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If you thought New York City was the ultimate offender when it comes to sky-high costs and daily chaos, think again. A new study from home-goods experts Highland Cabinetry has crowned Newark, New Jersey, the Big Apple’s grittier neighbor to the west, as the most overpriced city in America. Yes, Newark.
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The report, which ranked major U.S. cities based on a combo of cost-of-living metrics and quality-of-life factors (like safety, traffic, pollution and income), gave Newark a “perfect” score of 100. Not the good kind. With monthly costs topping $5,100 and a median income of just $53,818, residents are forking over big-city money for small-city problems. Case in point: Newark’s safety index clocks in at a dismal 24.76—lowest on the list—and traffic and pollution don’t sweeten the deal.
Trailing just behind is New York City itself, scoring 98.17. New York may have a bit more glamour and a lot more skyscrapers, but it also claims the nation’s most expensive real estate at a jaw-dropping $18,402 per square foot in the city center. Even with a higher median income than Newark, the value proposition gets murky fast, especially when you factor in the traffic slog (index: 167.58) and less-than-stellar safety rating.
And it’s not just an East Coast problem. Los Angeles (score: 96.33) nabbed the No. 3 slot thanks to legendary gridlock (312.53 traffic index—the worst in the country), high rents and air quality that leaves something to be desired. Detroit and Wilmington round out the top five, both struggling with low incomes and safety concerns, despite being cheaper on paper.
The Highland Cabinetry team behind the study emphasized that it’s not just about price. “Cost of living alone doesn’t define the value of a city,” a spokesperson told ZeroHedge. “What our data shows is that several high-cost urban areas come with serious trade-offs, whether it’s long commutes, safety issues or environmental stress.”
In Newark’s case, that means steep costs, shaky infrastructure and a return on investment that’s, well, mostly stress. So, if you’re paying Manhattan prices and getting Newark headaches, maybe it’s time to reevaluate your zip code.
The takeaway? Overpriced doesn’t always mean ritzy. Sometimes it just means you're paying too much for too little, and Newark is the unfortunate poster child.