i live in ny and our rent/mortgage is very high. and like hudi said, i’m very hesitant to leave my comfort zone.
But even though its true that the cost of living is lower and tuition is higher which may make it tempting to move; there is one major thing that is here and not there. That is neighbors. When one has children, neighbors are very important, especially in nice weather – tznius, friends, etc… Besides, the gvt services that you can get here, are not available out of NY. I dont know much about gvt help for food, housing, and the like, but i do know that there is no other city that’ll give you services (in my case for a disabled child) like nyc.