Fort Worth is a city that is located in the Northern part of Texas and is approximately 36 miles west of Dallas. The city covers a total area of roughly 350 square miles and it is the administrative capital of Tarrant County. However, it also comprises three counties, Wise, Parker, and Denton. Moreover, it is one of the cities that forms the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington metroplex which is ranked 4th after New York City-Newark-Jersey, Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin as the most inhabited metropolitan areas in the U.S.
If you are thinking of moving to Fort Worth, there are certain things that you need to know before making the big decision. Some of them are; the cost of living, the average housing prices, healthcare, and lifestyle. This will help you make an informed decision and avoid surprises when you finally move.
Fort Worth’s cost of living index
Generally, Fort Worth’s cost of living index is 99.8 which is slightly lower than the national average but higher than that of Texas. The cost of housing is 21% lower than the country’s average and the state income tax is reported to be 100% lower compared to the country’s average. Some of the attractive features in Fort Worth, Texas include the magnificent museums, high-quality restaurants, and live music venues, just to mention a few.
Read along to get to know more about Fort Worth Tx, its cost of living, best and cheapest places to live in Fort Worth.
What is the Cost of Living in Fort Worth, Texas?
According to the best-places report on the cost of living in Fort Worth, Texas, the cost of living index for Fort Worth is 99.8 which is lower than the country’s cost of living average but higher than Texas’s cost of living average. Therefore, living in Fort Worth is not entirely expensive. To further elaborate on this, the same best-places report gives the cost of living indices for Grocery, health, and housing to be 97.7, 99.4, and 85.5 respectively, which means that they are cheaper than the country’s average. Transport and utilities indices are higher than the national average by 0.5 and 13.9, respectively.
When it comes to housing, the median cost of renting a 900 square foot well-furnished house or apartment in a wealthy neighborhood is around $1555. On the other hand, If you are looking for a studio apartment in Fort Worth, Texas, you can get it at a cost of $700/month.
Food expenses in Fort Worth are also relatively cheap. The price of groceries is also moderately priced.
Cost of Living: Fort Worth vs Dallas?
The cost of living in Fort Worth and Dallas is almost the same, with the difference being marginal. Even so, it is slightly cheaper to live in Fort Worth compared to Dallas. According to best-places, the cost of almost everything i.e. housing (homeowner), food and groceries, median home cost, and transportation are cheaper in Fort Worth than in Dallas. The only things that are expensive in Fort Worth in relation to Dallas are utilities and health.
To give a clear picture of the cost of living in these two cities, here is a comparison of prices of commodities between the two cities. 1 litre of Milk (Dallas $0.72, Fort Worth $0.75), 1 kg of rice (Dallas $3.72, Fort Worth $3.80) , 1 kg of local Cheese (Dallas $8.35, Fort Worth $9.46), 1 kg of chicken fillet (Dallas $8.73, Fort Worth $8.41), 1 kg apple (Dallas $3.46, Fort Worth $4.66), 1 liter gasoline (Dallas $0.58, Fort Worth $0.61), common utilities (garbage, water, cooling, heating) (Dallas $149.89, Fort Worth $196.34), Fitness club (Dallas $40.12, Fort Worth $30.88), pre-school (Dallas $941.30, Fort Worth $933.33) and city center one-bedroom apartment (Dallas $1515.45, Fort Worth $1221.44).
Rent in Fort Worth is 7.8% lower than it is in Dallas. According to Numbeo, you will require $4,194 in Fort Worth to live a life worth $4,600 in Dallas. Additionally, the buying power in Fort Worth is reported to be 17.36 percent higher lower than Dallas
Is Fort Worth a good place to live?
Fort Worth, Texas is one of the best places to live in. With a population of 833,319, Fort Worth is comprised of different nationalities such as Spanish, French, Dutch, Mandarin, German, and Vietnamese. It has a GDP per capita of roughly $55,263.
As stated earlier, the city boasts of some great museums, high-quality restaurants, friendly people, and live music venues. It is a city with a perfect blend of urban-rural vibe, rich in history and it’s the right place to experience the best of Texas culture.
Apart from the above mentioned attractive features, Fort Worth also offers a vibrant nightlife, quaint neighborhoods, relatively affordable living, plenty of things to explore, and endless business opportunities – everything that you would want in a home city.
Fort Worth’s cost of living is the same as the national average and its median home price is placed at $260,000. Its cost of transportation is significantly higher than the country’s average. Utility cost in Fort Worth is 0.5% higher than the national average, housing cost is 14.5% lower than the national average according to bestplaces.net
In terms of weather, Fort Worth like any other city in Texas is characterized by cold winters and hot summers with the coldest month being January and the hottest July. The average winter temperature is approximately two degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit) and the summer temperatures range between 34 to 36 degrees celsius (93 to 97 degrees Fahrenheit). The city receives moderate rainfall with the wettest month being May.
There are multiple things you can do in Fort Worth including taking a walk in Sundance square, exploring Texas-delicious cuisines, or experiencing the real western culture by participating in cattle drives that happen daily at the Stockyards National Historic District. Alternatively, you can head to the Fort Worth Zoo and marvel at the numerous different species of Apes and Rhinos. If you have kids you can go to the planetarium or Six Flags for a day full of fun.
What salary do you need to live in Texas?
It depends on what area or part of Texas you live in or intend to live in. For example, the amount of money you need for you to live in Wichita Falls is much lower than what you will need to live in Dallas or even Fort Worth. The cost of living is different in various Texas cities. Having said that, the average living wage in Texas per year is around $63,469. The key factor that has significantly influenced the living wage in Texas is the low cost of housing which currently stands at $10,000 per year.
But as stated earlier, there are cities within the state of Texas whose cost of living is way lower. The cheapest city in Texas, where you will require less to survive according to Kiplinger is, Harlingen which has a population of 65,467. Its median household income is $38,122 and its average home value is placed at $75,800. The second cheapest is McAllen with a median household income of $45,057, and an average home value of $120, 500.
Since housing is one of the factors that determine whether living in a place is affordable or not, it is important to note that a worker in Texas will need to earn $16.77 an hour for him/her to afford a two bedroomed house. This translates to an annual salary of about $35,000. However, you will need to earn slightly more than this if you are living in the Northern parts of Texas. For instance, in Dallas, you will need to earn $17.56 per hour, while in Fort Worth-Arlington it changes to $18.04 per hour.
For you to live comfortably in Texas, you will need to earn more than $63,469 per year. For example, living in Fort Worth (the 5th largest city in Texas), a homeowner will need to earn around $79,287 for you to live comfortably. For a renter (one renting a house), you will need $7,848 more for you to achieve the same. One easiest way of determining how much salary you need to live comfortably in Texas is by using the 50/20 /30 rule which requires you to use 50 percent of your total income on necessities, 20 percent of it on savings, and 30 percent on entertainment.
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