[VegasCowboy]

One key thing you leave out of your analysis of big cities and their relative value: in general, most of the good paying jobs are in cities. While you can certainly find cheaper housing in smaller towns, you won't find many high-paying jobs.

[proudpapa]

Good point. However, trends tell us otherwise, VC. More and more people are working out of the comfort of their own homes. I

[BigSkyFreeper]

One key thing you leave out of your analysis of big cities and their relative value: in general, most of the good paying jobs are in cities. While you can certainly find cheaper housing in smaller towns, you won't find many high-paying jobs.

Around here, most people either work from their home, own their own brick-and-mortar business in town, or commute 100 miles roundtrip to work for the local telephone company/internet service provider, which happens to be the largest employer in a 5 county area.