2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Lewiston-Auburn, ME

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 Lewiston-Auburn, ME.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$98,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-1.1%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
-$5,129
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$252
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
-$5,381/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

Lewiston-Auburn, ME

COL 106.1
Gross Parity Income $98,900
Federal Income Tax -$12,928
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,566
State Income Tax -$5,050
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $73,356
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$15,384
Discretionary Cash Flow $57,972

EPI family budgets put living costs 1.1% lower in Lewiston-Auburn, ME than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, so $100,000 in Houston goes about as far as $98,900 in Lewiston. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,261 a month in Houston and $1,282 in Lewiston, $252 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $5,129 more a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Lewiston. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $5,381 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,410 in Houston and $49,540 in Lewiston.

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) Lewiston-Auburn (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,261$1,282+$21+1.7%
Food & Groceries$321$371+$50+15.6%
Transportation$1,015$1,053+$38+3.7%
Healthcare$422$559+$137+32.5%
Other Necessities$480$394-$86-17.9%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$1,735$2,162+$427+24.6%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$21/mo (1.7%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo Lewiston-Auburn: $1,282/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$180/mo (12.0%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo Lewiston-Auburn: $1,677/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$0.28/hr (-1.2%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr Lewiston-Auburn: $23.47/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$1.37/hr (6.7%)
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $20.58/hr Lewiston-Auburn: $21.95/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 Lewiston-Auburn Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$119,600$96,730-$22,870 (-19.1%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$99,830$85,870-$13,960 (-14.0%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$99,510$102,490+$2,980 (+3.0%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$85,090$75,980-$9,110 (-10.7%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,440$117,700-$11,740 (-9.1%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$59,180$78,430+$19,250 (+32.5%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$166,910$131,190-$35,720 (-21.4%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$63,180$66,890+$3,710 (+5.9%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$46,630$48,310+$1,680 (+3.6%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$135,880$125,230-$10,650 (-7.8%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$103,530$117,870+$14,340 (+13.9%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$57,940$55,520-$2,420 (-4.2%)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 Lewiston-Auburn, ME Relocation FAQs

About $98,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 106.1 in Lewiston-Auburn, ME, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX to Lewiston-Auburn, ME: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Lewiston-Auburn, ME to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Relocation: Houston-Pasadena, TX to Lewiston-Auburn, ME Overview

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

About $98,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, 106.1 in Lewiston-Auburn, ME, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Lewiston-Auburn, ME cheaper than Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 1.1% lower in Lewiston-Auburn, ME than in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.