2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Virginia Beach, VA-NC to Austin-Round Rock, 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 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$99,600
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-0.4%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$4,936
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
+$504
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$4,432/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

Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC

COL 126.0
Gross Annual Income $100,000
Federal Income Tax -$13,170
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,650
State Income Tax -$4,936
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $74,244
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$17,856
Discretionary Cash Flow $56,388
Target Market
Destination Location

Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX

COL 125.6
Gross Parity Income $99,600
Federal Income Tax -$13,082
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$7,619
State Income Tax $0 (No State Tax)
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $78,899
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$18,360
Discretionary Cash Flow $60,539

EPI family budgets put living costs 0.4% lower in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC, so $100,000 in Virginia Beach goes about as far as $99,600 in Austin. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,488 a month in Virginia Beach and $1,530 in Austin, $504 a year more. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $4,936 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Austin. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $4,432 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,430 in Virginia Beach 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 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk (Monthly) Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,488$1,530+$42+2.8%
Food & Groceries$365$334-$31-8.5%
Transportation$990$1,062+$72+7.3%
Healthcare$387$467+$80+20.7%
Other Necessities$571$585+$14+2.5%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,146$1,735-$411-19.2%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$42/mo (2.8%)
Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk: $1,488/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,530/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent +$150/mo (9.0%)
Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk: $1,667/mo Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $1,817/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$0.11/hr (-0.4%)
Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk: $27.88/hr Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos: $27.77/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) +$1.16/hr (5.1%)
Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk: $22.62/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 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk Median Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$100,340$117,850+$17,510 (+17.5%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,090$134,120+$5,030 (+3.9%)View Dossier
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$89,450$97,890+$8,440 (+9.4%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$104,920$102,390-$2,530 (-2.4%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$79,450$83,120+$3,670 (+4.6%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$116,920$129,470+$12,550 (+10.7%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$101,380$106,600+$5,220 (+5.1%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$62,350$60,390-$1,960 (-3.1%)View Dossier
Computer and Information Systems ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$170,560$176,990+$6,430 (+3.8%)View Dossier
Sales ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$158,750$151,760-$6,990 (-4.4%)View Dossier
Plumber & PipefitterSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$61,870$62,810+$940 (+1.5%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$163,940$167,180+$3,240 (+2.0%)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

Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX Relocation FAQs

About $99,600. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (126.0 in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC, 125.6 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC
Relocation: Virginia Beach, VA-NC to Austin-Round Rock, TX Overview

Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Virginia Beach, VA-NC to Austin-Round Rock, 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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX to match $100,000 in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC?

About $99,600. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (126.0 in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC, 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 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 0.4% lower in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX than in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.