It takes the median family with no children over $106,000 to live in the New York City, according to a study released by the Mayor’s Office of Equity and Racial Justice, with many of them not having the resources necessary to meet the total cost of living. The long awaited inaugural report is a direct response to the measure voters passed — by a margin of 81% — in November 2022, which mandated the creation of a New York City’s True Cost of Living (TCOL) measure. The report looks at different types of families living in New York City, and the cost of living for them broken down by certain essentials like housing, healthcare, food, childcare and transportation among others. The study — which reflects data obtained by the Urban Institute’s ATTIS model reflecting the 8.16 million city residents — gives a detailed breakdown of the economic challenges New Yorkers face by race, borough, family structure, age and disability status. According to the report, the median costs and resources for the true cost of living by family type in New York City is as follows: Families with Adults Under 65 (No Children)Families with Adults Under 65 (with Children)Adults 65+Total Cost$106,346$159,197$123,089Housing$22,002$26,704$24,500Healthcare$19,031$27,489$13,312Food$7,041$14,567$10,336Transportation$7,737$9,754$9,754Childcare$0$13,416$0Student Debt$0$0$0Disability Costs$0$0$0Savings$9,667$14,472$10,073Taxes$18,289$15,637$9,429Other Costs$16,723$24,493$16,723Total Resources$97,341$127,007$105,500Market Resources$90,367$95,277$66,539Market + SS/Medicare$91,167$96,377 $88,543 The report breaks down the costs even further when it comes to the number of adults and children within a family unit. For example, an adult with no children has a median cost of living of $70,334, with median resources totaling $57,680. These figures increase drastically depending on the number of children as well as the number of adults in the family unit. Family TypeMedian CostsMedian ResourcesFamilies with Adults Under Age 65Families with Adults Under Age 65Families with Adults Under Age 65One Adult, No Children$70,334$57,680One Adult, 1 Child$97,527$66,026One Adult, 2 Children$114,108$67,701One Adult, 3+ Children$138,235$73,765One Adult, 1+ Children $114,568$68,500Two Adults, No Children$131,993$133,089Two+ Adults, 1 Child$147,522$130,449Two+ Adults, 2 Children$166,279$141,449Two+ Adults, 3+ Children$186,554$138,243Two+ Adults, 1+ Children$166,034$136,766Families with Adults Ages 65 and OlderFamilies with Adults Ages 65 and OlderFamilies with Adults Ages 65 and OlderOne Adult, No Children$55,545$41,326Two Adults, No Children$90,516$80,544One Adult, 1+ Children*No data due to sample size limitations*No data due to sample size limitationsTwo Adults, 1+ Children$134,891$88,853Three+ Adults$171,599$163,564 The report also highlights that more than half (61.8%), about 5.04 million people, do not have the resources to meet the cost of living in New York City. This vastly differs from the traditional poverty measures, which in 2022, identified only 18% of New Yorkers living in poverty, the study says. The report also found that for thos 62% of New Yorkers who do not meet the true cost of living threshold, the average resource gap is $39,603. According to the report, among the New Yorkers who do not meet the total cost of living threshold, about 8% meets all cost categories except savings, effectively living paycheck to paycheck. This places these New Yorkers “just short of economic security, but unable to build financial reserves,” the city said in the study. Among New Yorkers, the Hispanic population has the highest percentage of not meeting the true cost of living. According to the study, 77.6% of Hispanic people do not meet the baseline, followed by 65.6% of Black people. Asian and Pacific Islanders are the third demographic group with the highest percentage (63.3) of its population not meeting the cost of living baseline, while 43.7% of white people do not meet the threshold. “Hispanic families face an average annual resource shortfall of approximately $9,500 larger than white,” the report notes. Additionally, the study highlights that a whopping 72.5% of children under the age of 18 do not meet the cost of living threshold. When it comes to the boroughs, the true cost of living differs greatly, with The Bronx leading as having the highest rate of residents not meeting the true cost of living baseline at 75.1% or one out of four Bronx residents. The report also notes that the borough has the lowest costs, while also having the least resources for its residence. Brooklyn has the second highest rate of residents living in poverty (61.5%) and Queens (61.1%). Manhattan (55.6 percent) and Staten Island (48.2%) are below the citywide average showcasing the difference in economic security between locations. For more information, including the complete “NYC True Cost of Living Measure” inaugural report, click here. ...read more read less