2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Coeur d'Alene, ID to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX

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 Coeur d'Alene, ID to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$100,200
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+0.2%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$4,192
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$348
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$4,540/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

Coeur d'Alene, ID

COL 107.1
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$4,192
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,988
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$15,480
Discretionary Cash Flow $59,508
Target Market
Destination Location

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX

COL 107.4
Gross Parity Income $100,200
Federal Income Tax -$13,214
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,665
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $79,321
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$15,132
Discretionary Cash Flow $64,189

EPI family budgets put living costs 0.2% higher in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX than in Coeur d'Alene, ID, so $100,000 in Coeur d'Alene goes about as far as $100,200 in Houston. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,290 a month in Coeur d'Alene and $1,261 in Houston, $348 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,192 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Houston. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $4,540 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $47,750 in Coeur d'Alene and $49,410 in Houston.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Coeur d'Alene (Monthly) Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,290$1,261-$29-2.2%
Food & Groceries$387$321-$66-17.1%
Transportation$1,097$1,015-$82-7.5%
Healthcare$378$422+$44+11.6%
Other Necessities$431$480+$49+11.4%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,084$1,735-$349-16.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$29/mo (-2.2%)
Coeur d'Alene: $1,290/mo Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$10/mo (-0.7%)
Coeur d'Alene: $1,507/mo Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$0.06/hr (0.3%)
Coeur d'Alene: $23.69/hr Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$0.39/hr (-1.9%)
Coeur d'Alene: $20.97/hr Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $20.58/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Coeur d'Alene Median Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$80,270$119,600+$39,330 (+49.0%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$98,910$99,830+$920 (+0.9%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$86,950$99,510+$12,560 (+14.4%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$71,230$85,090+$13,860 (+19.5%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$126,870$129,440+$2,570 (+2.0%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$66,350$59,180-$7,170 (-10.8%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$123,450$166,910+$43,460 (+35.2%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$61,810$63,180+$1,370 (+2.2%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$111,620$103,530-$8,090 (-7.2%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$143,570$135,880-$7,690 (-5.4%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$50,000$46,630-$3,370 (-6.7%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$51,510$57,940+$6,430 (+12.5%)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

Coeur d'Alene, ID to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX Relocation FAQs

About $100,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.1 in Coeur d'Alene, ID, 107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Coeur d'Alene, ID to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Coeur d'Alene, ID
Relocation: Coeur d'Alene, ID to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX Overview

Coeur d'Alene, ID to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on the same.

Quick answers
How much salary do I need in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to match $100,000 in Coeur d'Alene, ID?

About $100,200. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.1 in Coeur d'Alene, ID, 107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX cheaper than Coeur d'Alene, ID?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 0.2% higher in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX than in Coeur d'Alene, ID. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.