The other day I was watching “House Hunters,” an HGTV show I’ve
casually enjoyed over the years, when I was filled with such rage that I wanted
to hurl the remote across the room. The newlyweds were searching for a 3,500
square foot home for the price of a down payment in LA. Leave it to house hunting to make you painfully aware of the great variance in cost of living by region. So when
the beautiful and witty Blair’s Head Band mentioned doing a Cost of Living link
up on her blog, I got really excited.
Real estate is a big one, but what about the little things
we buy every day. I was genuinely curious to see how Los Angeles measured up. I
set off on my lunch hour to the nearest grocery store armed with my iphone and BHB’s list.
I should note that I selected Vons (owned by Safeway, the second largest supermarket chain in America) as my
sample. I have an assortment of grocery stores at my disposal and I think Vons is probably the best value/ most “normal” option. There are
certain things I like from different stores, and I typically shop at least a
few different markets per week. This is not because I am a great bargain hunter
a la Extreme Couponing. Sadly, it is the opposite. I am both picky and
disorganized with menu planning. It’s all sort of a mad dash and I typically
end up at my neighborhood Bristol Farms, which is lovely and high quality but generally overpriced for basics. Actually, it would be be fun follow up to compare prices at Bristol Farms to see how they measure up on this link up.
The grocery list and the current prices at Von's in Santa Monica (Los Angeles):
- Sabra hummus: $4.99
- Triscuits: (on sale, regular price $3.99) $2.50
- One dozen large eggs: $2.49
- One gallon of milk: $3.99
- Boneless skinless chicken breasts (price per pound): $4.99
- Goldfish crackers: $2.79
- Skippy creamy peanut butter: (on sale, regular price $4.79) $2.99
- Dawn dish soap: $3.99
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Grand total $28.73
Now it's your turn. Play along, link up at BHB and comment below.
