If it will inspire you to move out, every day I can take a picture of the freeway backed up in bumper to bumper traffic.
You might mistake it for a 5 lane mega McDonald's drive through!
But no, these are just people trying to get a few miles in to work.
Uhh but I guess to answer your quesiton, it really depends on your personal expenses. It's not like rent is in the 2-3k range, but the facts are: the city and surrounding area is crowded. The transportation network is congested, and there is no sign of this alleviating any time soon, so living space will hold on to its premium.
Rent is a bit more, but it's not crippling high
Food doesn't have to be expensive unless you make it
Same thing with most of the costs people end up having on their balance sheet
So it really comes down to, where will you live, and can you keep the rest of your expenses down.