Ah, Manhattan, where $1.5 million for an apartment is still "mid-level"

What do you base natural level on? While I agree (living here in Manhattan) that the $1.5M number is pretty arbitrary, your $1.3M is equally so. I think the $1.5M number is a reflection of the price it takes to get a two bedroom place here. Maybe that comes down in future months, but ultimately there is very little housing stock here in Manhattan, and the hope is that the "mid-level" market are full of folks that are new parents, DINKs, etc. and that their needs haven't changed much in the last year.

Most of the Manhattan market numbers skew because of the really high-level and high-priced places, but if you look at the median prices listed in the article, I bet that $925K isn't too far off of living in Noe Valley in SF, Palo Alto, or many of the suburbs here in New York.

I can't speak for either $1.5M or $1.3M, but it's a heck of a lot less expensive to live in New England, yet still pretty easy to get a six-figure salary (or consulting gig).