Owensboro Port St. Lucie

Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources

Should you move?

Moving from Owensboro to Port St. Lucie is unfavorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 88.6 to 100.2 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $647/mo.

+$2,432
BLS median salary higher in Port St. Lucie
225 to 210
violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
15.2:1 to 17.8:1
NCES student-teacher ratio
$3,267
DOL infant care higher / yr in Port St. Lucie

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
Unfavorable
Cost Index: 88.6 → 100.2
Rent Delta: +$647/mo

Pros of Moving

  • + $2K higher median salary

Cons of Moving

  • - 12% higher cost of living
  • - $647/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
  • - Higher student-teacher ratios
  • - More expensive childcare
  • - More environmental violations

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP rises from 88.6 to 100.2, so the same paycheck buys less in Port St. Lucie (ratio 1.13). HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent rises $647/mo ($7,764/yr) from $1,110 in Owensboro to $1,757 in Port St. Lucie.

Owensboro still leads on 5 of 7 federal dimensions, the origin keeps the edge. Port St. Lucie sits #306 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Owensboro is #106/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Unfavorable. Override it with the dimension table below.

BLS OEWS median salary moves $2,432 higher ($59,581 → $62,013). Labor-market size: 41,400 tracked jobs at origin vs 160,790 at destination.

State retirement friendliness is near-even: Kentucky 68 (C, #11/51) vs Florida 62 (C, #23/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.

Dimension
Owensboro
Port St. Lucie
Winner
Cost of Living
RPP 88.6
RPP 100.2
Owensboro
Rent (2BR)
$1,110/mo
$1,757/mo
Owensboro
Wages
$59,581
$62,013
Port St. Lucie
Crime
225 per 100K
210 per 100K
Port St. Lucie
Schools
15.2:1
17.8:1
Owensboro
Childcare
$7,238/yr
$10,505/yr
Owensboro
Environment
1864 violations
2736 violations
Owensboro

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 · Kentucky
68 C #11/51
Income tax
72
Property tax
73
Estate tax
50
Healthcare
38
Destination state · Florida
62 C #23/51
Income tax
100
Property tax
67
Estate tax
100
Healthcare
12

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 Owensboro to see what you'd need to earn in Port St. Lucie to maintain the same purchasing power.

Equivalent salary in Port St. Lucie
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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