Cost of Living in Valley Falls, Rhode Island

Published: September 17, 2020 8:17 pm

Cost of Living in Valley Falls, Rhode Island

Valley Falls is a Census-designated place in Providence County, Rhode Island, with a population of 11,828. The total cost of housing, food, child care, transportation, health care, taxes, and other necessities for a single adult in Valley Falls is $33,817 a year — less than the annual cost of living for Rhode Island of $36,511 and less than 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 Valley Falls and over 29,000 other cities and towns in the US.

Housing Costs in Valley Falls, Rhode Island

Housing is one of the largest components of cost of living. In Valley Falls, the median home value is $224,000, greater than the national median home value of $204,900.

Renting is a sometimes lower cost alternative to homeownership. In Valley Falls, some 32.70% of occupied homes are rented, less than the 36.2% national renter rate. The typical renter in Valley Falls spends $839 a month on housing, less than the $1,023 national median monthly rent.

In addition to home value, one of the largest determinants of housing affordability is area income. While nationwide the price of a typical U.S. home is 3.4 times the $60,293 U.S. median household income, housing affordability ratios range from approximately 1.0 in the least expensive cities to more than 10.0 in the country's most expensive markets. In Valley Falls, the median household income is $76,004, 2.9 times the median home value.

Transportation Costs in Valley Falls, Rhode Island

Transportation can also be a significant component of cost of living. In Valley Falls, 94.80% of commuters drive to work, compared to 85.5% of commuters nationwide. An estimated 93.20% of workers commute to jobs outside of Valley Falls, a larger share than the 43.7% share of commuters nationwide who live and work in different cities. The average commute in Valley Falls is 25.3 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 Valley Falls spends $8,382 a year on transportation, less than the national average of $9,760.

Health Care Costs in Valley Falls, Rhode Island

Out-of-pocket health care costs and insurance premiums — assuming at least a basic level of health insurance coverage — are far lower than they are on average nationwide in Valley Falls but in line with what they are across Rhode Island as a whole.

For a single adult living in the area, average health care costs come out to $3,072 per year, compared to an average of $3,072 across Rhode Island and $4,266 nationwide.

Child care Costs in Valley Falls, Rhode Island

For families with children, child care adds thousands of dollars to overall annual spending. In Valley Falls, the average annual cost of child care for two children — one 4 year old and one 8 year old — is $16,828, about $800 less than the comparable average of $17,651 across all of Rhode Island. Meanwhile, across the U.S. as a whole, childcare expenses for two children averages $15,853 per year.

Food Costs in Valley Falls, Rhode Island

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 Valley Falls, a single adult spends an average of $3,143 on food annually, and a family of four spends $9,077 on average. For context, average annual food expenditure across Rhode Island and the U.S., respectively, are $3,414 and $3,240 for a single adult, and $9,859 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 Valley Falls, Rhode Island

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 Valley Falls, Rhode Island pays $5,444 annually — relatively little compared to the statewide average of $6,014.

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, Valley Falls residents live in a state with a modest average tax burden. Per capita state tax collections in Rhode Island total $3,294 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 Valley Falls, Rhode Island