Charleston-North Charleston Kenosha

Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources

Should you move?

Moving from Charleston-North Charleston to Kenosha is neutral, depends on priorities: BEA regional price parity goes from 101.0 to 101.1 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent falls by $385/mo.

+$720
BLS median salary higher in Kenosha
439 to 280
violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
14.3:1 to 14.4:1
NCES student-teacher ratio
$3,524
DOL infant care higher / yr in Kenosha

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
Neutral, depends on priorities
Cost Index: 101.0 → 101.1
Rent Delta: -$385/mo

Pros of Moving

  • + $385/mo cheaper rent (2BR)
  • + Lower violent crime rate

Cons of Moving

  • - More expensive childcare
  • - More environmental violations

Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 101.0 to 101.1 (ratio 1.00), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent drops $385/mo ($4,620/yr) from $1,787 in Charleston-North Charleston to $1,402 in Kenosha.

The seven-dimension ledger splits (3 destination wins · 4 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Kenosha sits #260 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Charleston-North Charleston is #100/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Neutral, depends on priorities. Override it with the dimension table below.

BLS OEWS median salary moves $720 higher ($67,686 → $68,406). Labor-market size: 381,130 tracked jobs at origin vs 69,670 at destination.

State retirement friendliness favors staying put: South Carolina scores 80 (A, #3/51) vs Wisconsin at 57 (D, #32/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.

Dimension
Charleston-North Charleston
Kenosha
Winner
Cost of Living
RPP 101.0
RPP 101.1
Charleston-North Charleston
Rent (2BR)
$1,787/mo
$1,402/mo
Kenosha
Wages
$67,686
$68,406
Kenosha
Crime
439 per 100K
280 per 100K
Kenosha
Schools
14.3:1
14.4:1
Charleston-North Charleston
Childcare
$7,732/yr
$11,256/yr
Charleston-North Charleston
Environment
720 violations
2317 violations
Charleston-North Charleston

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 · South Carolina
80 A #3/51
Income tax
85
Property tax
87
Estate tax
100
Healthcare
56
Destination state · Wisconsin
57 D #32/51
Income tax
62
Property tax
56
Estate tax
100
Healthcare
40

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 Charleston-North Charleston to see what you'd need to earn in Kenosha to maintain the same purchasing power.

Equivalent salary in Kenosha
-

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