Dover → Springfield
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Dover to Springfield is less favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 97.5 to 96.1 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $264/mo.
- +$8,023
- BLS median salary higher in Springfield
- 368 to 309
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 13.9:1 to 12.3:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
- $9,399
- DOL infant care higher / yr in Springfield
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.
Pros of Moving
- + $8K higher median salary
- + Better student-teacher ratios
Cons of Moving
- - $264/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
- - More expensive childcare
- - More environmental violations
Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 97.5 to 96.1 (ratio 0.99), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent rises $264/mo ($3,168/yr) from $1,470 in Dover to $1,734 in Springfield.
The seven-dimension ledger splits (4 destination wins · 3 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Springfield sits #81 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (top third of the corpus). Dover is #111/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Less Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $8,023 higher ($64,394 → $72,417). Labor-market size: 59,250 tracked jobs at origin vs 191,450 at destination.
State retirement friendliness favors staying put: Delaware scores 62 (C, #22/51) vs Massachusetts at 45 (F, #48/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.
State retirement friendliness
Primary-state scores from PlainRelocate's retirement registry (tax + healthcare + climate composite). Metro pairs use each metro's primary state abbreviation.
- Income tax
- 78
- Property tax
- 88
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 60
- Income tax
- 55
- Property tax
- 65
- Estate tax
- 50
- Healthcare
- 84
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 Dover to see what you'd need to earn in Springfield to maintain the same purchasing power.
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