The Five Most Expensive States in America

As the price of living keeps going up year after year, we tend to lose sight of what we are doing and only focus on paying bills on time. Living has become more like a chore than something to be enjoyed, especially if you are in one of these states of America.

The US, in general, is quite expensive to live in, but there seem to be five areas where existing is impossible for a family of four with only one working parent. Here are some stats based on the minimum wage of two parents in a family earning regularly.

1- New York

Gustavo Frazao/Shutterstock: New York is very expensive to live in

It must not come as a surprise to you, given that New York has always been in one list or the other regarding the expenses. This time, it tops the list with an average living wage of $88,056 per family.

According to a study done by MIT, child care is the reason for this state being so expensive, as New Yorkers have to pay more than $23K per year in child support—this is a whole lot more than what parents pay in other states!

The worst thing is, there is a negative gap of more than $20,000 when it comes to the living wage and the median salary of a New Yorker.

2- California

Krista Abel/Shutterstock: California offers highest hourly workers’ wage

If you have successfully avoided New York, it’s quite possible you landed in California and got stuck in the expensive lifestyle of the state of Hollywood. Families with two working parents pay around $19K per year for housing and other related expenses.

With a living wage of $81,056, California pays the hourly workers an average of $12-$13, yet they come short of paying their bills on time—all thanks to the ever-rising costs.

3- Maryland

People in Maryland make a minimum wage of $45,760, which barely covers half of the living cost. Although, it’s said that Maryland is the ‘Free State,’ the statistics don’t lie.

The good news is if a family is making the state’s median income of $83,242—then they get a chance to save something for later times after taking care of the basic living expenses, but it is a very rare occurrence.

4- New Jersey

Valeri Potapova/Shutterstock: New Jersey’s medical bills are too high

This state has one of the highest medical costs in all of America, which is over $7,000 each year. Living comfortably in New Jersey requires two working adults in a house to make more than $81,000.

However, the government has announced that the hourly wage of $10 will keep increasing by a dollar per year until 2025. It might bring some relief to working-class individuals, but they will fall short in paying the living expense of $75,884.

5- District of Columbia

DC area has a minimum wage of $58,240 and a median income of $85,203—both of which are the highest in all states of America.

Despite that, the minimum wage workers are not living a comfortable life. After all, DC has the highest housing costs in the country, with $21,516 per year. So think before you plan on moving to the capital of America because the median salary wouldn’t make your life any easier!

These are just the top five states making people’s life despondent.There are so many other states in America that have similar, if not worse, conditions for the median salary workers.

It has become impossible to think about anything else when life is surrounded by nothing but gloom.Still, if you have smiling kids and a happy place to come home to, all the struggles become worth it!