$100k salary, packing up from South Bend

change
El Paso, TX cityscape

instead of south bend

El Paso

tx · metro 872k

photo: Gene Maysonet / pexels

a dispatch from

el paso

TX

31.76°N

106.49°W

El Paso has the Franklin Mountains running right through the middle of the city (which is rare), with hiking trails inside city limits and the desert wide open just past the suburbs. The Mexican food is exceptional in ways that the rest of Texas doesn't quite match (it's true regional border food). Ciudad Juarez is literally next door across the Rio Grande. The light at sunset is unreal.

metro872k

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01 · the verdict

the verdict

$168

below South Bend's monthly cost

On paper, El Paso and South Bend are twins. In practice they live very differently.
landable, recorded on the el paso entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,473/mo

6% more expensive than South Bend(vs $1,391/mo)

02state income tax

0%

$250/mo less in state tax than South Bend

vs 3% in South Bend

03after rent

$6,860/mo

$168 more than South Bend

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

04a house here

$231k

0% more expensive than South Bend

vs $230k in South Bend

05metro size

872k

vs 324k in South Bend

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

222

pleasant days a year, in el paso.

South Bend only logs 157 pleasant days. Summer asks for something in return: 60 days top 95° here, 0 in South Bend.

A month here packs 1.8× the events of South Bend.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

65/100

23% higher than South Bend

vs 53/100 in South Bend

Closest outdoor draw: White Sands National Park, 72.1 mi.

·walk score®

93/100

13% higher than South Bend

vs 82/100 in South Bend

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

13

44% more than South Bend

vs 9 nonstops in South Bend

04 · see also

same energy as el paso, different zip code:

see also

roanoke

more things to do

turn the page

see also

lexington

more things to do

turn the page

see also

huntsville

more things to do

turn the page

compare el paso with:

RoanokeLexingtonHuntsville