2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Richmond, 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 Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Richmond, VA.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$106,800
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+6.8%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,936
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$228
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$4,708/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

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX

COL 123.0
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 -$18,432
Discretionary Cash Flow $60,748
Target Market
Destination Location

Richmond, VA

COL 131.3
Gross Parity Income $106,800
Federal Income Tax -$14,666
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$8,170
State Income Tax -$5,327
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $78,637
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,204
Discretionary Cash Flow $60,433

EPI family budgets put living costs 6.8% higher in Richmond, VA than in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, so $100,000 in Dallas goes about as far as $106,800 in Richmond. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,536 a month in Dallas and $1,517 in Richmond, $228 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 Richmond. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $4,708 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $51,440 in Dallas and $51,460 in Richmond.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington (Monthly) Richmond (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,536$1,517-$19-1.2%
Food & Groceries$342$376+$34+9.9%
Transportation$1,011$1,089+$78+7.7%
Healthcare$459$389-$70-15.3%
Other Necessities$582$579-$3-0.5%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,146+$411+23.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$19/mo (-1.2%)
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $1,536/mo Richmond: $1,517/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$156/mo (-8.6%)
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $1,807/mo Richmond: $1,651/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$1.84/hr (6.8%)
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $27.20/hr Richmond: $29.04/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$0.55/hr (2.4%)
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington: $22.92/hr Richmond: $23.47/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Median Richmond Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$111,010$108,670-$2,340 (-2.1%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$101,420$93,580-$7,840 (-7.7%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$133,290$132,120-$1,170 (-0.9%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$98,900$102,170+$3,270 (+3.3%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$82,620$84,220+$1,600 (+1.9%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$173,810$180,640+$6,830 (+3.9%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$169,200$173,140+$3,940 (+2.3%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$144,290$168,590+$24,300 (+16.8%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,010$61,350+$2,340 (+4.0%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$102,860$95,660-$7,200 (-7.0%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$127,360$111,070-$16,290 (-12.8%)View Dossier
Medical and Health Services ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$121,640$129,660+$8,020 (+6.6%)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

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Richmond, VA Relocation FAQs

About $106,800. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (123.0 in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, 131.3 in Richmond, VA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Richmond, VA: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Richmond, VA to Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Relocation: Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Richmond, VA Overview

Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX to Richmond, 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 Richmond, VA to match $100,000 in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX?

About $106,800. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (123.0 in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, 131.3 in Richmond, VA, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Richmond, VA cheaper than Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 6.8% higher in Richmond, VA than in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.