The Roanoke Region offers the lowest cost of living of the seven Virginia metro areas included in a new cost-of-living index from the Council for Community and Economic Research.
The annual review is an average of data accumulated from the three pricing periods of the previous year. According to the 2009 report, the region has the lowest cost of living index among the metro areas and the second lowest of the nine participating Virginia communities.
Overall, the Roanoke Region's cost of living index is 95.3 compared with the national index average of 100.
"This latest survey highlights the Roanoke Region's continued competitiveness as an affordable place to live and run a business," says Beth Doughty, executive director of the Roanoke Regional Partnership. "When combined with other recent good economic news--a stabilizing real estate market and falling unemployment rates--it is no wonder we're starting to be noticed by national publications such as -The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post, and Business Facilities. The 2009 average is higher than last year's 92.6, in part of the relative health of the local home prices.
Data recently released by both the Roanoke Valley and National Associations of Realtors shows the December-to-December growth in home prices. Locally, prices rose 15.4 percent from $171,332 to $197,748. Nationally, home prices rose just 3.6 percent. Housing accounts for 28.99 percent of the overall cost of living, which is derived from costs in that and five other consumer categories: groceries, utilities, transportation, health care and miscellaneous goods and services.
(From press release.)
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