michigan it sucks here .

Rhode Island is definately the worst. Everything is overpriced and the minimum wage has only recently gone up. Granted, what we make here is seizable in any other state, but they tax the crap out of us! Seriously, 8% is a little much don't you think? And then 15% from the paychecks. It's ridiculous. (Sorry I'm ranting :^p)

Fine, New York then.

Michigan has become horrible economically; just about every other house is up for sale, everyone is losing their jobs, and it's difficult to find a job. They did bring up minimum wage a little bit, but it hasn't made a difference considering that as soon as minimum wage went up, prices on everything went up about 20%.

New Hampshire is fairly bad. Research won't tell you the whole story because we do have a lot of rich people who tecnhnically reside here due to their vacation homes. We have no income or sales tax either, so it sounds ideal, right? But look at our housing costs. And our wages aren't great either. My friends in the Midwest are shocked that I pay $800 for rent on a small place in the woods, plus heat, lights (highest electric costs there are), plowing, gas (it takes at least half a gallon to get to town for groceries or work) because they pay less for more. Still sound not too bad because city rents are more? They are; that's why I don't live in the city. I can't afford $950+utilities. Unlike some places, our rents are lucky to include heat, hot water, trash removal and plowing and they NEVER include anything else. Many jobs here start at low wages. When I looked at moving, I was dismayed to see places with lower housing costs having starting wages that are more than I earn after nearly 5 years. My rent is 80% of my take-home pay. If I weren't married, I'd be homeless. As far as getting a better job... this isn't the best job market for upward mobility. More qualified people from other parts of the country love moving here.

Florida's working it's way up. with so much construction, our suburbs are becoming heavily populated cities, especially from oralando south. however we have one of the lowest minimum wages and highest living taxes. i'm not saying we're the worst, but florida is the only state i'm familiar with in that regard, so i can say we're working our way up

Oregon is getting worse and worse with the cost of living. Someone told me that it is becoming a new "great place to retire" state. About 8 years ago, people from California, were coming here, and buying property, and then selling it for way more than in the past. Since then, it is costing sooo much to buy a house. We would pay 250,00.00 for what I saw in Alabama for 95,000.00

I agree with everyone else Michigan sucks I lost my job in July when one of our grocery store chains went under. I finally found a job but it's making half of what I was I am considering moving elsewhere just haven't decided where to yet.

Hawaii..Where a gallon of milk can be 5 bucks and the median house price is over $600,000.

it would have to be NY- NYC

Montana is not that great either. I live in Butte and where people(mostly employers) think $11.00/hr is a good wage. They used to duck behind lower cost of living but we pay the same price for gas, milk, bread, etc. as everyone else. Housing prices used to be a cruth too but that has evaporated. Same deal as the person in Oregon cited: Californians moving here to "retire". Land owners are jacking up prices because they know those people have the money. Bozeman is 80 miles from here and is in the middle of a mecca of great skiing. I have friends who live there, one of whom graduated with a degree in architecture, moved to California and was making $120,000/yr. He moved back and located in Bozeman. Firms there were offering him $15.00/hr for the exact same job he was doing. He and his fiance bought a two bedroom dive in a bad neighborhood for $325,000. The house has to be reroofed, needs new plumbing and the carpet looks like the previous owners threw mud on it. It's getting pretty ridiculous around here.

If you live in a blue state, your going to get nailed. Look at the economy, blue states bad, most of all the red states (excluding FL) still building. Texas has no state income tax and your not penalized for buying a new car. If it's a BMW or a 78 ford pickup, you pay the 40-60 dollar auto tax each year. Some states (blue states), penalize you for moving ahead. They feel sorry for the guy down the street and you pay.

After reading these answers, I have to say my state ain't so bad. Cost of living is fair compared to other states, in particular Virginia where I last lived. To replace my current home in SC with a comparable home in Virginia would have cost me at least 50% more than what I could now sell my house for. I earn a decent salary. Not so much I can vacation in Europe or drive a Porsche, but enough I can pay my mortgage, eat well, and drive a 3 year-old car. So, you Michiganders who are looking for a cheaper place to live? South Carolina welcomes you to visit. You might want to stay! Did I mention it was in the 50s here today? And that it rarely ever snows??

I would say Hawaii. The price of everything is compared to San Francisco and their minimum wage is only $7.25. San Francisco is $9.79.