Life in Polk County got cheaper in 2006 … relatively speaking. A recently released report from the University of Florida says so, ranking Polk's cost of living 35th out of the state's 67 counties, a decrease from the previous year.
The 2006 Florida County Retail Price Index ranks Monroe as the state's most expensive county, at No. 1, while No. 67 Washington is the cheapest. Polk's new rating was down from 25th in the 2005 report.
The Florida Price Level Index (FPLI), established by the Legislature as the basis for the District Cost Differential (DCD) in the Florida Education Finance Program, is used to represent the costs of hiring equally qualified personnel across school districts.
The number of new people moving to Palm Beach County has slowed dramatically, according to preliminary population estimates from the Bureau of Economic and Business Research at the University of Florida.
Since 2000, the county's population has grown by about 25,000 people annually, county officials said Monday.
But in the past year that number has shrunk to just 6,197 people, the bureau's estimates show.
The low number is another sign that growth in Palm Beach County has nearly come to a standstill.
