Beckley Daphne-Fairhope-Foley

Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources

Should you move?

Moving from Beckley to Daphne-Fairhope-Foley is less favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 88.4 to 94.7 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $430/mo.

-$1,333
BLS median salary lower in Daphne-Fairhope-Foley
242 to 376
violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
13.1:1 to 17.7:1
NCES student-teacher ratio
$2,078
DOL infant care lower / yr in Daphne-Fairhope-Foley

BEA Regional Price Parity, HUD Fair Market Rent, BLS OEWS, FBI UCR, NCES, and DOL. The table below lets you override the composite with your own priorities.

Verdict
Less Favorable
Cost Index: 88.4 → 94.7
Rent Delta: +$430/mo

Pros of Moving

  • + More affordable childcare
  • + Fewer environmental violations

Cons of Moving

  • - 6% higher cost of living
  • - $430/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
  • - Higher violent crime rate
  • - Higher student-teacher ratios

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP rises from 88.4 to 94.7, so the same paycheck buys less in Daphne-Fairhope-Foley (ratio 1.07). HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent rises $430/mo ($5,160/yr) from $915 in Beckley to $1,345 in Daphne-Fairhope-Foley.

Beckley still leads on 5 of 7 federal dimensions, the origin keeps the edge. Daphne-Fairhope-Foley sits #296 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Beckley is #10/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Less Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.

BLS OEWS median salary moves $1,333 lower ($56,994 → $55,661). Labor-market size: 37,740 tracked jobs at origin vs 79,420 at destination.

State retirement friendliness is near-even: West Virginia 82 (A, #2/51) vs Alabama 75 (B, #5/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.

Dimension
Beckley
Daphne-Fairhope-Foley
Winner
Cost of Living
RPP 88.4
RPP 94.7
Beckley
Rent (2BR)
$915/mo
$1,345/mo
Beckley
Wages
$56,994
$55,661
Beckley
Crime
242 per 100K
376 per 100K
Beckley
Schools
13.1:1
17.7:1
Beckley
Childcare
$8,974/yr
$6,896/yr
Daphne-Fairhope-Foley
Environment
2508 violations
538 violations
Daphne-Fairhope-Foley

State retirement friendliness

Primary-state scores from PlainRelocate's retirement registry (tax + healthcare + climate composite). Metro pairs use each metro's primary state abbreviation.

Origin state · West Virginia
82 A #2/51
Income tax
80
Property tax
86
Estate tax
100
Healthcare
64
Destination state · Alabama
75 B #5/51
Income tax
90
Property tax
92
Estate tax
100
Healthcare
20

Full retirement ranking · Source composite documented on methodology (Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides + federal healthcare/climate inputs).

Salary Adjustment Calculator

Enter your current salary in Beckley to see what you'd need to earn in Daphne-Fairhope-Foley to maintain the same purchasing power.

Equivalent salary in Daphne-Fairhope-Foley
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Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA; retirement desk: Tax Foundation + AARP tax guides June 2026