Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants Salary
Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants in Lansing-East Lansing, MI make a median of $56,510 a year, or about $27.17 an hour. The range runs from $38K at the entry level to $73K for experienced workers. Cost of living is below average (RPP 94.99), which stretches that salary to about $59,490 in buying power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,268/month, about 34.1% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $57K get you in Lansing-East Lansing?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Lansing-East Lansing’s Regional Price Parity (94.99). Rent from HUD Fair Market Rents. Taxes estimated for single filer, standard deduction. * Healthcare is the employee-paid share only (premiums + out-of-pocket). Actual costs vary by coverage type: employer-sponsored, ACA marketplace, or uninsured.
About legal secretaries and administrative assistants
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What this looks like in Lansing-East Lansing
Legal secretaries and administrative assistants pay in Lansing-East Lansing tracks closely to the national median, $57K locally vs. $56K nationwide, a 2% difference. Rent runs $1,268/month for a 2-bedroom (HUD FMR), taking 33.8% of the median take-home. That's within the 30% rule, though not by much. Regional Price Parity sits at 94.99 (national = 100), meaning everyday costs run about 5% cheaper here. Your dollar stretches further than the headline salary suggests. Pay and costs are both near average, leaving limited margin for savings at the median wage.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for legal secretaries and administrative assistants in metros near Lansing-East Lansing, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Traverse City | $49K | $53K |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn | $64K | $64K |
| Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood | $49K | $51K |
| Ann Arbor | $62K | $61K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Lansing-East Lansing, MI
Entry-level legal secretaries and administrative assistants (10th percentile) start around $38K. Mid-career wages sit at $57K. Top earners bring in $73K or more, a $36K spread from bottom to top.
Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $99K | +79% | 1,940 |
| New York | $72K | +30% | 9,800 |
| Connecticut | $66K | +19% | 1,090 |
| Delaware | $66K | +19% | 980 |
| Minnesota | $63K | +14% | 2,410 |
| New Jersey | $63K | +14% | 4,160 |
| Rhode Island | $63K | +13% | 390 |
| California | $63K | +13% | 27,470 |
| Massachusetts | $62K | +12% | 4,020 |
| Maryland | $61K | +11% | 1,670 |
| Alaska | $61K | +10% | 660 |
| Oregon | $60K | +7% | 1,590 |
| Colorado | $59K | +7% | 2,030 |
| Washington | $58K | +5% | 3,950 |
| New Mexico | $58K | +4% | 1,400 |
| Michigan | $57K | +2% | 3,580 |
| Nevada | $56K | +2% | 1,430 |
| Wisconsin | $55K | -0% | 1,210 |
| Virginia | $55K | -0% | 2,380 |
| Arizona | $55K | -1% | 2,600 |
| North Dakota | $54K | -4% | 360 |
| Utah | $53K | -5% | 940 |
| South Carolina | $53K | -5% | 2,280 |
| Illinois | $53K | -5% | 8,030 |
| New Hampshire | $52K | -7% | 300 |
| Pennsylvania | $51K | -7% | 6,230 |
| Ohio | $51K | -8% | 4,360 |
| Hawaii | $49K | -11% | 680 |
| Vermont | $49K | -12% | N/A |
| Florida | $49K | -13% | 10,920 |
| Georgia | $48K | -13% | 3,260 |
| Louisiana | $48K | -14% | 2,460 |
| Maine | $48K | -14% | 860 |
| South Dakota | $48K | -14% | 560 |
| Indiana | $48K | -14% | 2,670 |
| Wyoming | $47K | -15% | 280 |
| West Virginia | $47K | -15% | 1,200 |
| Iowa | $47K | -16% | 1,120 |
| Oklahoma | $46K | -17% | 1,290 |
| Alabama | $46K | -17% | 1,840 |
| Texas | $46K | -17% | 13,380 |
| Nebraska | $46K | -18% | 1,310 |
| Tennessee | $45K | -18% | 2,980 |
| Mississippi | $45K | -19% | 820 |
| North Carolina | $44K | -21% | 3,780 |
| Idaho | $42K | -25% | 420 |
| Arkansas | $41K | -25% | 610 |
| Kentucky | $39K | -29% | 2,810 |
| Missouri | $39K | -31% | 3,310 |
| Kansas | $37K | -34% | 1,600 |
Showing 1–10 of 50 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track legal secretaries and administrative assistants salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Lansing-East Lansing numbers change.
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Frequently asked questions
Can a legal secretaries and administrative assistant afford a 2BR apartment alone in Lansing-East Lansing?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $57K, rent takes 33.8% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,268/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,100/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for legal secretaries and administrative assistants in Lansing-East Lansing?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new legal secretaries and administrative assistants typically earn — is $38K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,250/month. At HUD’s $1,268/month FMR, rent would take 56% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is legal secretaries and administrative assistant a high-paying job in Lansing-East Lansing?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $57K locally vs. $56K nationally, a 2% difference.
How does Lansing-East Lansing compare to the national average for legal secretaries and administrative assistants?
Lansing-East Lansing pays $57K median vs. the U.S. average of $56K — that’s +2%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 94.99), the purchasing-power equivalent is $59K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do legal secretaries and administrative assistants make in Lansing-East Lansing, MI?
The median is $56,510 a year, that works out to about $27 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $37,500, and experienced legal secretaries and administrative assistants can clear $73,080. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $57K enough to live in Lansing-East Lansing?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $3,754/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,268/month, which eats 33.8% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.
How far does a legal secretaries and administrative assistants salary go in Lansing-East Lansing?
Lansing-East Lansing has a Regional Price Parity of 94.99 (100 is the national average). That's below average, your money stretches further here than the raw salary number suggests. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median legal secretaries and administrative assistants salary is worth about $59,490 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do legal secretaries and administrative assistants get paid the most?
The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.