Cost of Living in Lancaster, Virginia

Published: September 17, 2020 8:58 pm

Cost of Living in Lancaster, Virginia

Lancaster is a Census-designated place in Lancaster County, Virginia, with a population of 56. The total cost of housing, food, child care, transportation, health care, taxes, and other necessities for a single adult in Lancaster is $38,478 a year — less than the annual cost of living for Virginia of $44,012 and roughly in line with the national figure of $38,433.

Using cost of living data from the nonprofift think tank Economic Policy Institute, 24/7 Wall St. estimated the cost of living in Lancaster and over 29,000 other cities and towns in the US.

Transportation Costs in Lancaster, Virginia

Transportation can also be a significant component of cost of living. In Lancaster, 100.00% of commuters drive to work, compared to 85.5% of commuters nationwide. An estimated 0.00% of workers commute to jobs outside of Lancaster, a smaller share than the 43.7% share of commuters nationwide who live and work in different cities. The average commute in Lancaster is N minutes long, compared to the 26.6-minute average commute nationwide. Taking into account the cost of gas, as well as public transit and car maintenance, the EPI estimates that a single person in Lancaster spends $11,008 a year on transportation, more than the national average of $9,760.

Health Care Costs in Lancaster, Virginia

Out-of-pocket health care costs and insurance premiums — assuming at least a basic level of health insurance coverage — are closely in line with the national average in Lancaster and also in line with what they are across Virginia as a whole.

For a single adult living in the area, average health care costs come out to $4,162 per year, compared to an average of $3,997 across Virginia and $4,266 nationwide.

Child care Costs in Lancaster, Virginia

For families with children, child care adds thousands of dollars to overall annual spending. In Lancaster, the average annual cost of child care for two children — one 4 year old and one 8 year old — is $11,698, about $4,600 less than the comparable average of $16,282 across all of Virginia. Meanwhile, across the U.S. as a whole, childcare expenses for two children averages $15,853 per year.

Food Costs in Lancaster, Virginia

Food is another every day expense that has a significant impact on overall cost of living. Data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture shows that the cost of food varies from city to city and town to town.

In Lancaster, a single adult spends an average of $3,343 on food annually, and a family of four spends $9,654 on average. For context, average annual food expenditure across Virginia and the U.S., respectively, are $3,374 and $3,240 for a single adult, and $9,744 and $9,354 for a family of four. These estimates are calculated for a nutritionally adequate diet of food purchased at a grocery store for at-home preparation.

Taxes in Lancaster, Virginia

Few expenses vary as much from city to city and town to town as taxes. Accounting for state and federal income taxes, as well as Social Security contributions and Medicare payroll taxes, the average adult working in Lancaster, Virginia pays $6,945 annually — relatively little compared to the statewide average of $8,386.

It is important to note that these calculations do not include other common taxes such as property, sales, and excise taxes. Accounting for these taxes, while excluding taxes levied at the federal level, Lancaster residents live in a state with a low average tax burden. Per capita state tax collections in Virginia total $2,758 per year, compared to the $3,151 average across all states.

Methodology

To estimate the cost of housing, food, transportation, health care, child care, taxes, and other necessities, 24/7 Wall St. assigned county-level Economic Policy Institute data to cities, towns, villages and Census-designated places based on boundary definitions from the U.S. Census Bureau. For places that span multiple counties, data was aggregated based on the percentage of boundary overlap.

Cost of Living in Lancaster, Virginia