>>21420404a 500 sq.ft. 1bd 1ba apartment bottoms out at ~2500/mo here. I tolerate the higher rate because of the apartment itself, the location, and the fact that the utilities here are cheaper than in nearby areas (they have lower rent, but the utilities makes it a wash).
single-family homes are also very expensive. condos bottom out at ~1.4mil, townhome and actual houses at ~1.7mil (usually for that price, the home needs a lot of work or is in a bad area though).
I actually save quite a bit, but probably never enough to own a house *here*. Because cost of living is so high, my salary is also pretty high. income-expense ratio is a little worse than it should be, but I'm saving more than most in gross dollars. If I lived and worked somewhere with a more normal cost-of-living, I'd have a lot less saved.
Someday I'll move and live like a minor lord.
