2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Huntington, WV-KY-OH

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 Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$95,700
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-4.3%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$4,145
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$4,764
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$619/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

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX

COL 107.4
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 -$15,132
Discretionary Cash Flow $64,048
Target Market
Destination Location

Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH

COL 102.8
Gross Parity Income $95,700
Federal Income Tax -$12,224
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,321
State Income Tax -$3,678
Local / City Tax -$260
Net Annual Take-Home $72,217
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$10,368
Discretionary Cash Flow $61,849

EPI family budgets put living costs 4.3% lower in Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, so $100,000 in Houston goes about as far as $95,700 in Huntington. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,261 a month in Houston and $864 in Huntington, $4,764 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,145 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Huntington. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $619 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,410 in Houston and $44,600 in Huntington.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands (Monthly) Huntington-Ashland (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,261$864-$397-31.5%
Food & Groceries$321$324+$3+0.9%
Transportation$1,015$1,010-$5-0.5%
Healthcare$422$630+$208+49.3%
Other Necessities$480$363-$117-24.4%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,080+$345+19.9%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$397/mo (-31.5%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo Huntington-Ashland: $864/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$491/mo (-32.8%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo Huntington-Ashland: $1,006/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$1.02/hr (-4.3%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr Huntington-Ashland: $22.73/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$0.21/hr (-1.0%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $20.58/hr Huntington-Ashland: $20.37/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands Median Huntington-Ashland Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$119,600$77,350-$42,250 (-35.3%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$99,830$81,010-$18,820 (-18.9%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$99,510$79,590-$19,920 (-20.0%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$85,090$70,840-$14,250 (-16.7%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,440$110,780-$18,660 (-14.4%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,180$63,620+$4,440 (+7.5%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$63,180$65,040+$1,860 (+2.9%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$166,910$106,010-$60,900 (-36.5%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$46,630$40,240-$6,390 (-13.7%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,530$98,690-$4,840 (-4.7%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$135,880$107,470-$28,410 (-20.9%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,940$46,980-$10,960 (-18.9%)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

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH Relocation FAQs

About $95,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 102.8 in Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Huntington, WV-KY-OH Overview

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Huntington, WV-KY-OH 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 Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH to match $100,000 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

About $95,700. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 102.8 in Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH cheaper than Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 4.3% lower in Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.