2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Flint, MI

Data updated · Sources: HUD FY 2027 Fair Market Rents, EPI 2026 Family Budget, 2026 tax tables · Methodology

Income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents and EPI living costs for a move from Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Flint, MI.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$68,100
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-31.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,993
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$7,092
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$2,099/yr
Tax + housing gain

Interactive Purchasing Power Equivalency Workbench

Adjust your current salary at origin to dynamically compute the statutory tax burden, housing costs, and discretionary cash in both markets.

Presets:
$
$30,000 $100,000 $200,000 $300,000
Origin Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$0
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $79,180
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $60,820
Target Market
Destination Location

Flint, MI

COL 85.5
Gross Parity Income $68,100
Federal Income Tax -$6,152
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$5,210
State Income Tax -$2,644
Local / City Tax -$675
Net Annual Take-Home $53,420
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$11,268
Discretionary Cash Flow $42,152

EPI family budgets put living costs 31.9% lower in Flint, MI than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $68,100 in Flint. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $939 in Flint, $7,092 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,993 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Flint. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $2,099 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $45,880 in Flint.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

Category-by-category breakdown of monthly baseline consumption between origin and destination.

Expenditure Category Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Flint (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$939-$591-38.6%
Food & Groceries$334$331-$3-0.9%
Transportation$1,062$999-$63-5.9%
Healthcare$467$364-$103-22.1%
Other Necessities$585$317-$268-45.8%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,151+$416+24.0%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$591/mo (-38.6%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Flint: $939/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$684/mo (-37.6%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Flint: $1,133/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$8.87/hr (-31.9%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Flint: $18.90/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$5.97/hr (-25.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Flint: $17.81/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

BLS median wage comparisons across benchmark roles between both metropolitan labor markets.

Occupation Title Industry Sector Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Flint Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$83,020-$34,830 (-29.6%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$101,750-$32,370 (-24.1%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$97,780-$110 (-0.1%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$91,730-$10,660 (-10.4%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$74,500-$8,620 (-10.4%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$154,870-$22,120 (-12.5%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$122,600-$29,160 (-19.2%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$68,280-$61,190 (-47.3%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$78,270+$17,880 (+29.6%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$128,950-$38,230 (-22.9%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$121,830-$43,090 (-26.1%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$85,380-$21,220 (-19.9%)View Dossier

Major US Inter-Metro Relocation Corridors

Empirical cost differentials and statutory tax savings across high-volume migration routes.

New York-Newark-Jersey City → Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos

On $100k: $8,301 less tax and $14,388 less 1BR rent a year

-30.6% COL+$22,689/yr
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont → Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos

On $100k: $6,211 less tax and $17,676 less 1BR rent a year

-30.4% COL+$23,887/yr
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin → Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington

On $100k: $4,805 less tax and $2,928 less 1BR rent a year

-2.2% COL+$7,733/yr
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont → Columbus

On $100k: $1,729 less tax and $19,884 less 1BR rent a year

-41.0% COL+$21,613/yr
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim → Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler

On $100k: $4,113 less tax and $10,908 less 1BR rent a year

-13.5% COL+$15,021/yr
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue → Denver-Aurora-Centennial

On $100k: $3,761 more tax and $4,188 less 1BR rent a year

-13.6% COL+$427/yr
Boston-Cambridge-Newton → Raleigh-Cary

On $100k: $1,299 less tax and $11,592 less 1BR rent a year

-16.2% COL+$12,891/yr
New York-Newark-Jersey City → Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach

On $100k: $8,301 less tax and $7,296 less 1BR rent a year

-27.3% COL+$15,597/yr

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Flint, MI Relocation FAQs

About $68,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 85.5 in Flint, MI, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Flint, MI: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Flint, MI to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Flint, MI Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Flint, MI: 2026 federal, state and local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents and EPI living costs compared on the same salary.

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in Flint, MI to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $68,100. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 85.5 in Flint, MI, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Flint, MI cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 31.9% lower in Flint, MI than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.