Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands → Lansing-East Lansing
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands to Lansing-East Lansing is less favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 98.6 to 95.0 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $173/mo.
- -$2,683
- BLS median salary lower in Lansing-East Lansing
- 395 to 431
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 14.7:1 to 17.5:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
- $122
- DOL infant care lower / yr in Lansing-East Lansing
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
- + 4% lower cost of living
- + Fewer environmental violations
Cons of Moving
- - $173/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
- - $3K lower median salary
- - Higher student-teacher ratios
Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 98.6 to 95.0 (ratio 0.96), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent rises $173/mo ($2,076/yr) from $1,095 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands to $1,268 in Lansing-East Lansing.
The seven-dimension ledger splits (3 destination wins · 4 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Lansing-East Lansing sits #229 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (middle third). Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands is #248/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Less Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $2,683 lower ($69,330 → $66,647). Labor-market size: 3,246,270 tracked jobs at origin vs 207,670 at destination.
State retirement friendliness favors staying put: Texas scores 65 (C, #19/51) vs Michigan at 49 (F, #42/51). 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
- 100
- Property tax
- 55
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 44
- Income tax
- 72
- Property tax
- 59
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 16
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 Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands to see what you'd need to earn in Lansing-East Lansing to maintain the same purchasing power.
Lansing-East Lansing metro profile · Livability rankings · Methodology
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