$100k salary, packing up from Roanoke

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Sarasota, FL cityscape

next stop after roanoke

Sarasota

fl · metro 262k

photo: Jeffrey Eisen / pexels

a dispatch from

sarasota

FL

27.34°N

82.54°W

Sarasota is the home of the Ringling Brothers Circus (the museum is wild, and yes, there's a vintage clown college history), and Siesta Key's beach is regularly named the best in America for its pure quartz sand. The cultural scene is heavy for a Florida city of its size (theater, opera, art museum). Gulf sunsets here are the brochure shot. The food scene has caught up to the city's wealth and the retirees' time.

metro262k

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01 · the verdict

the verdict

$260

the monthly premium over Roanoke

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

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$2,121/mo

53% more expensive than Roanoke(vs $1,382/mo)

02state income tax

0%

$479/mo less in state tax than Roanoke

vs 5.75% in Roanoke

03after rent

$6,212/mo

$260 less than Roanoke

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

04a house here

$423k

43% more expensive than Roanoke

vs $296k in Roanoke

05metro size

262k

vs 314k in Roanoke

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

249

pleasant days a year, in sarasota.

Roanoke only manages 179 of those.

But the calendar thins out: Roanoke stays 4.0× busier.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

59/100

14% lower than Roanoke

vs 69/100 in Roanoke

Closest outdoor draw: Myakka River State Park, 15.9 mi.

·walk score®

96/100

2% higher than Roanoke

vs 94/100 in Roanoke

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

6

33% fewer than Roanoke

vs 9 nonstops in Roanoke

04 · see also

in the same ballpark as sarasota:

see also

myrtle beach

more flight options

turn the page

see also

wilmington

$71/mo cheaper

turn the page

see also

pensacola

$369/mo cheaper

turn the page

compare sarasota with:

Myrtle BeachWilmingtonPensacola