$100k salary, packing up from Rochester

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Charleston, SC cityscape

next stop after rochester

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

$507

the monthly premium over Rochester

Charleston runs a little pricier than Rochester. The case has to be about something other than rent.
landable, recorded on the charleston entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,987/mo

30% more expensive than Rochester(vs $1,534/mo)

02state income tax

6.5%

$54/mo more in state tax than Rochester

vs 5.85% in Rochester

03after rent

$5,805/mo

$507 less than Rochester

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

04a house here

$432k

58% more expensive than Rochester

vs $273k in Rochester

05metro size

849k

vs 1.1M in Rochester

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

212

pleasant days a year, in charleston.

Rochester barely cracks 147 pleasant ones.

A real upgrade on things to do: 1.4× Rochester's pace.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

67/100

16% higher than Rochester

vs 58/100 in Rochester

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

·walk score®

92/100

33% higher than Rochester

vs 69/100 in Rochester

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

20

11% more than Rochester

vs 18 nonstops in Rochester

04 · see also

neighbors of charleston on the map of tradeoffs:

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