Umm no. I made $60K living outside the DC in NoVA suburbs and I got along just fine. WIth $1200/month payment for shitty condo.
I wouldn't count DC as a major US city. That said, I think only NYC, SF, and parts of LA and Chicago have such ridiculous high costs of living to make 80K only marginally above-average pay. I enjoyed a fairly well-off lifestyle in the midwest before moving moving out here to silicon valley. My monthly rent for my tiny hole-in-the-wall apartment is more than my spacious luxurious condo in the Midwest. Add in the utilities and higher cost of groceries, gas, etc, the 30% jump in salary just doesn't cut it.
HELP!!!! I'm being held prisoner in /usr/games/lib!