Cost Of Living in Forest City, NC

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	Forest City	North Carolina	National
Cost of living	86	94	100
Goods & Services	96	98	100
Groceries	98	98	100
Health care	97	108	100
Housing	61	85	100
Transportation	97	92	100
Utilities	93	94	100

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Cost Of Living Quick Facts

The cost of living in Forest City is 8% lower than the North Carolina average
The cost of living in Forest City is 14% lower than the national average
Forest City housing is 39% lower than the national average
North Carolina general sales tax is 7% lower than the national average
North Carolina state income tax is 83% higher 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

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$45,759	$3,813	$1,068	$1,373
Renters	$23,996	$2,000	$560	$720

The percent of monthly income spent on housing can be a good indicator of the affordability of housing in Forest City, NC, as well as the overall cost of living. As a general rule of thumb, the debt-to-income ratio (DTI) for homeowners or renters should be not more than 28 percent of gross income to be spent on housing related costs and not more than 36 percent of income on all expenses, including debts. The median income for Forest City homeowners, is $45,759. This would allow for a maximum of $1,068 per month to be spent on housing costs. For renters, the median monthly income is $23,996 which would result in a maximum of $560 to be spent on rental costs.

North Carolina Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
North Carolina	4.75%	7.5%

North Carolina Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
North Carolina	4.75%	4.75%

Goods & Services

Item	Forest City	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$25.10	$24.26	3.5%
Beauty Salon	$45.93	$45.56	0.8%
Toothpaste	$3.67	$3.70	0.8%
Shampoo	$1.38	$1.28	7.8%
Movie	$12.15	$12.13	0.1%
Bowling	$16.41	$18.00	8.8%

Groceries

Item	Forest City	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$5.46	$5.84	6.5%
Fried Chicken	$1.67	$1.57	6.2%
Milk	$4.58	$4.67	1.9%
Potatoes	$5.50	$4.93	11.5%
Pizza	$10.64	$12.09	12.0%
Beer	$10.46	$10.41	0.5%

Health Care

Item	Forest City	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$108.14	$125.68	14.0%
Doctor	$131.80	$135.78	2.9%
Dentist	$103.51	$113.29	8.6%
Ibuprofen	$10.31	$10.65	3.2%
Lipitor	$524.92	$468.60	12.0%

Housing

Item	Forest City	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$108,500.00	$184,700.00	41.3%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,758.32	$2,346.69	25.1%
Apartment Rent	$637.00	$949.00	32.9%

Transportation

Item	Forest City	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.16	$3.46	8.7%
Tire Balancing	$67.10	$59.92	12.0%

Utilities

Item	Forest City	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$171.72	$193.99	11.5%
Phone	$191.25	$192.25	0.5%

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	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Henrietta, NC	455	96	3.7%
Caroleen, NC	447	96	3.7%
Fingerville, SC	31	96	3.7%
Cliffside, NC	707	96	3.7%
Casar, NC	361	81	18.7%
Forest City, NC	7,150	86	14.2%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Jackson, WI	7,149	104	4.0%
Fair Plain, MI	7,148	85	14.6%
Walled Lake, MI	7,153	98	2.5%
Watford City, ND	7,146	112	12.4%
Gridley, CA	7,154	110	9.8%
Forest City, NC	7,150	86	14.2%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2024; this is the most current data available.

Cost of Living in Forest City, NC