Longview → Fargo

Moving from Longview to Fargo shifts your BEA Regional Price Parity from 89.5 to 90.9 (100 = US average), so a Longview salary needs to be multiplied by 1.02 to hold the same purchasing power in Fargo. On rent, HUD Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom goes from $1,199/month in Longview to $1,112/month in Fargo - a lower monthly bill of $87, or $1,044/year. That rent delta alone is often the single biggest line item when relocating.

Wages tell the other half. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics report a median salary of $58,714 in Longview versus $69,516 in Fargo - a raw gap of $10,802 higher. The Fargo labor market has 142,800 tracked jobs against 109,710 in Longview, shaping how easy it is to find a comparable role. Combine that with the cost-of-living shift above and you get the real purchasing-power delta, sometimes a "higher salary" is actually a pay cut once rent and RPP are applied.

Safety, schools, and childcare round out the move. FBI UCR violent crime rates near Longview and Fargo are 395 and 257 per 100,000 (state-level). NCES student-teacher ratios run 14.7:1 at origin versus 11.8:1 at destination. DOL center-based infant care costs $7,566/year in Longview versus $10,925/year in Fargo. Our composite verdict - Strongly Favorable - weighs all seven federal sources; the dimension table below lets you override that with your personal priorities.