$100k salary, packing up from Allentown

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Charleston, SC cityscape

next stop after allentown

Charleston

sc · metro 849k

photo: Connor Scott McManus / pexels

a dispatch from

charleston

SC

32.78°N

79.94°W

Charleston is pastel rowhouses, cobblestone streets, the smell of pluff mud at low tide, and shrimp and grits that should be illegal everywhere else. The historic district is a working postcard, the food scene punches way above its size, and the porches are made for sitting. Spoleto Festival every spring brings world-class arts. It's small, dense, and absurdly photogenic.

metro849k

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01 · the verdict

the verdict

$464

the monthly cost of moving past Allentown

You'd pay for Charleston. The question is whether the days are worth the difference.
landable, recorded on the charleston entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,987/mo

10% more expensive than Allentown(vs $1,809/mo)

02state income tax

6.5%

$286/mo more in state tax than Allentown

vs 3.07% in Allentown

03after rent

$5,805/mo

$464 less than Allentown

gross of federal tax. a comparison, not a paycheck.

04a house here

$432k

20% more expensive than Allentown

vs $359k in Allentown

05metro size

849k

vs 874k in Allentown

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

212

pleasant days a year, in charleston.

Allentown only manages 157 of those.

A month here packs 1.5× the events of Allentown.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

67/100

8% lower than Allentown

vs 73/100 in Allentown

Closest outdoor draw: Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge.Wilderness Area, 19.4 mi.

·walk score®

92/100

7% higher than Allentown

vs 86/100 in Allentown

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

20

122% more than Allentown

vs 9 nonstops in Allentown

04 · see also

in the same ballpark as charleston:

see also

reno

$620/mo cheaper

turn the page

see also

asheville

$415/mo cheaper

turn the page

see also

greenville

$436/mo cheaper

turn the page

compare charleston with:

RenoAshevilleGreenville