Walla Walla → Johnstown
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Walla Walla to Johnstown is favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 98.5 to 85.9 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent falls by $515/mo.
- -$13,858
- BLS median salary lower in Johnstown
- 329 to 250
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 17.6:1 to 13.6:1
- 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
- + 13% lower cost of living
- + $515/mo cheaper rent (2BR)
- + Lower violent crime rate
- + Better student-teacher ratios
Cons of Moving
- - $14K lower median salary
- - More environmental violations
Purchasing power opens up: BEA RPP falls from 98.5 to 85.9, so each dollar covers more in Johnstown (ratio 0.87). HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent drops $515/mo ($6,180/yr) from $1,550 in Walla Walla to $1,035 in Johnstown.
The seven-dimension ledger splits (4 destination wins · 2 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Johnstown sits #35 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (top third of the corpus). Walla Walla is #267/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $13,858 lower ($71,001 → $57,143). Labor-market size: 19,680 tracked jobs at origin vs 42,320 at destination.
State retirement friendliness favors the destination: Pennsylvania scores 65 (C, #18/51) vs Washington at 38 (F, #51/51). 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
- 63
- Property tax
- 63
- Estate tax
- 50
- Healthcare
- 18
- Income tax
- 95
- Property tax
- 58
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 72
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 Walla Walla to see what you'd need to earn in Johnstown to maintain the same purchasing power.
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