2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Staunton Metro, 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 Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$88,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-11.1%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,936
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$5,796
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$860/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

Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA

COL 111.7
Gross Parity Income $88,900
Federal Income Tax -$10,728
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,801
State Income Tax -$4,298
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $67,074
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$12,564
Discretionary Cash Flow $54,510

EPI family budgets put living costs 11.1% lower in Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, so $100,000 in Austin goes about as far as $88,900 in Staunton. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,530 a month in Austin and $1,047 in Staunton, $5,796 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 Staunton. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $860 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $56,950 in Austin and $48,040 in Staunton.

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) Staunton-Stuarts Draft (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,530$1,047-$483-31.6%
Food & Groceries$334$345+$11+3.3%
Transportation$1,062$1,097+$35+3.3%
Healthcare$467$403-$64-13.7%
Other Necessities$585$451-$134-22.9%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,146+$411+23.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$483/mo (-31.6%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo Staunton-Stuarts Draft: $1,047/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$618/mo (-34.0%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo Staunton-Stuarts Draft: $1,199/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$3.07/hr (-11.1%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr Staunton-Stuarts Draft: $24.70/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$3.22/hr (-13.5%)
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr Staunton-Stuarts Draft: $20.56/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 Staunton-Stuarts Draft Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$117,850$96,450-$21,400 (-18.2%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$134,120$115,610-$18,510 (-13.8%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$97,890$92,390-$5,500 (-5.6%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,390$89,020-$13,370 (-13.1%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$83,120$77,300-$5,820 (-7.0%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$176,990$160,610-$16,380 (-9.3%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$151,760$146,080-$5,680 (-3.7%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$60,390$62,150+$1,760 (+2.9%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$167,180$137,420-$29,760 (-17.8%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$106,600$91,790-$14,810 (-13.9%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$102,980$103,750+$770 (+0.7%)View Dossier
Plumber & PipefitterSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$62,810$51,250-$11,560 (-18.4%)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 Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA Relocation FAQs

About $88,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 111.7 in Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

Reverse Route: Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX
Relocation: Austin-Round Rock, TX to Staunton Metro, VA Overview

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA: 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 Staunton Metro, VA 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 Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA to match $100,000 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

About $88,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, 111.7 in Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA cheaper than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 11.1% lower in Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA than in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.