Technical Assistance Center at SUNY Plattsburgh - ACCRA (American Chamber of Commerce Research Association)

The Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER)

Cost of Living Index Results

Since 2004, the Technical Assistance Center at SUNY Plattsburgh (TAC) has conducted this quarterly price survey for the American Chamber of Commerce Research Association (ACCRA), now known as the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER). The Cost of Living study measures differences in costs for consumer goods and services across regions, exclusive of taxes. It is a snapshot of the costs of a broad range of these goods and services at a given time period within a community, in comparison with other urbanized areas. The study is open to all communities where county populations exceed 50,000 and where population of the city/area measured exceeds 35,000. In the case of Plattsburgh, the City and Town of Plattsburgh and immediate suburbs are included within the reasearch area.

The complete quarterly C2ER Cost of Living Index is available by subscription. For more information, visit C2ER's website at www.c2er.org or call (703) 522-4980.

News

City of Plattsburgh No Longer More Affordable than National Average

The city of Plattsburgh can no longer boast that it is more affordable than the national average due to a spike in local housing costs, according to the latest Cost of Living Index, published by American Chamber of Commerce Research Association (ACCRA).

For the first time in recent memory, Plattsburgh's overall cost of living index, at 101.5, ranks slightly higher than the national average of 100, according to the latest affordability statistics compiled by the Technical Assistance Center at SUNY Plattsburgh (TAC). The city, however, still ranked as more affordable than Burlington, Vt. (117.1), which posted higher than average costs in every category of the national survey, including grocery items, housing, utilities, transportation, health care and miscellaneous goods and services.

Overall, Plattsburgh's cost of living in the final quarter of 2005 was lower than Glens Falls (107.3) and Ithaca (108.9) and slightly higher than Rochester (98.7) and Syracuse (100.4).

The red hot housing market may be increasing the value of local residences, but it has eroded the overall affordability of the community, according to statistics collected by TAC and confirmed by the New York State Association of Realtors. According to the monthly housing survey conducted by the state realtors association, the annual median sales price of an existing single family home has jumped 32.3% in Clinton County since 2003.

In 2003, the median sales price of a single-family home was $93,000 (median means half of the homes cost more and half cost less). By 2005, the median price had jumped to $123,000. Homebuyers, however, don't seem to be put off by rising prices. Residential home sales in Clinton County increased from 790 in 2003 to 920 in 2004, according to the New York State Office of Real Property Services.

Regional and national economists have noted that housing price inflation has driven the erosion of affordability for communities like Plattsburgh in recent years. While housing prices are expected to eventually stabilize, higher interest rates for home mortgages could continue to drive affordability down. A bullish housing market is often attributed to a robust economy and local job growth, but some local realtors have noted that a growing segment of their business is coming from retirees who have returned to the area after leaving the region for areas like Florida.

Housing costs in Plattsburgh were nearly 16% higher than the national average at the end of 2005, according to comparative data collected from nearly 300 urban areas across the U.S. for the ACCRA report. The city remained below the national average in the cost of grocery items, utilities, and health care and slightly above the national average for miscellaneous goods and services.

Most households in the city paid a little more than the national average for such items as T-bone steak and hamburger and slightly less for a gallon of milk, a cup of coffee, or a bowl of cereal. Besides gasoline, city shoppers paid a little more than the national average for their phone service and for washer repair, but got a relative bargain, compared to other cities, to get a haircut or to dry clean a suit.

The ACCRA Cost of Living Index measures regional differences in the cost of consumer goods and services, excluding taxes and non-consumer expenditures. It is based on more than 50,000 prices covering 60 different items, for which prices are collected quarterly by chambers of commerce, economic development organizations or universities in participating cities.

Manhattan continues to be the most expensive place to live in the nation, with a cost of living more than twice the national average, according to the ACCRA survey. McAlester, OK continues to be the most affordable, with a cost of living index more than 20 percent below the nation this past quarter.

Contact Information

For more information about the Technical Assistance Center at SUNY Plattsburgh, please contact:

E-mail: tac@plattsburgh.edu
Phone: (518) 564-2214

194 US Oval
Plattsburgh, NY 12903