2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Roanoke, VA

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 Roanoke, VA.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$78,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-21.1%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,936
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$3,360
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$1,576/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

Roanoke, VA

COL 99.1
Gross Parity Income $78,900
Federal Income Tax -$8,528
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,036
State Income Tax -$3,723
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $60,614
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$15,000
Discretionary Cash Flow $45,614

EPI family budgets put living costs 21.1% lower in Roanoke, VA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $78,900 in Roanoke. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,250 in Roanoke, $3,360 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,936 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Roanoke. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $1,576 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $47,140 in Roanoke.

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) Roanoke (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,250-$280-18.3%
Food & Groceries$334$350+$16+4.8%
Transportation$1,062$1,012-$50-4.7%
Healthcare$467$403-$64-13.7%
Other Necessities$585$386-$199-34.0%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,146+$411+23.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$280/mo (-18.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Roanoke: $1,250/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$353/mo (-19.4%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Roanoke: $1,464/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$5.85/hr (-21.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Roanoke: $21.92/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$4.11/hr (-17.3%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Roanoke: $19.67/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 Roanoke Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$98,140-$19,710 (-16.7%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$121,110-$13,010 (-9.7%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$80,090-$17,800 (-18.2%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$91,170-$11,220 (-11.0%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$77,240-$5,880 (-7.1%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$164,910-$12,080 (-6.8%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$129,470$103,520-$25,950 (-20.0%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$138,380-$13,380 (-8.8%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$58,200-$2,190 (-3.6%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$158,030-$9,150 (-5.5%)View Dossier
Marketing ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$164,920$165,000+$80 (0.0%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$84,220-$22,380 (-21.0%)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 Roanoke, VA Relocation FAQs

About $78,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 99.1 in Roanoke, VA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Roanoke, VA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Roanoke, VA Overview

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

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

About $78,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 99.1 in Roanoke, VA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Roanoke, VA cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 21.1% lower in Roanoke, VA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.