Birch Bay, WA Cost Of Living

Birch Bay cost of living index

In the event that the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used. Each cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. If the amount is below 100, it is lower than the national average. If the amount is above 100, it is higher than the national average.
Index	Birch Bay	Washington	National
Cost of living index	113	115	100
Index	Birch Bay	Washington	National
Goods & Services index	114	106	100
Groceries index	105	107	100
Health care index	116	118	100
Housing index	122	135	100
Transportation index	121	116	100
Utilities index	80	94	100

Here we can see a simple outline of the cost of living in Birch Bay, WA. As you can see, with the average cost of living in Birch Bay, WA being 113, that puts it 2% lower than the average of Washington and 13% higher than our nation's average. This simple outline of the cost of living index was formulated using prices of: goods and services (weighted 33%), housing prices (weighted 30%), groceries (weighted 13%), utilities (weighted 10%), transportation (weighted 9%), and health care (weighted 5%). Thus, goods/services, along with housing influences the majority of the cost of living index. The price of daily goods and services is a valuable and reliable number to be aware of when considering the general price of the city's goods. In the case of Birch Bay, WA, the price of goods and services are 8% higher than the average of Washington as well as 14% higher than the nation's average.

Did you know?

The cost of living in Birch Bay is 2% lower than the Washington average.
The cost of living in Birch Bay is 13% higher than the national average.
The cost of housing in Birch Bay is 22% higher than the national average.
Washington general sales tax is 28% higher than the national average.
Washington state income tax is 100% lower than the national average.

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Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Use the salary calculator to compare your current salary in Birch Bay, WA to any other city. The salary calculator will tell you how much you would need to earn in any given city to maintain the same standard of living based on the cost of living in each city. For example, if the cost of living in the city you are looking to relocate to is higher than the cost of living in Birch Bay, WA, then you would need to earn more income in order to maintain the same standard of living. To use the Birch Bay, WA salary calculator, simply enter in the name of the new city, then adjust the slider to your current income. The salary calculator will do the rest and let you know if you need to earn more or less in the new city. You will also see a complete breakdown of the cost of living.

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$60,907	$5,076	$1,421	$1,827
Renters	$39,211	$3,268	$915	$1,176

A good way to judge both the affordability of the housing and the cost of living is by simply calculating the maximum that a person should spend on housing in Birch Bay, WA, otherwise known as the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). The safest way to live in the city is to avoid spending more than 28 percent of the gross income that one earns on costs that pertain to housing and no more than 36 percent on all expenses and debts. Birch Bay, WA has a median income of about $60,907 for people who own homes. Based on that number, a person should spend a maximum of $1,421 on expenses related to housing. Renters have a slightly different median income, which is $39,211. Based on this average, renters should spend no more than $915 on all of their rental costs if they want to maintain a non-impoverished standard of living.

Washington Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
Washington	6.5%	10.4%

Washington Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
Washington	0%	0%

When considering the overall cost of living expenses in Birch Bay, WA, it's important to take into account the sales tax for Washington, as well as the rate for income tax in Washington. Goods and services sold to consumers in any state have some form of sales tax. Each state has its own tax code, which means that sales tax rates vary from state to state, ranging from over 7% in some states to as low as 0% in others. The maximum surtax for Washington is 10.4%, and the sales tax in the state of Washington is 6.5%. Alternatively, the tax imposed on your income by the state government is known as income tax. The rate for this tax also varies from state to state, and your rate is affected by your tax bracket, which is determined by your level of income. Income tax rates might be as high as 9%, down to as low as 0%. The range for income tax rates in Washington starts from 0% and goes up to 0%.

Goods & Services

Item	Birch Bay	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$17.96	$16.09	11.7%
Beauty Salon	$41.25	$37.33	10.5%
Toothpaste	$3.02	$2.45	23.3%
Shampoo	$1.43	$1.00	43.3%
Movie	$12.29	$10.28	19.5%
Bowling	$5.08	$4.93	3.1%

Groceries

Item	Birch Bay	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$4.06	$3.80	6.7%
Fried Chicken	$1.64	$1.40	17.2%
Milk	$1.82	$2.01	9.3%
Potatoes	$2.83	$3.01	5.9%
Pizza	$10.89	$9.89	10.2%
Beer	$9.32	$8.90	4.8%

Health Care

Item	Birch Bay	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$174.50	$102.16	70.8%
Doctor	$133.17	$108.36	22.9%
Dentist	$103.17	$92.53	11.5%
Ibuprofen	$10.85	$9.28	17.0%
Lipitor	$403.48	$425.82	5.2%

Housing

Item	Birch Bay	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$237,500.00	$184,700.00	28.6%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,684.91	$1,202.44	40.1%
Apartment Rent	$1,019.00	$949.00	7.4%

Transportation

Item	Birch Bay	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$2.86	$2.24	27.2%
Tire Balancing	$50.08	$46.29	8.2%

Utilities

Item	Birch Bay	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$119.96	$165.96	27.7%
Phone	$25.99	$28.68	9.4%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Custer, WA	448	109	9%
Point Roberts, WA	1,203	110	10%
Ferndale, WA	12,666	113	13%
Lynden, WA	13,204	118	18%
Blaine, WA	4,988	119	19%
Birch Bay, WA	8,107	113	13%

Cities with similar population

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Brazil, IN	8,105	84	-16%
Wood-Ridge, NJ	8,109	137	37%
London, KY	8,111	87	-13%
Lugoff, SC	8,103	96	-4%
Abingdon, VA	8,117	92	-8%
Birch Bay, WA	8,107	113	13%

Source: The Birch Bay, WA cost of living data displayed above is derived from the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) for 2017.

Birch Bay, WA Cost of Living