same $100k income, fresh start from Virginia Beach

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Sarasota, FL cityscape

from virginia beach

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

$177

cheaper each month than Virginia Beach

Sarasota and Virginia Beach land close on cost. The reasons to move are about how you'd live, not what you'd save.
landable, recorded on the sarasota entry

02 · the money

a quick ledger.

01rent

$2,121/mo

17% more expensive than Virginia Beach(vs $1,819/mo)

02state income tax

0%

$479/mo less in state tax than Virginia Beach

vs 5.75% in Virginia Beach

03after rent

$6,212/mo

$177 more than Virginia Beach

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

04a house here

$423k

13% more expensive than Virginia Beach

vs $375k in Virginia Beach

05metro size

262k

vs 1.8M in Virginia Beach

03 · the life

field notes, weather & such.

249

pleasant days a year, in sarasota.

Virginia Beach only manages 211 of those.

But the calendar thins out: Virginia Beach stays 10.0× busier.
on a typical month
·outdoorscore

59/100

4% higher than Virginia Beach

vs 57/100 in Virginia Beach

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

·walk score®

96/100

9% higher than Virginia Beach

vs 88/100 in Virginia Beach

Walk Score® methodology

·nonstops

6

65% fewer than Virginia Beach

vs 17 nonstops in Virginia Beach

04 · see also

if sarasota appeals, also worth a look:

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