Elkhart-Goshen St. Cloud

Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources

Should you move?

Moving from Elkhart-Goshen to St. Cloud is favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 90.3 to 87.6 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $23/mo.

+$12,695
BLS median salary higher in St. Cloud
308 to 259
violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
15.9:1 to 15.8:1
NCES student-teacher ratio

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
Favorable
Cost Index: 90.3 → 87.6
Rent Delta: +$23/mo

Pros of Moving

  • + $13K higher median salary
  • + Fewer environmental violations

Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 90.3 to 87.6 (ratio 0.97), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent barely moves ($1,183 → $1,206); the housing line is not the swing factor on this corridor.

St. Cloud leads on 5 of 7 federal dimensions, a destination-heavy ledger. St. Cloud sits #40 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (top third of the corpus). Elkhart-Goshen is #141/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.

BLS OEWS median salary moves $12,695 higher ($59,976 → $72,671). Labor-market size: 122,290 tracked jobs at origin vs 96,960 at destination.

State retirement friendliness favors staying put: Indiana scores 62 (C, #24/51) vs Minnesota at 49 (F, #43/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.

Dimension
Elkhart-Goshen
St. Cloud
Winner
Cost of Living
RPP 90.3
RPP 87.6
St. Cloud
Rent (2BR)
$1,183/mo
$1,206/mo
Elkhart-Goshen
Wages
$59,976
$72,671
St. Cloud
Crime
308 per 100K
259 per 100K
St. Cloud
Schools
15.9:1
15.8:1
St. Cloud
Childcare
N/A
$11,722/yr
Tie
Environment
1514 violations
1033 violations
St. Cloud

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 · Indiana
62 C #24/51
Income tax
72
Property tax
69
Estate tax
100
Healthcare
32
Destination state · Minnesota
49 F #43/51
Income tax
60
Property tax
62
Estate tax
50
Healthcare
34

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 Elkhart-Goshen to see what you'd need to earn in St. Cloud to maintain the same purchasing power.

Equivalent salary in St. Cloud
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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