2.06 Cost of Living (1 of 2)

This page includes data on two standard living expense measures from JobsEQ: Cost of Living and Purchasing Power, plus County Property Tax History  data from  Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance. The base United States cost of Living index measure is 100. The cost of living for an area is then measured above or below the median 100 line to give a cost of living index, in comparison to other areas. The lower the index is below 100, the cheaper the cost of living. The index is based on calculating a consistent set of mean price levels. Purchasing power is the financial capacity to spend money on goods and services and can be a combination of disposable income and credit. Annual wage growth shows a comparison of the annual wage by county for a 5 year period (2009-2013) compared to the following 5 year period (2014-2018). Included as reference points are the overall 10 year growth of each region and average annual salary. Property tax rates are applied to properties per $1,000 of taxable assessed value and are a good indication of overall property value. Rates do not include municipal tax.