Move Over, Austin: Dallas Is Named Texas' Most Expensive City

DALLAS, TX —Everything is bigger in Texas, and that includes the price tag of living, according to data compiled by Rent.com's senior managing editor Brian Carberry.

And he says the urban myth that Austin is Texas' most expensive city is no more real than the Jackalope.

So yes, you'll pay more for your haircuts, nights on the town and groceries in Austin than in many parts of the country, because the Texas Capital is 1.8 percent pricer than the national average. But Dallas has it's hipster neighbor to the south beaten by the proverbial country mile.

Dallas, as it turns out, is by far the more expensive place to live, according to the national average — by a whopping 7.7 percent.

Want to be the first to know about Patch membership when it launches? Click here to find out how you can support Patch and local journalism.

As Carberry tells The Texas Observer, Dallas is also the most expensive place to live in the Lone Star State.

According to the editor, Rent.com analyzes data that incorporates metropolitan urban areas, but sorts neighboring towns and suburbs from them. And, by that accounting, Plano will actually take a bigger bite out of your household budget than Dallas.

That was “a big surprise to me," he told the Observer, because "in most cities you look at, the city itself is the most expensive. But the Plano numbers are higher almost across the board, with the exception of groceries and healthcare.”

Carberry's study examines housing costs, which include everything from insurance to mortgages and rent. By those metrics, Dallas soars 16 percent above the rest of the nation, while Austin is only 10 percent above the rest of the country.

By comparison, housing costs in San Antonio are 10.5 percent below what most others pay in the country, and in the most urban parts of Houston, that number drops still further to nearly 15 percent lower than the national average.

The silver lining?

Although housing prices are on the upswing, the prices of renting have fallen. Carberry attributes this to potential buyers frustrated with rising costs and opting to rent instead.

The price to rent a one-bedroom apartment, for example, has fallen 7.1 percent, while a two-bedroom is 6.1 percent less than a year ago.

Looking for more Dallas news? Subscribe.