Current Events > Are cheaper states bad to live in?

(+) Yeah! (+)

I live in Massachusetts it's so expensive here. Is it you get what you pay for though? Most of the cheap places in Mass are pretty bad. But the western part of the state is cheap and very nice and educated with really nice people. Just not much around there as far as tons of wealth and you have to commute to work or start your own business. Nice place to live and grow up if you are entreprenerial or know people. I live in Central mass and there is good and bad. Rich and poor. Rural and non rural. The eastern part of the state cost of living is like twice on average what it is in the western part of the state if not more. Central part is somewhere in between. But even still nicer towns are like a half a million dollars on average. I love western mass because you can do really well and it doesn't cost much. Here i'm average at best and homes are so expensive and dependant on where you live. The area too there might be a lot more big business than western ma and commericialized and busy but the people themselves aren't as nice imo. There are nowhere ville places out west too but they are here as well.

I was looking at rankings and massachusetts is considered top 5 states to live but it's also the most expensive. Are poorer states that much worse to live in? So are places like Ohio that much worse when it's half the price? What am I paying for here?

I've considered moving to new hampshire or vermont just because Massachusetts is becoming so expensive. I'm not sure I'd like Connecticut any better. Seems like Massachusetts version of New Jersey to New York. It's still expensive and has very rich and very poor. I honestly have no clue how people afford Massachusetts unless your family has been here for years or you got a really good job right out of college making lots of money and never took time off. Have spouses making money too etc, etc..

I live in Mississippi and don't like it, but sitting inside and watching Netflix and YouTube is really cheap here compared to doing that from inside a 2,000 dollar a month apartment in Florida or whatever.
---

I have no clue where i want to live is the problem. I moved out here and it's more expensive where I grew up. More jobs near by but it depends. There was at least hope in western MA. Here it just costs more and if you go even further out towards boston it's completely not affordable for me. Seemed to make sense to live here as far as a central place but it's not exactly cheap. I like being around smart people too. And honestly Worcester County is a lot more blue collar than Western MA too. I had no issue with that area overly. I need a place where I can do well and be around good people. Other places seem really religious or whatever they are. Small town nonsense etc. Worcester county is just very bland imo. It's where all the mills and manufacturing was. Western Ma was much more liberal and just nice people. I don't think there has ever been a ton of industry out there. More a mix of colleges and business.

My gf is from Mass and she pays 800 bucks a month for her apartment.

In CA I pay 1200-1400. So it ain't that bad
---

Thing is it's states like Califnornia, Massachusetts, New York etc that always get ranked the best and most expensive states on web rankings. I'm amazed at how nice where I grew up was in western ma though and it was affordable. Out here where it's more expensive obviously nicer homes and stuff but it's not as nice imo and neither are the people. It's more upscale obviously in areas. I wonder if cheaper states have areas that are very nice and still cheap. They must. Bad states probably have really bad areas too though. I haven't travelled in a while so I don't know what other states are like.

Western Mass just has this well kept untouched educated vibe to it and people are real there to me. It's where I'm from so that makes sense but just whatever it is about it. I don't even get that same vibe here and I'm not that far away. And the nicer towns are like twice the price. Worcester county is very blue collar and a lot of old broekn down mill towns or more upscale as you go out towards shrewsbury and marlboro and places like that. Educated. More fun in Western MA imo.