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Pinpointing Affordable Cities

Three Texas towns are in Forbes study top 10

by Sid Kirchheimer, AARP Bulletin, December 21, 2010

affordable cities

Paul Franklin/Dorling Kindersley/Getty Images

Get more bang for your buck in Texas.

En español | They say everything's bigger in Texas … except maybe the cost of a comfortable life. Three cities in the Lone Star State — San Antonio, Houston and Austin — are among the top 10 most affordable cities, according to a new study by Forbes.com.

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Last year, each of those towns, along with Dallas and Fort Worth, made the top 10 in another slightly different Forbes ranking, America's best bargain cities.

The new study, of burgs with a population of at least 100,000, did not simply compare cost of living. Rather it factored in how solid the job market is and how cheap the expenses, including the average cost of groceries, health care and transportation. It also looked at housing costs as a portion of income.

The results:

  Cost-of-Living Rank Unemployment Rank Housing Costs Rank
1. Oklahoma City, Okla.
 12 4 2
2. Pittsburgh, Pa.
 6 15 1
3. Buffalo, N.Y. 16 9 3
4. Rochester, N.Y. 25 1 8
5. Nashville, Tenn. 3 23 11
6. San Antonio, Texas
 19 9 10
7. Houston, Texas
 7 22 13
8. Louisville, Ky. 2 37 4
9. Birmingham, Ala. 5 26 14
10. Austin, Texas 15 6 25


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Sid Kirchheimer writes about health and consumer issues.

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