I have recently seen so many out of state license plates and have spoken to folks that either have, or are, thinking of relocating to Washington.  In Snohomish County a large part of them, I assume, are being transferred here by Boeing but regardless thinking of relocation can be a huge decision and take some serious thought. It’s a good idea to weigh the pros and cons of such a move and how it would impact you. A good place to start would be with salary comparisons and the income level you would need to be comfortable. Here are some great sites with user-friendly calculators that can help you and even if you are not planning to move to another state or county there is still some very fun and interesting tools to check out.

1. American Institute for Economic Research– See how your salary last year measures up today.  
2.  Bankrate.com– Calculate relocation equivalents and expenses in dozens of categories, from home price and rent to goods and services.
3. CityRating.com– Calculates the cost of living in two different states based on your current income.
4. Pay Scale– Looks at cost of living calculations between U.S. cities with graphs that chart increases or reductions in specific services.
5. Salary.com– Explore cost-of-living differences based on old and new home and work locations with brief analysis about the move.

Thanks to the Everett Herald for some very useful information.

www.snohomishcountyhomes4u.com