Making six figures? Dot.com says Spokane among the best places to live in the West

Spokane apparently is a bargain for those households with incomes in the six-digit range.

The metro area ranks fifth among the best places to live in the West for those earning $100,000, according to MagnifyMoney.com, a website that offers consumer reviews and comparisons of various financial products.

The Spokane metropolitan statistical area is among five Washington communities ranked in the West’s top 10, according to a survey of 381 major metro areaa across the U.S., 66 of them in the West. Other Washington cities in the top 10 are Yakima, No. 4; Wenatchee, No. 7; Longview, No. 8; and Kennewick, No. 9. Leading the West rankings is Casper, Wyoming, followed by Lewiston at No. 2.

In “The Best and Worst Cities to Live On Six Figures,” the website said it analyzed cities to determine where a family earning $100,000 has the most wiggle room in its budget. Using a two-earner household with two adults and one child and a gross annual income of $100,000 ($8,333 per month) as a base, MagnifyMoney factored in food expenses, child care, housing, transportation, student loan payments, entertainment and personal savings to create what it called a reasonable monthly budget to meet expenses. Communities were ranked based on the total monthly expenses as a percentage of post-tax income.

Nationally, the report puts the Spokane MSA at No. 137; Lewiston, No. 46. The website said $100,000-earning households in top-ranked Johnson City, Tennessee, had the largest portion of their income remaining after taxes and budget allocations. The Washington, D.C., metro area ranked at the bottom of those U.S. cities surveyed.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median household income in Spokane County is $50,079.

The website found the Southeast and Southwest in a dead heat for the region where a six-figure household can get the most for its money.