The Cost-Of-Living In Northwest Missouri

Abstract

<p class="MsoBodyText2" style="text-align: justify; line-height: normal; margin: 0in 0.5in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The cost-of-living in Maryville is approximately 90.3% of the national average of 324 cities nationwide.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Eight Missouri cities participated in the official study under the rules of the American Chamber of Commerce Research Association (ACCRA).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Separate from this study, but applying identical standards of calculation during the same time period, we conducted a cost-of-living study for Maryville, Bethany and Trenton, Missouri.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Bethany’s cost-of-living came in at 94.9% of the national average, while Trenton’s was slightly higher, but still well below the national average, at 95.7%.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Incorporating these three city’s data into the Missouri Average as calculated by ACCRA yielded a 1.1% increase, making the cost-of-living for the state of Missouri 93.7%.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>This resulted in a seventeenth place finish for Missouri when ranked against all other state composite indices.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span>Without our data included, the Missouri Department of Economic Development reported that during the 3<sup>rd</sup> quarter, 2002 the state had the thirteenth-lowest cost-of-living in the United States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">  </span></span></span></p>