Pittsfield Prescott Valley-Prescott

Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources

Should you move?

Moving from Pittsfield to Prescott Valley-Prescott is unfavorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 95.1 to 98.3 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $11/mo.

-$11,538
BLS median salary lower in Prescott Valley-Prescott
309 to 429
violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
12.3:1 to 17:1
NCES student-teacher ratio
$9,270
DOL infant care lower / yr in Prescott Valley-Prescott

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: 95.1 → 98.3
Rent Delta: +$11/mo

Pros of Moving

  • + More affordable childcare

Cons of Moving

  • - 3% higher cost of living
  • - $12K lower median salary
  • - Higher violent crime rate
  • - Higher student-teacher ratios
  • - More environmental violations

Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 95.1 to 98.3 (ratio 1.03), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent barely moves ($1,626 → $1,637); the housing line is not the swing factor on this corridor.

Pittsfield still leads on 6 of 7 federal dimensions, the origin keeps the edge. Prescott Valley-Prescott sits #345 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Pittsfield is #53/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Unfavorable. Override it with the dimension table below.

BLS OEWS median salary moves $11,538 lower ($73,362 → $61,824). Labor-market size: 50,610 tracked jobs at origin vs 65,740 at destination.

State retirement friendliness favors the destination: Arizona scores 53 (D, #37/51) vs Massachusetts at 45 (F, #48/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.

Dimension
Pittsfield
Prescott Valley-Prescott
Winner
Cost of Living
RPP 95.1
RPP 98.3
Pittsfield
Rent (2BR)
$1,626/mo
$1,637/mo
Pittsfield
Wages
$73,362
$61,824
Pittsfield
Crime
309 per 100K
429 per 100K
Pittsfield
Schools
12.3:1
17:1
Pittsfield
Childcare
$20,571/yr
$11,301/yr
Prescott Valley-Prescott
Environment
1140 violations
5259 violations
Pittsfield

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 · Massachusetts
45 F #48/51
Income tax
55
Property tax
65
Estate tax
50
Healthcare
84
Destination state · Arizona
53 D #37/51
Income tax
82
Property tax
80
Estate tax
100
Healthcare
22

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 Pittsfield to see what you'd need to earn in Prescott Valley-Prescott to maintain the same purchasing power.

Equivalent salary in Prescott Valley-Prescott
-

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