Tony Robbins’ 10 Best Cheap Cities With High Quality of Life
Tony Robbins has a list of the 10 best cheap cities with high quality of life — but "cheap" is doing a lot of heavy lifting in that sentence. Some of these markets really do offer more house for less money and lower everyday costs. Others look like a bargain until you factor in insurance premiums, hail damage or a median home price that's crept past $800,000.
We asked real estate pros to weigh in on Robbins' picks, city by city, to separate the genuine deals from the ones wearing a "cheap" label they haven't quite earned.
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1. Buffalo, New York
Ryann Brier, a licensed realtor with City Lights Home Buyers, agreed with Robbins that one of the markets that is still “cheap” is Buffalo.
“Erie County has cut property taxes for the last eight years, and is around 0.31%,” Brier said. “There’s a low entry price to housing, and where it’s geographically located, you are insulated from a lot of natural disasters, which lowers your insurance costs and significantly reduces your monthly bill."
2. Fort Wayne, Indiana
Otherwise known as “Summit City” in Indiana, Fort Wayne is what Brier called “a silent standout” on Robbins’ list.
“The median home price is around $224,865, and Allen County's tax rate is 0.95%, putting an average tax bill around $2,078 for the typical property owner,” Brier explained. “In Indiana, you have a low price paired with low holding costs, not just one or the other.”
3. Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Cedar Rapids offers a significant advantage as one of the least expensive places to live which is why it made Robbins’ list, and Mike Roberts, the co-founder and president of City Creek Mortgage agreed.
“With numerous Fortune 500 companies located in the community, there will always be jobs available, which helps keep home values stable,” Roberts explained.
4. Round Rock, Texas
According to Robbins, clean energy, manufacturing and software development created a huge boom in Round Rock and it still maintains a fairly low cost of living.
According to Adrian Hernandez, founder of My Home Sold, it’s a solid choice for prospective buyers seeking “Sun Belt enthusiasm and access to opportunity, but without the financial bite of Austin or Dallas."
5. Lincoln, Nebraska
According to Brier, Lincoln fits the bill for being a cheap city with a high quality of life due to the median home price being around $301,000, well below the national average.
“However, a big shock for anyone moving to Nebraska would be that it often gets plastered with severe hail and wind,” Brier pointed out, adding that Nebraska consistently ranks highly on lists of the most expensive insurance costs and average premiums.
6. Seattle
While the cost of living can be higher comparatively, one thing that sets Seattle apart from other major cities: no income tax, which can save you a significant amount annually.
While Brier agreed with Robbins that no state income tax is helpful, the median price for a home in Seattle is around $880,000, which cancels out most of those savings.
“Overpriced is never cheap,” Brier said.
7. Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota
Minneapolis/Saint Paul is a hit or miss market with low purchase prices of $304,000 for downtown condos, which is considered extremely cheap when compared to other big cities in the heart of America, according to Brier.
Brier highlighted that what makes it not so affordable comes down to insurance: “Minnesota has seen an 88.2% increase since 2020, so you need to have a big monthly budget to buy a house in this area.”
8. Plano, Texas
Plano offers many advantages to families, according to Roberts, including no state income tax and a thriving local economy.
"As long as you buy a house in Plano, your fixed shelter costs will be significantly lower than they would be if you were buying a home near downtown Dallas,” Roberts said.
9. Denver
Denver has about the same cost of living as the rest of the country, in Roberts' opinion, so the average American cannot consider it a “bargain” even if Robbins does.
“Denver is only worth considering for mortgages if you are coming from very expensive areas such as San Francisco or New York,” Roberts added.
10. Madison, Wisconsin
Roberts pointed out that Madison was the safest place to live in the United States because of rapidly growing job markets in the healthcare and information technology industries, as well as its affordability compared to other major cities.
“Therefore, when considering loans, Madison is the ideal market for consumers who wish to maintain their quality of life while protecting their families' financial security," Roberts said.
This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.
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