2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Pinehurst Metro, NC

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 Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$88,500
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-11.5%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$3,481
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$4,968
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$1,487/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

Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC

COL 111.2
Gross Parity Income $88,500
Federal Income Tax -$10,640
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,770
State Income Tax -$3,022
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $68,067
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$13,392
Discretionary Cash Flow $54,675

EPI family budgets put living costs 11.5% lower in Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $88,500 in Pinehurst. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,116 in Pinehurst, $4,968 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $3,481 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Pinehurst. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $1,487 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $42,920 in Pinehurst.

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) Pinehurst-Southern Pines (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,116-$414-27.1%
Food & Groceries$334$396+$62+18.6%
Transportation$1,062$1,088+$26+2.4%
Healthcare$467$510+$43+9.2%
Other Necessities$585$429-$156-26.7%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,025+$290+16.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$414/mo (-27.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Pinehurst-Southern Pines: $1,116/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$594/mo (-32.7%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Pinehurst-Southern Pines: $1,223/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$3.19/hr (-11.5%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Pinehurst-Southern Pines: $24.58/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$2.48/hr (-10.4%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Pinehurst-Southern Pines: $21.30/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 Pinehurst-Southern Pines Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$94,400-$23,450 (-19.9%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$130,240-$3,880 (-2.9%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$81,520-$16,370 (-16.7%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$95,280-$7,110 (-6.9%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$75,750-$7,370 (-8.9%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$137,460-$39,530 (-22.3%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$106,200-$23,270 (-18.0%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$107,810-$43,950 (-29.0%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$45,650-$14,740 (-24.4%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$146,830-$20,350 (-12.2%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$148,630-$16,290 (-9.9%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$73,570-$33,030 (-31.0%)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 Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC Relocation FAQs

About $88,500. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 111.2 in Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Pinehurst Metro, NC Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Pinehurst Metro, NC compiled from Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS surveys, HUD Fair Market Rents, and statutory tax codes.

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $88,500. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 111.2 in Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 11.5% lower in Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.