The 7 U.S. Cities That Spoil Their Kids the Most
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The most expensive city in America to live in is also the most expensive place to raise a child. In fact, according to Bundle, bringing up a kid in the city costs 90% more than the national average.<br />
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Diapers and onesies are more expensive in New York than anywhere else, but the standard necessities aren't the only thing driving up costs in the Big Apple. The city also has a stunningly pricey childcare and education industry. For example, <a _fcksavedurl="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/29/nyregion/scraping-the-40000-ceiling-at-new-york-city-private-schools.html?pagewanted=all" href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/29/nyregion/scraping-the-40000-ceiling-at-new-york-city-private-schools.html?pagewanted=all" target="_blank">the median tuition</a> at New York's top 41 top private schools is almost $37,000 a year, and several charge more than Harvard University.<br />
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(As a side note, Bundle ranked Manhattan specifically first, and named Brooklyn as the second-most expensive city to raise a child. That's a distinction we rejected. Since 1898, Brooklyn has been part of New York City, not an independent city. Don't tell the Brooklynites.)</p>
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Given its position as the <a _fcksavedurl="http://www.businessinsider.com/most-expensive-cities-in-america-2011-7#7-miami-6" href="http://www.businessinsider.com/most-expensive-cities-in-america-2011-7#7-miami-6" target="_blank">seventh most expensive</a> U.S. city, it's a bit of a shock to see Miami coming in second when it comes to raising kids. According to Bundle, however, bringing up a kid in the Florida city costs 58% more than the national average. Even worse, Miami parents apparently aren't getting what they pay for: According to a 2009 <a _fcksavedurl="http://dad.menshealth.com/parents/The-best-and-worst-places-to-raise-a-family3.php" href="http://dad.menshealth.com/parents/The-best-and-worst-places-to-raise-a-family3.php" target="_blank"><em>Men's Health</em></a> study, out of 100 cities, Miami ranked 99th as a good place to raise a family, landing it a hair above worst-choice Detroit.</p>
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Apparently baby showshoes are expensive: Bundle notes that raising a child runs over $330,000 in the City of Lakes, a price tag that is 46% higher than average. On the bright side, it appears to be a much better deal than Miami when it comes to quality of life: According to <a _fcksavedurl="http://dad.menshealth.com/parents/The-best-and-worst-places-to-raise-a-family3.php" href="http://dad.menshealth.com/parents/The-best-and-worst-places-to-raise-a-family3.php"><em>Men's Health</em></a>, Minneapolis is the 18th best city to raise a family.</p>
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Given that it is often ranked as one of America's most liveable cities, it shouldn't be that much of a surprise that Tulsa attracts many parents -- and that it is one of the most expensive places to raise a child. According to Bundle, child-rearing in Tulsa costs 35% higher than the national average.<br />
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But that <a _fcksavedurl="http://dad.menshealth.com/parents/The-best-and-worst-places-to-raise-a-family3.php" href="http://dad.menshealth.com/parents/The-best-and-worst-places-to-raise-a-family3.php" target="_blank"><em>Men's Health</em></a> research gave Tulsa a fairly dismal ranking -- 60th place out of 100 -- when it comes to raising kids, so buyer beware.</p>
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It's only the 11th most expensive city in America, but it probably isn't surprising that Dallas comes in higher as an expensive place to raise a kid. As anyone who grew up watching the Ewings might surmise, Dallasites have a reputation for living large. Unfortunately, according to <a _fcksavedurl="http://dad.menshealth.com/parents/The-best-and-worst-places-to-raise-a-family3.php" href="http://dad.menshealth.com/parents/The-best-and-worst-places-to-raise-a-family3.php"><em>Men's Health</em></a>, high prices don't necessarily translate into a high quality of life: It ranks Dallas as No. 80 out of the 100 best cities in which to raise a child.<br />
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Atlanta is also one of the most expensive cities in the U.S. -- and, not surprisingly, one of the most expensive places to raise a child. But at least with a No. 42 ranking on the <a _fcksavedurl="http://dad.menshealth.com/parents/The-best-and-worst-places-to-raise-a-family3.php" href="http://dad.menshealth.com/parents/The-best-and-worst-places-to-raise-a-family3.php" target="_blank"><em>Men's Health</em></a>'s list, it may be a reasonably good deal.</p>
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The second most expensive city in the U.S. is only the seventh most expensive place to raise a child. Even so, according to <a _fcksavedurl="http://dad.menshealth.com/parents/The-best-and-worst-places-to-raise-a-family.php" href="http://dad.menshealth.com/parents/The-best-and-worst-places-to-raise-a-family.php" target="_blank"><em>Men's Health</em></a>, it's not that great a deal -- the magazine ranked L.A. 68th when it comes to the best places to raise a family.</p>
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