$100k salary, packing up from Des Moines

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Eugene, OR cityscape

from des moines

Eugene

or · metro 381k

photo: Tim Mossholder / pexels

a dispatch from

eugene

OR

44.05°N

123.09°W

Eugene is Track Town USA (Hayward Field is the spiritual home of American distance running), the University of Oregon, and a hippie-academic-outdoorsy culture that's been here since the '60s and isn't going anywhere. The Willamette and McKenzie rivers meet just outside town. Saturday Market downtown has been running for over 50 years. Coffee and craft beer are taken seriously. Misty in winter, glorious in summer.

metro381k

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01 · the verdict

the verdict

$760

the monthly premium over Des Moines

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

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$1,799/mo

42% more expensive than Des Moines(vs $1,268/mo)

02state income tax

8.75%

$229/mo more in state tax than Des Moines

vs 6% in Des Moines

03after rent

$5,805/mo

$760 less than Des Moines

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

04a house here

$456k

52% more expensive than Des Moines

vs $300k in Des Moines

05metro size

381k

vs 737k in Des Moines

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

206

pleasant days a year, in eugene.

Des Moines keeps to 151 pleasant days a year.

Lighter on events: Des Moines packs 1.7× more into a month.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

75/100

36% higher than Des Moines

vs 55/100 in Des Moines

Closest outdoor draw: Willamette National Forest, 47.5 mi.

·walk score®

97/100

24% higher than Des Moines

vs 78/100 in Des Moines

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

9

47% fewer than Des Moines

vs 17 nonstops in Des Moines

04 · see also

cities that play in eugene's register:

see also

pensacola

$776/mo cheaper

turn the page

see also

reno

$620/mo cheaper

turn the page

see also

greenville

$436/mo cheaper

turn the page

compare eugene with:

PensacolaRenoGreenville