My rent is high, but my cost of living isn’t that high relative to everything (not that different from pricier parts of the Midwest). My salary is high to keep

My rent is high, but my cost of living isn’t that high relative to everything (not that different from pricier parts of the Midwest). My salary is high to keep the cost of living maintainable, so I don’t become tempted to move back to the Midwest where my rent was medium and my salary was high, and the cost of living was similarly medium.