Cost of Living: Most and Least Expensive College Town
By HSB
Cost of living is directly proportional to location where college is located. Many students consider cost of living to be one of the Major factor when selecting the Universities. Forbe’s have published an article based on research done by Coldwell Banker Real Estate for home prices near college town/campus.
Using the value of the 4 bedroom apartment at various cities, least and most expensive college towns was calculated. We have published cost of living at University of Southern California, which is why USC is listed under Most Expensive College category below.
Least to Most Expensive College Towns
Akron, Ohio
Status: Least Expensive
School: University of Akron
2009 Avg. Price: $121,885
Muncie, Ind.
Status: Least Expensive
School: Ball State University
2009 Avg. Price: $144,996
Ann Arbor, Mich.
Status: Least Expensive
School: University of Michigan
2009 Avg. Price: $148,000
Ypsilanti, Mich.
School: Eastern Michigan University
Tulsa, Okla.
School: University of Tulsa
Denton, Texas
Town, State: School: University of North Texas
Houston, Texas
School: University of Houston, Rice University
Bloomington, Ind.
School: Indiana University
Kent, Ohio
School: Kent State University
Seattle, Wash.
Status: Most Expensive
School: University of Washington
2009 Avg. Price: $568,317
Boulder, Colo.
Status: Most Expensive
School: University of Colorado
2009 Avg. Price: $622,000
San Jose, Calif.
Status: Most Expensive
School: San Jose State University
2009 Avg. Price: $808,926
Berkeley, Calif.
School: University of California, Berkeley
2009 Avg. Price: $1,299,750
Boston/Chestnut Hill, Mass.
School: Boston College
2009 Avg. Price: $1,337,578
Los Angeles, Calif.
School: University of Southern California, University of California, LA
2009 Avg. Price: $1,347,125
Palo Alto, Calif.
School: Stanford University
2009 Avg. Price: $1,489,726
Source of the above article : Forbes . As you can see 4 bedroom apartment costs from $121,885 to $1,489,726. So, based on the cost of the apartment, rental cost will also be high. When rental costs goes up, cost of living for the students also goes up. If your monthly expense is $700, atleast$350 will be used for apartment rent and rest will be used for other expenses.If you have choice between two similar universites, compare the cost of living, before making the final decision.
Related posts:
- Cost of Living at University of Southern California, LA
- Cost of Living for Students – Breakdown
- Cost of Graduate Education in U.S.
- How Much Does GRE Cost?
- 10 Most Expensive Colleges and Universities in U.S.



HSB
It is a eye opening article,
how people connect things and get an easy answer to complicated problems.hats off to your analysis
based on the cost of 4 bed apartment
good
thanks
cheers
easwaran