Bloomington New Orleans-Metairie

Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources

Should you move?

Moving from Bloomington to New Orleans-Metairie is less favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 93.5 to 92.6 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $29/mo.

-$1,449
BLS median salary lower in New Orleans-Metairie
277 to 410
violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
14:1 to 16.8:1
NCES student-teacher ratio
$4,861
DOL infant care lower / yr in New Orleans-Metairie

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: 93.5 → 92.6
Rent Delta: +$29/mo

Pros of Moving

  • + More affordable childcare

Cons of Moving

  • - Higher violent crime rate
  • - Higher student-teacher ratios
  • - More environmental violations

Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 93.5 to 92.6 (ratio 0.99), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent barely moves ($1,302 → $1,331); the housing line is not the swing factor on this corridor.

Bloomington still leads on 5 of 7 federal dimensions, the origin keeps the edge. New Orleans-Metairie sits #297 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Bloomington is #143/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Less Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.

BLS OEWS median salary moves $1,449 lower ($66,137 → $64,688). Labor-market size: 70,320 tracked jobs at origin vs 428,400 at destination.

State retirement friendliness favors the destination: Louisiana scores 67 (C, #15/51) vs Illinois at 58 (D, #31/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.

Dimension
Bloomington
New Orleans-Metairie
Winner
Cost of Living
RPP 93.5
RPP 92.6
New Orleans-Metairie
Rent (2BR)
$1,302/mo
$1,331/mo
Bloomington
Wages
$66,137
$64,688
Bloomington
Crime
277 per 100K
410 per 100K
Bloomington
Schools
14:1
16.8:1
Bloomington
Childcare
$12,257/yr
$7,396/yr
New Orleans-Metairie
Environment
3029 violations
14536 violations
Bloomington

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 · Illinois
58 D #31/51
Income tax
95
Property tax
46
Estate tax
50
Healthcare
46
Destination state · Louisiana
67 C #15/51
Income tax
78
Property tax
79
Estate tax
100
Healthcare
8

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 Bloomington to see what you'd need to earn in New Orleans-Metairie to maintain the same purchasing power.

Equivalent salary in New Orleans-Metairie
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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