranded. The infrastructure of the HCOL areas like New York Metro provides access to a large pool of good jobs in three states. That has made it advisable to wait it out there for another job to turn up. With cost-efficiency a current priority, organizations probably won’t move you on their dime from where you are in that LCOL area to where the jobs are in HCOL.

A third risk is that low may not stay “low,” at least not as your budget defines it. Yes, it could remain lower than the national median but be increasing continually. Actually, that’s becoming a pattern.

Tucson, for instance, is among the locations in which there have been more than average increases in rent. In 2014, a studio apartment at Vista Montana was $400. Currently, it’s about $811. Much of that is the result of the influx of those from California fleeing the HCOL. Cleveland is another rapid-rent-increase city, with a spike of 16 percent just in 2024. A major source is gentrification.

A fourth risk is an inability to adjust to how business is done in a particular region. Perhaps more socializing on the job is required—tough for an introvert. Also, there are the off-duty expectations. Going to Alabama might have seemed like a whopper of a deal. In the Birmingham neighborhoods of Acipco-Finley or College Hills the monthly rent is $474. However, the aloof urbanite will have to develop the code of Southern friendliness.

The over-50

Overall, despite the risks, the bottom line for the transition from HCOL can be attractive. You might no longer be doomed to living paycheck to paycheck, as are 60 percent of those earning more than $100,000. Also, there can be an added incentive for the aging: You might not wind up homeless. About 30 percent of the over-50 is homeless and the rate of homelessness surged 18 percent in 2024.

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Career Coach Jane Genova provides end-to-end services, ranging from diagnosis of the challenges and fix-it strategies to preparation of resumes/cover letters/LinkedIn profiles and how to gain control of an interview. She specializes in over-50 work issues. Her edge is a background in marketing communications. For a confidential complimentary consultation please text/phone 203-468-8579 or email [email protected]. Remote and in-person.