The Two City Comparison tab features two sub-tabs:
•Cost-of-Labor and Cost-of-Living
The Cost-of-Labor and Cost-of-Living sub-tab includes two main tables. The Cost-of-Labor table matches the original Two City Comparison table in the Geographic Assessor with the addition of a column for Differentials. The Cost-of-Living table matches the Two City Comparison table in the Relocation Assessor with the addition of a column for Destination Location as a percentage of Base Location.
COL Charts are also displayed below the main table.
The Cost-of-Living table in the Two City Comparison tab details the relative cost of living between two locations. The Base City is where a home office might be located or from which an employee might be relocating. The Destination City is the area to which an employee might be relocating or a branch office benchmark living area. See below for an explanation of the cost-of-living breakdown.
To Modify Values in the Two City Comparison Table
1.Click Edit Values above the table to open the Edit Values dialog.
2.Enter new values for any applicable expenses in the Base Location and/or Destination Location columns.
3.To reset to the default for a single value, click the 
button in the modified field. To reset to the default values for all fields, click Reset to Default in the Edit Values dialog OR above the Two City Comparison table.
4.Click OK to save your modifications and return to the Two City Comparison table.
Note: Modified values will be indicated with a in the Two City Comparison table. Click in the modified field to open the Edit Values dialog and reset the value, as desired.
Note: The Miscellaneous values can only be modified if the Total Cost = Earnings option is deselected (unchecked) in the Options panel. See Total Cost of Living for more information.
To Modify the Options Panel
See ERI Assumptions
Total Cost-of-Living
This line expresses the relationship between the consumer expenses in the Base City and in the Destination City (all other factors being equal). The Total Cost of Living amount for the Base City may be adjusted to match the user-specified Earnings Level. See Total Cost of Living for more information.
Cost-of-Living Assumptions
The Relocation Assessor databases used in the Geographic Assessor's Two City Comparison tab offer a series of ERI Assumptions regarding potentially relocated employees. Since the product's dataset is constructed with an assumed profile of living costs, calculations involve dollars spent on housing and effective taxes based on real values and dollars spent on consumables, transportation, services and miscellaneous based on percentage of remaining income. Whereas the Relocation Assessor asks the user to review the default (assumed) expenditures in each category of the Base City to confirm relevance of the profile to specific relocation situations, the individual expenditure categories in the main table cannot be altered in the Geographic Assessor. Users may review and modify ERI Assumptions and Housing Assumptions in the Options panel to the left of the main tables.
Please note: Prior to the April 2016 data release, 2,200 square feet (the National Expenditure Pattern) was used as the default for all Base locations. Recent refinements to Local Expenditure datasets allow each Base location to have an individualized benchmark housing size to better reflect local housing costs. In the Geographic Assessor's Enhanced Two City Cost Comparison and Comparison List - COL, the Local Expenditure Pattern is always assumed. See Data Background FAQ #20 for more information.
COL % of Base City
The relationship of the Destination City to the Base City is displayed as a % in the first two columns of the "COL % of Base City" row. The Base City = 100%.
COL % of US Average
The relationship of each city (both base and destination, each compared separately) to the United States Average (spending pattern) is displayed as a % in the first two columns of the "COL % of US Average" row. Each of the city to national spending comparisons are calculated specific to the given spending pattern defined by "Earnings." In addition, each comparison represents the percentage as compared to the cost of purchasing the same goods and services or maintaining the same standard of living at the National Average. See COL % of US Average.
These figures are not available if miscellaneous costs are less than zero.
For more information, please see these topics:
Canada National Average vs. US National Average
Note: Whereas the Relocation Assessor allows the user to customize the Base City expenditure amounts for many of the categories above, the Geographic Assessor does not allow the user to alter these fields in the Enhanced Two City Cost Comparison table. If a more detailed cost-of-living analysis is needed, see the Relocation Assessor.
To View Cost-of-Living Charts
See COL Charts
To Create an Organization Profile
See My Organizations
To Export to a PDF
See Export to PDF
To Export an Excel Spreadsheet
See Export to Excel
To Print
See Printing
To View a List of All ERI Areas