INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — It costs less to live in Indian River County in 2013 than it did in 2012, according to the latest Cost of Living figures released by The Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER).
Among the 308 urban areas participating in the 2013 Cost of Living Index survey, the after-tax cost for a professional/managerial standard of living ranged from more than twice the national average in Manhattan, N.Y., to almost 19 percent below the national average in Harlingen, Texas.
The Cost of Living Index is published quarterly by C2ER – The Council for Community and Economic Research. The data represents average prices submitted for the first three quarters of 2013.
The Vero Beach-Sebastian metro area came in at an average of 98.8 for the first three quarters of 2013, nearly 4 percentage points decrease as compared to the 2012 figure of 101.7.
The New York-Manhattan area ranked as being the most expensive place to live in the U.S. with an overall composite index of 220.4.
Harlingen, Texas, near Brownsville and McAllen, was the least expensive area with an average index of 81.6 for the same period.
The Indian River County Chamber of Commerce has conducted the Cost of Living surveys since 1996 with assistance from Chamber volunteers. The Vero Beach-Sebastian metro area is one of 13 communities statewide to participate, and the only community in Florida’s Research Coast region to do so.
The Index reflects cost differentials of consumer goods and services for professional and executive households in the top income quintile throughout the U.S. It is based on more than 90,000 prices covering 60 different items in six component categories: housing, utilities, grocery items, health care, transportation, plus miscellaneous goods and services.
As it relates to the sale of a new 2,400- square-foot 4-bedroom/2-bath home in 2013, the average selling price in Indian River County was $262,148. This compares to a median home price of $258,469 among participating communities across the U.S., and a mean or average sales price of $294,127. Same size homes in Idaho Falls, Idaho, were the least expensive, selling for $185,506, while those in Manhattan had the highest selling price of $1.3 million.
The Chamber provides a Cost-of-Living calculator on its website, www.indianriverchamber.com, comparing Indian River County to other participating communities in Florida and the U.S., based on the current price indexes as well as current demographic and other economic data.
For more information on this report and other pertinent data, call Helene Caseltine, CEcD, Director of Economic Development at the Chamber, (772) 567-3491.
The Indian River County Chamber of Commerce is designated by the Board of County Commissioners as the primary economic development agency to recruit new targeted industry and assist in the growth and expansion of existing industry.