Being on my way to friends and thinking about living in the city vs. living on the outskirts I had a thought: Though property prices in cities are higher anything else is much closer: Restaurants, shopping, ideally friends, and any public transport. This means that I spend much less time just getting around and commuting. Also I save some amount on heating as single houses necessarily are more difficult to heat.
So on one hand I spend more on rent but on the other hand I save on time, energy and transportation. So the "actual" cost of living in the city is lower than it might seem at first. Has anyone done an estimation of this "actual" cost or should I do it myself as kind of an exercise? I am aware that there are quite some parameters to consider such as personal preferences on having parks nearby, noise levels and my desire to go out.
I recall, but am unable to find, a small study that looked into living in typical American suburbs and driving vs. living in the center city and taking public transit, walking, or biking. As I recall, the authors concluded that either is comparable in total costs for the "average" city. If that's true, then I think it's a strong case for living in the city given that people underestimate how stressful their commutes are and that you'll save time.
Others, especially bicycle advocates, have made the same comparison. If you don't own a car, you can t...
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