A new study by Zillow and Care.com claims that, counter to national trends, it is actually cheaper for families to raise children in Philadelphia proper than in its suburbs.
The study found that, thanks to lessening differences in property taxes between the city and surrounding townships, as well as more expensive child care programs in the suburbs, cost of living is nearly $14K cheaper in Philadelphia for a family with two children than outside city limits.
This runs counter to the national average, which is around $9K cheaper in the suburbs than in cities. New York, unsurprisingly, is the metro area with the biggest discrepancy, at about $71K per year. Philadelphia boasts the cheapest city for raising a family relative to its suburbs that the study found. Other metro areas that were found to be cheaper than their suburbs included Las Vegas, Baltimore, Cleveland and Milwaukee.
Another factor at play in Philadelphia's cost-of-living discrepancy gap is related to Care.com's exclusive use of homeowners for their study. The Philadelphia area is known for its affluent suburbs, whereas the most expensive parts of downtown Philly are dominated by renters.
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