[Clodfobble]

So we're beginning to transition my stepdaughter into her own living quarters. I am conflicted over this--it's good (super good), because soon she will be out of my house; but it's bad, because she can't possibly afford it and we will be paying for at least 2/3rds of her rent. It still needs to happen because she needs to practice basic self-care skills that she can't learn in a house that has a constantly full refrigerator and electronics in every room. We want to put her in a budget location so there is some impetus to improve her situation, but it turns out budget locations are kind of not a thing, around here.

--The cheapest, most ghetto apartment, with roaches crawling everywhere in the daylight and literal prostitutes and drug dealers on the street out front... costs about $680 a month for a one-bedroom.

--Budget college housing that is safe, but nowhere near her job... can be had for roughly $850 a month.

--A shockingly nice, modern, all-new appliances/carpet/hardwoods, in a very nice tech-employee neighborhood with washer/dryer hookup and garbage pickup service at your door... is only $935 a month.

I really feel like there should be more disparity there. I mean, sure, you can get way more expensive places, but at that point you're just paying for prime locations in the city. And you can get cheaper if you split a multi-bedroom with a roommate, but she has no friends, and absolutely no one would put up with her living habits anyway.

The financially-responsible side of me is warring with the tough-love side of me. I'm pissed that she could possibly be in a nicer place than I had until I was... well, ever. At her age I was in my second year of college, working 3 part-time jobs, and in the budget college place. I want to put her in the budget place--especially now that she's seen the fancy place--but the price differential is so painfully small, for a relatively huge drop in quality.

Are prices that close where you are, or is this just an Austin thing?