Wilmington Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos

Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources

Should you move?

Moving from Wilmington to Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos is favorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 96.4 to 98.1 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent rises by $426/mo.

+$7,493
BLS median salary higher in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos
365 to 395
violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
15.8:1 to 14.7:1
NCES student-teacher ratio
$1,921
DOL infant care lower / yr in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos

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
Favorable
Cost Index: 96.4 → 98.1
Rent Delta: +$426/mo

Pros of Moving

  • + $7K higher median salary
  • + Better student-teacher ratios
  • + More affordable childcare

Cons of Moving

  • - $426/mo more expensive rent (2BR)
  • - More environmental violations

Purchasing power stays near-even: BEA RPP moves only from 96.4 to 98.1 (ratio 1.02), inside a ±5% band. HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent rises $426/mo ($5,112/yr) from $1,426 in Wilmington to $1,852 in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos.

The seven-dimension ledger splits (3 destination wins · 4 origin wins); priorities decide this move. Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos sits #321 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Wilmington is #201/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Favorable. Override it with the dimension table below.

BLS OEWS median salary moves $7,493 higher ($64,296 → $71,789). Labor-market size: 183,460 tracked jobs at origin vs 1,265,270 at destination.

State retirement friendliness is near-even: North Carolina 68 (C, #13/51) vs Texas 65 (C, #19/51). Full state tax and healthcare sub-scores sit in the retirement desk below.

Dimension
Wilmington
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos
Winner
Cost of Living
RPP 96.4
RPP 98.1
Wilmington
Rent (2BR)
$1,426/mo
$1,852/mo
Wilmington
Wages
$64,296
$71,789
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos
Crime
365 per 100K
395 per 100K
Wilmington
Schools
15.8:1
14.7:1
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos
Childcare
$9,487/yr
$7,566/yr
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos
Environment
3120 violations
35693 violations
Wilmington

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 · North Carolina
68 C #13/51
Income tax
68
Property tax
66
Estate tax
100
Healthcare
30
Destination state · Texas
65 C #19/51
Income tax
100
Property tax
55
Estate tax
100
Healthcare
44

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 Wilmington to see what you'd need to earn in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos to maintain the same purchasing power.

Equivalent salary in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos
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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