Spend two weeks in Spain and you may end up believing that living costs are less than what they are in the U.S.

A cup of coffee is cheaper. Dinner is cheaper. Apartments are cheaper. You begin to wonder how far your retirement budget might stretch in Valencia.

But there's a problem with that. Tourists don't pay a month's rent. They don't buy groceries every week, insure a home, pay utilities or local taxes. The cost of living varies enormously from one Spanish city to another.

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