Sally Jane Kerschen-Sheppard writes in Next City that she had always bought into the conventional wisdom that New York and San Francisco are expensive; everything in the middle is not.
But after living in New York City and its greater metro area for 17 years, she says she understood where that perception came from. Rents are high, as are state and city taxes, and even a cocktail can set you back $15.
"So when I packed up last year and moved to Detroit, I fully expected to find a financial oasis where the property was plentiful and the cost of living was cheap. Only one of those things turned out to be true."
The culprits involve car insurance and property taxes.
She writes:
When I add up my monthly expenses in Detroit and compare them to my monthly expenses in New York, they are basically the same. Only the distribution is different. Yes, my rent in New York was twice as much as my mortgage now, but my transportation costs in Detroit are six times higher than they were in New York. That, combined with the unfortunate job insecurity I’ve had since moving here and the walloping tax bill, has made it more and more financially difficult to live here. I chose Detroit because I thought that it was the place that would allow me to pursue my art and yet somehow escape my “starving artist” status. I had been told that art could thrive in the Motor City because artists could do more than just “survive.” So far, neither one has happened for me.
I believe in Detroit, and I want so desperately to be an active part of its bright future, but I’m not sure how many more hits I can take before I have to admit that I can’t stay.
Kerschen-Sheppard is owner of Blue Field Writers House, a communal writers' residence in the University District, a published playwright and a founding member of the new Detroit Pulse Theatre.
