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Originally Posted by Henry17
While living a student life of 3-8 people sharing a house -- our hypothetical individual lives alone so can't split housing costs down to a few hundred dollars.
Alone in apartment in a converted house, with car (beater), Iowa, both were studio & small (<700sqft, can't remember exact), 4 blocks from downtown w/private parking, $525/mo on avg inc utils, etc. Food was <$300/mo for mostly organic & local. Insurance on my car right now is $60/mo.
But I'm someone who's content living in a small place. Understandably, most people aren't so content. My dream-house is maybe 1200sqft (don't want kids). Growing up in/around much larger houses than that, I never got the point of having half the space being rarely used or for show. I've yet to see someone actually put a full 2500sqft to good use (imo) without having 5 kids. That's my bias.
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I'm not trying to be an ass or hold out some outrages standards but....Now I know the middle of the US is dirt cheap but we are talking quality of life again.
Not taken poorly, don't worry. Where I lived, a hardwood floor 1bdrm with maybe 750sqft was about $600/mo for rent+basic utils. That was in a (imo) really nice area on the same block, next to a co-op and lots of gardens, no crime really outside of random drunk people punching the house. Needed some remodeling if you're picky about that, though. I wasn't.
Yes, flyover state, though. During the summer it's gorgeous, peaceful, and laid back, but I'd have a hard time living there for decades.