2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

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

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$104,500
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+4.5%
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

Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH

COL 102.8
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$3,885
Local / City Tax -$260
Net Annual Take-Home $75,035
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$10,368
Discretionary Cash Flow $64,667
Target Market
Destination Location

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX

COL 107.4
Gross Parity Income $104,500
Federal Income Tax -$14,160
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,994
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $82,346
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$15,132
Discretionary Cash Flow $67,214

EPI family budgets put living costs 4.5% higher in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX than in Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, so $100,000 in Huntington goes about as far as $104,500 in Houston. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $864 a month in Huntington and $1,261 in Houston, $4,764 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,145 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Houston. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $619 a year worse off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $44,600 in Huntington 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 Huntington-Ashland (Monthly) Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$864$1,261+$397+45.9%
Food & Groceries$324$321-$3-0.9%
Transportation$1,010$1,015+$5+0.5%
Healthcare$630$422-$208-33.0%
Other Necessities$363$480+$117+32.2%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,080$1,735-$345-16.6%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$397/mo (45.9%)
Huntington-Ashland: $864/mo Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,261/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$491/mo (48.8%)
Huntington-Ashland: $1,006/mo Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $1,497/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$1.02/hr (4.5%)
Huntington-Ashland: $22.73/hr Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands: $23.75/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$0.21/hr (1.0%)
Huntington-Ashland: $20.37/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 Huntington-Ashland Median Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$77,350$119,600+$42,250 (+54.6%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$81,010$99,830+$18,820 (+23.2%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$79,590$99,510+$19,920 (+25.0%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$70,840$85,090+$14,250 (+20.1%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$110,780$129,440+$18,660 (+16.8%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$63,620$59,180-$4,440 (-7.0%)View Dossier
Industrial Machinery MechanicIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$65,040$63,180-$1,860 (-2.9%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$106,010$166,910+$60,900 (+57.4%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$40,240$46,630+$6,390 (+15.9%)View Dossier
Construction ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$98,690$103,530+$4,840 (+4.9%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$107,470$135,880+$28,410 (+26.4%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$46,980$57,940+$10,960 (+23.3%)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

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

About $104,500. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (102.8 in Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, 107.4 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

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

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

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

About $104,500. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (102.8 in Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, 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 Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 4.5% higher in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX than in Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.