12 Best States for Adjusted Advisor Pay

With the U.S. economy slowly mending itself, ThinkAdvisor thought it would be interesting to look at which states offer the best chance for financial advisors to get the most from their salaries.

To determine the 12 Best States for Adjusted Advisor Pay, we looked at a couple of websites. One, O*Net OnLine, compiles salary data for various occupations. The second, Top 50 States, has data on cost of living by state. The cost of living for the U.S. is rated at 100%, with any state ranking below that percentage mark meaning it’s cheaper to live there than most other states. We cross-referenced the data to figure out the best states as far as salary is concerned. (For the record, the median U.S. salary for financial advisors is $75,300.)

That data was used to figure out how much bang for every compensation buck an advisor received in each state. The pay, adjusted for cost of living, left us with what we call “Bang for the Buck”: the adjusted amount over the national median an advisor earns.

Information from livability.com offered a look at the best place to live in each state (except for Indiana and Nebraska, which did not have any entries in Livability’s Top 100. For those states, we looked at areavibes.com’s ratings.)

For a look at which metro areas pay the best check out our June slideshow, which relied on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

12. Massachusetts

Adjusted Pay Above National Median: $2,537

State’s Median Salary: $93,800

Cost of Living: 121.2%

Biggest City: Boston

Cambridge, with Harvard and MIT, hosts a range of health care, biotech and pharmaceutical operations. Residents also can avail themselves of many cultural amenities.

11. Nebraska

Adjusted Pay Above National Median: $2,559

State’s Median Salary: $69,500

Cost of Living: 88.9%

Lincoln scored high on areavibes.com in amenities, cost of living and housing, as well as education. The harsh winters were a negative factor.

10. Iowa

Adjusted Pay Above National Median: $3,852

State’s Median Salary: $72,600

Cost of Living: 91.3%

Biggest City: Des Moines

Cedar Rapids was commended for its nationally recognized art museum and its pair of four-year colleges.

9. Georgia

Adjusted Pay Above National Median: $4,624

State’s Median Salary: $73,900

Cost of Living: 92%

Biggest City: Atlanta

Columbus boasts Fort Benning and its 41,000 soldiers, the Coca-Cola Space Science Center, as well as top-notch heath care and universities.

8. Indiana

Adjusted Pay Above National Median: $6,830

State’s Median Salary: $74,600

Cost of Living: 90%

Biggest City: Indianapolis

Fort Wayne scored best in state in areavibes.com rankings, scoring an A+ in amenities and cost of living.

7. North Carolina

Adjusted Pay Above National Median: $8,714

State’s Median Salary: $80,700

Cost of Living: 95.6%