Cost comparison
Compare rent, housing, utilities, groceries, salary needs, and move score across the city profiles currently available in LifeAtlas.
Michigan
Traverse City is a premium tourism and lake-region market in Michigan, useful for starter comparisons around rent, housing, utilities, wages, benefits, insurance, and moving costs.
Michigan
Sterling Heights is a supplemental starter city profile for the Detroit-area family and jobs market in Michigan, useful for route coverage and starter comparisons around rent, housing, utilities, wages, benefits, insurance, and moving costs.
Comparison
Sterling Heights has the lower salary-needed estimate, while Traverse City has the lower starter rent. Differences are shown as Sterling Heights minus Traverse City.
| Metric | Traverse City | Sterling Heights | Difference | Advantage | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,536 | $1,603 | +$67 | Traverse City | Traverse City has the lower median rent. |
| Home price | $348,400 | $309,742 | -$38,658 | Sterling Heights | Sterling Heights has the lower home price. |
| Utilities | $194/mo | $195/mo | +$1/mo | Traverse City | Traverse City has the lower utilities. |
| Groceries index | 100 | 101 | +1 | Traverse City | Traverse City has the lower groceries index. |
| Salary needed | $70,680 | $52,198 | -$18,482 | Sterling Heights | Sterling Heights has the lower salary needed. |
| Move score | 74/100 | 85/100 | +11 | Sterling Heights | Sterling Heights has the higher move score. |