2026 Relocation & Cost Arbitrage Engine

Relocation: Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC to Peoria, IL

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 Peoria, IL.

Popular Corridors:
Equivalent Salary
$79,000
To maintain parity
Cost of Living Delta
-21.0%
Overall expenditure basket
Annual Tax Delta
+$131
State + local taxes
Annual 1BR Rent Delta
-$6,324
HUD Fair Market Rents
Net Annual Buffer
+$6,455/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

Peoria, IL

COL 99.6
Gross Parity Income $79,000
Federal Income Tax -$8,550
FICA (SS & Medicare) -$6,044
State Income Tax -$3,766
Local / City Tax $0
Net Annual Take-Home $60,641
HUD 1BR Fair Market Rent -$11,532
Discretionary Cash Flow $49,109

EPI family budgets put living costs 21.0% lower in Peoria, IL than in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC, so $100,000 in Virginia Beach goes about as far as $79,000 in Peoria. HUD's one-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $1,488 a month in Virginia Beach and $961 in Peoria, $6,324 a year less. On the same $100,000 salary a single filer pays $131 less a year in federal, state and local income tax and FICA in Peoria. Taxes and one-bedroom rent together leave you about $6,455 a year better off. The BLS median wage across all occupations is $49,430 in Virginia Beach and $49,590 in Peoria.

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) Peoria (Monthly) Monthly Delta ($) Difference (%)
Housing (1BR Fair Market Rent)$1,488$961-$527-35.4%
Food & Groceries$365$353-$12-3.3%
Transportation$990$1,052+$62+6.3%
Healthcare$387$590+$203+52.5%
Other Necessities$571$332-$239-41.9%
Total Taxes (Federal, State, Local, FICA)$2,146$2,135-$11-0.5%

HUD Fair Market Rent Differential

1-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$527/mo (-35.4%)
Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk: $1,488/mo Peoria: $961/mo
2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent -$455/mo (-27.3%)
Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk: $1,667/mo Peoria: $1,212/mo

EPI Living Wage Benchmark Comparison

1 Adult (No Children) -$5.86/hr (-21.0%)
Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk: $27.88/hr Peoria: $22.02/hr
2 Adults + 1 Child (per earner) -$0.71/hr (-3.1%)
Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk: $22.62/hr Peoria: $21.91/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 Peoria Median Nominal Wage Delta Action
Registered Nurse (RN)HealthcareHealthcare$89,450$81,010-$8,440 (-9.4%)View Dossier
General and Operations ManagersFinance & ManagementFinance & Management$100,340$98,290-$2,050 (-2.0%)View Dossier
Software EngineerTechnologyTechnology$129,090$130,590+$1,500 (+1.2%)View Dossier
Accountant & AuditorFinanceFinance$79,450$79,540+$90 (+0.1%)View Dossier
Management AnalystBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$101,380$96,530-$4,850 (-4.8%)View Dossier
Project Management SpecialistBusiness OperationsBusiness Operations$104,920$123,730+$18,810 (+17.9%)View Dossier
ElectricianSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$62,350$80,460+$18,110 (+29.0%)View Dossier
Plumber & PipefitterSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$61,870$85,090+$23,220 (+37.5%)View Dossier
WelderSkilled TradesSkilled Trades$62,670$58,960-$3,710 (-5.9%)View Dossier
Solutions ArchitectTechnologyTechnology$116,920$96,890-$20,030 (-17.1%)View Dossier
Financial ManagerFinanceFinance$163,940$155,840-$8,100 (-4.9%)View Dossier
Quality Control InspectorIndustrial ManufacturingIndustrial Manufacturing$57,330$56,770-$560 (-1.0%)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 Peoria, IL Relocation FAQs

About $79,000. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (126.0 in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC, 99.6 in Peoria, IL, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Triangular Relocation & Tax Silo

Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC to Peoria, IL: State Paychecks, Rents & Reciprocal Corridor

Reverse Route: Peoria, IL to Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC
Relocation: Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC to Peoria, IL Overview

Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC to Peoria, IL: 2026 federal, state & local income tax, HUD Fair Market Rents & EPI living costs compared on the same. Official 2026 economic data for Relocation: Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC to Peoria, IL 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 Peoria, IL to match $100,000 in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC?

About $79,000. That scales $100,000 by the ratio of the metros' cost-of-living indexes (126.0 in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC, 99.6 in Peoria, IL, from EPI family budgets); taxes are compared separately below.

Is Peoria, IL cheaper than Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC?

EPI's family budgets for a single adult put overall living costs 21.0% lower in Peoria, IL than in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC. The budgets cover housing, food, transportation, health care and other necessities.