Boston-area households spend nearly twice the U.S. average on alcohol
Boston-area household spending 28 percent higher than U.S.
ARTICLE | Business | February 18, 2014 07:00 PM | By Statehouse News Service
U.S. averages $454 on booze compared with $813 here.
U.S. averages $454 on booze compared with $813
Housing, transportation, food also much higher in Boston-area
While incomes are higher in Massachusetts compared to other states, so are spending rates. Boston-area households spent an average of 28 percent more in 2011-2012 than the average level for the typical U.S. household, according to new government statistics.
Housing costs were the largest outlay, accounting for nearly 32 percent of the total budget for Boston-area households, which spent an average of $64,982 per year in 2011-2012.
At 14.8 percent of the total budget, transportation was the second largest expenditure area for Boston-area households, according to the New England office of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Of the $9,610 in annual transportation spending among area households, 90.7 percent was spent buying and maintaining private vehicles. The remaining 9.3 percent was spent on public transportation, compared to a 6.1 percent average for the nation.
The bureau also reported that the average share of the Boston-area consumer's budge that was spent on food was 13.2 percent, close to the national average of 12.9 percent, and that Boston households spent more on alcohol, $813, than the national average of $454.
Statehouse News Service
The State House News Service has covered Massachusetts government news since 1911.
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