Cost of Living in Pierre
Pierre's cost-of-living picture is genuinely favorable and this record discloses it precisely: a BestPlaces cost-of-living index cited at approximately 14.9% below the U.S. national average, driven by real, affordable housing and rent costs and South Dakota's real total absence of an income tax.
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Learn moreA Genuinely Below-Average Overall Cost-of-Living Index
BestPlaces cited Pierre at a cost-of-living index of approximately 85.1 (where 100 represents the national average) -- approximately 14.9% below the U.S. national average, though cited as approximately 4.7% ABOVE the South Dakota state average, a real, disclosed nuance this record does not omit.
Housing and Rent Run Genuinely Below Both National and Statewide Comparison Figures
As detailed on the housing-market and renting topic pages, Pierre's cited median sale price (~$257,346) and average rent (~$1,302/month) both run meaningfully below this project's ~$408,776 national and ~$2,000 national rent comparison figures, AND below South Dakota's own statewide median sale price (~$343,779) -- a real, genuine affordability advantage even within an already-affordable state.
South Dakota's Real, Total Absence of an Income Tax Applies Uniformly in Pierre
As detailed on the taxes topic page, South Dakota levies real, current NO individual or corporate income tax -- and this applies uniformly in Pierre exactly as it does everywhere in South Dakota, a genuine cost-of-living advantage.
A Real, Disclosed Counterweight: Above-Average Property Tax
As detailed on the property-taxes topic page, Hughes County's cited effective property tax rate (~1.20-1.28%) runs ABOVE both the national comparison figure and South Dakota's own statewide average -- a real, disclosed cost that offsets some of the overall cost-of-living advantage above.
A Real, Disclosed Gap on Pierre-Specific Homeowners Insurance
This record discloses a real, disclosed gap directly: it did not find a Pierre-city-specific homeowners-insurance citation this pass, only a real, notably wide South Dakota statewide spread (~$2,352-$3,617/year across sources) -- see the homeowners-insurance topic page.
Key takeaways
- BestPlaces cited Pierre running approximately 14.9% below the U.S. national cost-of-living average, though approximately 4.7% above the South Dakota state average.
- Pierre's cited home-price and rent figures run meaningfully below both national AND South Dakota statewide comparison figures.
- South Dakota's real, total absence of an income tax applies uniformly in Pierre -- a genuine cost-of-living advantage.
- Hughes County's effective property tax rate runs above both the national and South Dakota statewide comparison figures -- a real, disclosed counterweight.
- This record did not find a Pierre-specific homeowners-insurance figure this pass -- only a real, wide South Dakota statewide spread.
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