2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Lawrence, MA-NH to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, 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 Lawrence, MA-NH to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$106,900
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
+6.9%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$4,780
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$3,348
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$8,128/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

Lawrence, MA-NH

COL 117.4
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$4,780
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,400
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$21,708
Discretionary Cash Flow $52,692
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $106,900
Federal Income Tax -$14,688
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$8,178
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $84,034
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $65,674

EPI family budgets put living costs 6.9% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Lawrence, MA-NH, so $100,000 in Lawrence goes about as far as $106,900 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,809 a month in Lawrence and $1,530 in Austin, $3,348 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,780 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Austin. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $8,128 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $66,620 in Lawrence (BLS figure for the Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area) and $56,950 in Austin.

Itemized Cost of Living Expenditure Arbitrage

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

Expenditure Category Lawrence (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,809$1,530-$279-15.4%
Food & Groceries$391$334-$57-14.6%
Transportation$1,101$1,062-$39-3.5%
Healthcare$391$467+$76+19.4%
Other Necessities$539$585+$46+8.5%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,133$1,735-$398-18.7%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$279/mo (-15.4%)
Lawrence: $1,809/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$550/mo (-23.2%)
Lawrence: $2,367/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) +$1.80/hr (6.9%)
Lawrence: $25.97/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$2.07/hr (-8.0%)
Lawrence: $25.85/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $23.78/hr

Top Local Occupations Wage Parity

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

Occupation Title Industry Sector Lawrence Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action

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

Lawrence, MA-NH to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $106,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (117.4 in Lawrence, MA-NH, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Lawrence, MA-NH to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Lawrence, MA-NH
Relocation: Lawrence, MA-NH to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Overview

Lawrence, MA-NH to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, 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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to match $100,000 in Lawrence, MA-NH?

About $106,900. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (117.4 in Lawrence, MA-NH, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX cheaper than Lawrence, MA-NH?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 6.9% higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Lawrence, MA-NH. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.