According to the ACCRA Cost of Living Index data for the first quarter of 2008, the cost of living in Cochise County remained below state and national averages. The report, issued earlier this month, provides comparative data for 311 urban areas in all 50 states.
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The Cost of Living Index data indicate Cochise County’s overall cost of living was 98.5 percent of the average for all participating places nationwide. The cost of living in Cochise County was the lowest of all participating areas in Arizona. In addition to Cochise County, other participating areas in Arizona are the Lake Havasu City-Kingman Micro area, the Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale Metro area, the Prescott Metro area, the Tucson Metro area, and the Yuma Metro area.
In Arizona, the second lowest cost of living behind Cochise County was the Tucson Metro area at 99.8 percent of the nationwide average. The most expensive area of the state was the Prescott Metro area, which was 7.4 percent higher than the national average.
The costs for housing, transportation, healthcare, and miscellaneous goods and services in Cochise County were below the national average in the first quarter of 2008. The sub-index for housing was 99.7, or 0.3 percent below the nationwide average. Transportation was 98.7, or 1.3 percent below the national average, while healthcare costs were 99.4, or 0.6 percent below the average of all participating places nationwide. Miscellaneous goods and services were 94.1 percent of the nationwide average or 5.9 percent lower than nationwide costs.
Grocery items in Cochise County were 5 percent above the nationwide average in the first quarter. This was higher than Phoenix, Prescott, and Tucson and was the third highest in the state after Yuma and Lake Havasu City. The index value for groceries in Cochise County in the first quarter was 105.0.
The cost of utilities in Cochise County in the first quarter was slightly higher than the national average at 100.7 and was the second highest in the state behind Yuma. In Tucson, the cost of utilities was 3.8 percent below the national average.
From 2004 through the first half of 2005, the cost of living in Cochise County ranged from slightly below to slightly above the national average. Beginning in the second half of 2005 and continuing through the first quarter of 2008, the area’s cost of living remained below the national average.
From 2004 through the first quarter of 2008, Cochise County’s cost of living ranged from a low of 94.0 (interpreted as 94 percent of the average cost of living of all places nationwide participating in ACCRA), to a high of 104.0 (interpreted as 104 percent of the nationwide average).
From 2004 through the first half of 2005, the area’s cost of living was above that of Tucson and Phoenix; however, this trend reversed beginning in the third quarter of 2005. Since the fourth quarter of 2005, the cost of living in Cochise County has remained below that of Tucson and Phoenix.
In 2007, housing costs in Cochise County remained consistently below the national average. Healthcare costs were below the national average, with the exception of the third quarter of 2007, when costs locally were slightly higher. Miscellaneous goods and services last year were mostly below the national average, while groceries, utilities, and transportation costs were predominantly higher than nationwide.
ACCRA Cost of Living Index data for Cochise County are listed under the Sierra Vista-Douglas Micropolitan Area, which is a statistical designation for all of Cochise County. Sierra Vista and Douglas are included in the title since they are the principal cities that meet the criteria for establishing Cochise County as a micropolitan statistical area. To qualify as a micropolitan statistical area, a location must be economically integrated and have at least one urban area with a population of at least 10,000, but less than 50,000. Locations with an urban area having a population of at least 50,000 are classified as metropolitan statistical areas. According to projections by the Arizona Department of Commerce, Cochise County will qualify as a metropolitan statistical area in 2011, when Sierra Vista’s population is projected to reach 50,000.
The ACCRA Cost of Living Index data for Cochise County are collected by the Cochise College Center for Economic Research and submitted to the Council for Community and Economic Research for inclusion in the index. The CER took over the collection of these data from the Sierra Vista Economic Development Foundation in late 2007. The SVEDF continues to fund Cochise County’s participation in the program.
If you have any questions on the economy, please contact the CER at (520) 515-5486 or email us at cer@cochise.edu. Be sure to check out the CER’s website at www.cochise.edu/cer.
ACCRA COST OF LIVING INDEX, 1ST QUARTER 2008
Area Composite Index Grocery Items Housing Utilities Transportation Health Care Misc. Goods & Services
Lake Havasu City-Kingman Micro 112.0 108.4 139.7 93.0 100.3 95.0 99.9
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale Metro 101.6 103.8 101.0 94.7 98.7 99.0 104.7
Prescott Metro 107.4 102.4 117.3 92.3 101.9 98.9 107.8
Sierra Vista-Douglas Micro* 98.5 105.0 99.7 100.7 98.7 99.4 94.1
Tucson Metro 99.8 103.7 96.5 96.2 98.9 101.5 102.5
Yuma Metro 104.4 111.6 100.0 106.9 101.4 102.3 106.2
* The Sierra Vista-Douglas Micropolitan Area is a statistical area designation for all of Cochise County. Sierra Vista and Douglas are included in the title since they are the principal cities that meet the criteria for establishing Cochise County as a Micropolitan Statistical Area.
Note. The average for all participating places nationwide equals 100; each participant’s index is read as a percentage of the average for all places.
Source: The Council for Community and Economic Research
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