Reflection 02: Bang for Your Buck—Cost Comparing San Jose

As Californians, we often take it as a given that our state is the best place t live. With California's stunning natural surroundings, ample job prospects, world-class arts, and rich cultural diversity we sometimes can't help but to think of our state as the center of the universe. But, as it turns out, there are actually places to live outside of California. In fact, there is a whole country's worth of places where we can call home. For this reflection, you will compare livability index of San Jose and with that of another American city.

Here are the cities you will research according to your month of birth:

• January: St. Paul, Minnesota
• February: Houston, Texas
• March: Eugene, Oregon
• April: Raleigh, North Carolina
• May: Spokane, Washington
• June: Denver, Colorado
• July: Mobile, Alabama
• August: Burlington, Vermont
• September: Phoenix, Arizona
• October: Nashville, Tennessee
• November: Chicago, Illinois
• December: Salt Lake City, Utah

Next, consult the chart below to establish a baseline for comparison with San Jose. As you can see, the median household income in San Jose is very high. In fact, it was recently named the wealthiest major city in America in a Wall Street Journal survey. The flip side of all that money, of course, is the city's staggering cost of living. Hence, San Jose was also recently granted the "distinction" of being the most expensive metro area in the nation. When researching your comparison city, consider not only the factors listed below (population, med. household income, median home price, etc ), but also those that make a city desirable to live in, such as weather, recreation, culture, and public transportation.

Though San Francisco and Oakland are listed below for comparison, your primary focus should be on metro San Jose.

Place	Pop.	Med. Household Income	Median Home Price	Median Rent Price (2-br)	Cost of Living (% of US average)	Unemployment Rate
US	317 M	$51,017	$188,900	$1,231		6.2%
California	40 M	$59,442	$429,000	$1,341		7.4%
San Jose	1 M	$99,669	$899,500	$2,282	48%+	6%
San Francisco	780,971	$81,135	$769,600	$3,898	45%+	4.5%
Oakland	406,253	$51,683	$483,400	$3,811	37%+	9%

 
Finally, after researching your city, you must compare the "livability" of both cities. The goal is to illustrate the viability of this city compared to San Jose and Silicon Valley. For example, what are the major pros and cons of each city? How do they compare? Where would it makes the most sense for you to live and work and why? Your analysis can come, at least in part, in the form of a chart, but most of it should be in written form. You should conclude with a summary of your comparison. For example, this is how Movoto sums up living in San Jose: "San Jose is safe, but it’s a very expensive place to live. If you can afford it, then it’s definitely a city to settle down in. The average American doesn’t make enough money to live there, so you may want to consider that before you start looking for homes. If you were to lose part of your income, you are at a much higher risk of being homeless as opposed to living in an area where there’s 'financial wiggle room' for unexpected emergencies. Of course, if you can snag one of the tech jobs at Adobe or Ebay, you should able to survive. Just make sure you aren’t working in the mail room."

Finally, because stats can vary widely, please limit yourself to these sites to compile your city's profile: 

• "Cost of Living Index for Selected U.S. Cities" (Infoplease)
• "Best Places to Live" (Livability)
• "Find the Best Places to Live" (AreaVibes)
• "Cost of Living Calculator" (CNN Money)
• "Median Household Income" (Forbes)
• "Zillow Compare" (Zillow)
• "Rent Trends by City" (RentJungle)

Requirements:

• MLA Style
• Two full pages in length

Due: Th 09.11