Boston, NY, Chicago, DC are crazy expensive. Generally the South has a lower cost of living than the Northeast.
So from that perspective Florida or North Carolina might be less expensive for a student to live.
my only experience here is North Carolina. the University of North Carolina system is excellent and has a good relationship with NC CC’s. you can take a 2-year program at any NC CC consisting of certain core classes, and the credits will fully transfer to any UNC school. not every CC course transfers, though, you have to make sure it is a universal transfer course (UGETC).
there are 16 schools in the UNC system. UNC-Chapel Hill is one of the best schools in the country, and NC State is an excellent university as well. there is also East Carolina U, UNC-Wilmington, UNC-Charlotte, Appalachian State, Western Carolina and several others.
I am only really familiar with Pitt Community College near Greenville, which is a really good CC. it seems to offer classes other CC’s do not have. my HS son is working on earning an Associate in Engineering by the time he graduates HS. i don’t know of any other CC that even offers an Associate in Engineering. that said,i am sure there are good CC’s in Raleigh, Charlotte, and elsewhere in NC. Raleigh and Charlotte are also growing cities that should offer good job prospects in the future. those cities might be more expensive for a CC student to live, as opposed to Greenville or an even less expensive town with a CC.
you can check out Pitt CC at
http://pittcc.edu/
and maybe the Community College threads here might have information about other schools in NC. i think Lenior Community College might also be a good one.