$90K Left After Rent & Taxes? These Cities Are Letting Nurses Live Their Best Lives

Hey there nurse,

What if I told you there are nurses—regular staff nurses—who are taking home over $90,000 a year AFTER paying rent and taxes?

They’re not travelers.
They’re not in management.
They’re not pulling 60-hour weeks.

They’re just staff nurses… working in the right cities—keeping more of their paycheck and living way better because of it.

We looked at real nursing salaries, subtracted taxes and rent, and sorted through 590+ U.S. cities to see where the math actually works.

📊 The Results: Top Cities Where Nurses Are Winning

Here’s a look at the top 3 cities for renting nurses right now:

🥇 Oakland, CA

• 💰 Salary: $173,510

• 🏠 Rent: $2,250/mo

• 💸 Left After Rent & Taxes: $90,523

• 🏡 Home Price: $750,000

• 📉 Mortgage (7.06%): $5,702/mo

• ✅ Left After Owning: $49,099

🥈 Hayward, CA

• 💰 Salary: $173,510

• 🏠 Rent: $2,450/mo

• 💸 Left After Rent & Taxes: $88,123

• 🏡 Home Price: $893,938

• 📉 Mortgage: $6,788/mo

• ✅ Left After Owning: $36,055

🥉 Vallejo, CA

• 💰 Salary: $164,960

• 🏠 Rent: $2,132/mo

• 💸 Left After Rent & Taxes: $86,891

• 🏡 Home Price: $537,667

• 📉 Mortgage: $4,097/mo

• ✅ Left After Owning: $63,311

🟢 Out of the Top 10 U.S. Cities where nurses are left with the most money after buying a home:

• 6 are in California

• Only 1 is in Texas

• 2 are in Michigan

• 1 is in Alaska

And the only state with consistently high pay + affordable home options?
California. Nurses in CA are buying homes and still keeping $50K–$63K/year after their mortgage and taxes.

💬 “But isn’t California way too expensive?”

Let’s be honest—yes, owning in California can feel expensive.
But here’s the part most people don’t realize:

And we’ve got the receipts to prove it 👇

🏠 Top 10 Cities Where Nurses Can Comfortably Own a Home

📍 That’s 6 out of the top 10 cities in California.
💥 And in every one of them, nurses are left with $50K–$63K after paying the mortgage and taxes.

⚖️ Now Let’s Compare to Seattle, Miami, and New York:

We pulled the same data for these “popular” cities—and the numbers tell the full story.

😳 In Seattle, nurses are left with only $5,202 a year after paying the mortgage.
😵 In NYC, they keep just $8,192.
🤯 Meanwhile in Oakland, they’re left with $49,099—on a similar-priced home.

So yeah... California home prices are high—but the paychecks match.

🤔 The Real Problem Isn’t Cost of Living. It’s Low Pay.

Here’s what this data proves:

• CA might have higher rent or home prices…

• But it also pays nurses $40K–$60K more than places like Florida, Washington, or New York

• In most other cities, nurses are priced out of even dreaming about buying a home

• In places like Vallejo, Redding, or Fairfield—you can rent, save, or buy and still live well

🔍 Want to Know How Your City Compares?

In the Map My Pay app (coming soon), you’ll find:

✅ Net salary after taxes
✅ Cost of renting vs. owning
✅ How much money is left after housing
✅ Crime scores and monthly temps by city
✅ Home price and mortgage data
✅ And more than 590 cities to choose from

Whether you’re relocating, switching hospitals, or just wondering where your money’s going—this app is going to help you plan smarter.

Until next time,
— The Map My Pay Team

P.S. If you’ve got a nurse friend who’s busting their butt for $35/hr and thinking it’s normal… send them this post. Our app will change their life.