Winchester → Albany
Relocation analysis based on 7 federal data sources
Should you move?
Moving from Winchester to Albany is unfavorable: BEA regional price parity goes from 96.5 to 102.1 (US = 100), and HUD 2-bedroom rent falls by $73/mo.
- +$3,038
- BLS median salary higher in Albany
- 223 to 335
- violent crimes per 100K (FBI UCR, state-level)
- 13.9:1 to 17.6:1
- NCES student-teacher ratio
- $2,232
- DOL infant care higher / 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.
Pros of Moving
- + $73/mo cheaper rent (2BR)
- + $3K higher median salary
Cons of Moving
- - 6% higher cost of living
- - Higher violent crime rate
- - Higher student-teacher ratios
- - More expensive childcare
- - More environmental violations
Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP rises from 96.5 to 102.1, so the same paycheck buys less in Albany (ratio 1.06). HUD 2BR Fair Market Rent drops $73/mo ($876/yr) from $1,573 in Winchester to $1,500 in Albany.
Winchester still leads on 5 of 7 federal dimensions, the origin keeps the edge. Albany sits #281 of 387 metros on PlainRelocate livability (bottom third of the corpus). Winchester is #239/387 on the same ranking. Composite verdict: Unfavorable. Override it with the dimension table below.
BLS OEWS median salary moves $3,038 higher ($64,897 → $67,935). Labor-market size: 60,660 tracked jobs at origin vs 42,220 at destination.
State retirement friendliness favors staying put: Virginia scores 64 (C, #20/51) vs Oregon at 41 (F, #49/51). 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
- 78
- Property tax
- 71
- Estate tax
- 100
- Healthcare
- 62
- Income tax
- 62
- Property tax
- 64
- Estate tax
- 50
- Healthcare
- 14
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 Winchester to see what you'd need to earn in Albany 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