St. Joseph → Portland-South Portland
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from St. Joseph to Portland-South Portland is favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 86.4 to 101.9 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $756/mo.
- +$13,570
- BLS median salary higher in Portland-South Portland
- 463 to 102
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 12.8:1 to 11.1:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
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
- + $14K higher median salary
- + Lower violent crime rate
- + Better student-teacher ratios
- + Fewer environmental violations
Cons of Moving
- - 15% higher cost of living
- - $756/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP rises from 86.4 to 101.9, so the same paycheck buys less in Portland-South Portland (ratio 1.18). HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent rises $756/mo ($9,072/yr) from $1,077 in St. Joseph to $1,833 in Portland-South Portland.
The seven-dimension ledger splits (4 destination wins · 2 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Portland-South Portland sits #94 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (top third of the corpus). St. Joseph is #120/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $13,570 higher ($61,551 → $75,121). Labor-market size: 49,300 tracked jobs at origin vs 273,870 at destination.
State retirement friendliness is near-even: Missouri 68 (C, #12/51) vs Maine 61 (C, #27/51). 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
- 82
- Property tax
- 68
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 80
- Income tax
- 68
- Property tax
- 60
- Estate tax
- 50
- Healthcare
- 100
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 St. Joseph to see what you'd need to earn in Portland-South Portland to maintain the same purchasing power.
Portland-South Portland 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