In my opinion Iowa has high property tax rates but I can’t say I have experience in other state’s tax rates to compare. I believe the minimum average pay is around $10 an hour. Iowa City is home to University of Iowa. It’s a college town. I know when I was a college student money was scarce. Iowa also has a tremendous writing community. It’s one of the perks about living here. I know I stated in my article that books are somewhat of a luxury but any writer knows that isn’t necessarily true. Writer’s need to read in order to improve their craft.