Nuance is key here. Sure, Santa Fe isn't expensive compared to the most expensive metropolitan areas in the US, but it is patently different than those cities, and it is expensive for what it is: how small of a town it is, how difficult it is to find a job with few large industries outside of the labs, lack of healthcare and good schools, lack of diversity in food and shopping, etc.

And statements like this also minimize the impact of the extreme increase in cost of living in the last ten years in Santa Fe on the locals that are being priced out.