Prescott Valley-Prescott Albany

Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources

Should you move?

Moving from Prescott Valley-Prescott to Albany is strongly favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 98.3 to 87.7 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent falls by $508/mo.

-$2,994
BLS median salary lower in Albany
429 to 300
violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
17:1 to 14.4:1
NCES student-teacher ratio
$4,710
DOL infant care lower / yr in Albany

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
Strongly Favorable
Cost Index: 98.3 → 87.7
Rent Delta: -$508/mo

Pros of Moving

  • + 11% lower cost of living
  • + $508/mo cheaper rent (2BR)
  • + Lower violent crime rate
  • + Better student-teacher ratios
  • + More affordable childcare
  • + Fewer environmental violations

Cons of Moving

  • - $3K lower median salary

Purchasing power opens up: BEA RPP falls from 98.3 to 87.7, so each dollar covers more in Albany (ratio 0.89). HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent drops $508/mo ($6,096/yr) from $1,637 in Prescott Valley-Prescott to $1,129 in Albany.

Albany leads on 6 of 7 federal dimensions, a destination-heavy ledger. Albany sits #43 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (top third of the corpus). Prescott Valley-Prescott is #345/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Strongly Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.

BLS OEWS median salary moves $2,994 lower ($61,824 → $58,830). Labor-market size: 65,740 tracked jobs at origin vs 49,030 at destination.

State retirement friendliness favors the destination: Georgia scores 68 (C, #10/51) vs Arizona at 53 (D, #37/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.

Dimension
Prescott Valley-Prescott
Albany
Winner
Cost of Living
RPP 98.3
RPP 87.7
Albany
Rent (2BR)
$1,637/mo
$1,129/mo
Albany
Wages
$61,824
$58,830
Prescott Valley-Prescott
Crime
429 per 100K
300 per 100K
Albany
Schools
17:1
14.4:1
Albany
Childcare
$11,301/yr
$6,591/yr
Albany
Environment
5259 violations
2771 violations
Albany

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 · Arizona
53 D #37/51
Income tax
82
Property tax
80
Estate tax
100
Healthcare
22
Destination state · Georgia
68 C #10/51
Income tax
88
Property tax
74
Estate tax
100
Healthcare
48

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

Equivalent salary in Albany
-

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