Personal Financial Advisors Salary
The median pay for a personal financial advisors in Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA is $122,170/year ($58.74/hour), per BLS data. The range runs from $57K at the entry level to $272K for experienced workers. Prices run high here (RPP 109.9), so that salary is closer to $111,165 in real purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $4,214/month, about 58.4% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $122K get you in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Santa Cruz-Watsonville’s Regional Price Parity (109.9). 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 personal financial advisors
Sponsored links, AffordMap may earn a commission at no cost to you. Learn more
What this looks like in Santa Cruz-Watsonville
Santa Cruz-Watsonville sits well above the national pay line for personal financial advisors, local pay runs about 16% higher than the U.S. median of $105K. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $4,214/month, which is 58.3% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost-of-living overall is 10% above the national average (BEA RPP 109.9), so groceries and services cost more too. The pay premium is real, but so are the offsets.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for personal financial advisors in metros near Santa Cruz-Watsonville, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim | $124K | $110K |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont | $161K | $139K |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad | $130K | $116K |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara | $137K | $124K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA
Entry-level personal financial advisors (10th percentile) start around $57K. Mid-career wages sit at $122K. Top earners bring in $272K or more, a $215K spread from bottom to top.
Personal Financial Advisors pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Personal Financial Advisors salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York | $166K | +58% | 21,550 |
| New Jersey | $159K | +51% | 9,300 |
| California | $130K | +24% | 32,200 |
| Connecticut | $130K | +23% | N/A |
| South Dakota | $129K | +23% | 620 |
| Massachusetts | $126K | +20% | N/A |
| Delaware | $125K | +19% | N/A |
| Oregon | $123K | +17% | 3,070 |
| Illinois | $120K | +14% | 9,760 |
| Wisconsin | $119K | +14% | 5,200 |
| Washington | $114K | +9% | 5,790 |
| Vermont | $110K | +5% | 520 |
| Pennsylvania | $105K | +0% | 12,200 |
| District of Columbia | $105K | -0% | 480 |
| Minnesota | $103K | -2% | 5,280 |
| Virginia | $103K | -2% | 6,340 |
| Kansas | $103K | -2% | 4,150 |
| Georgia | $101K | -3% | 6,830 |
| Florida | $101K | -4% | 21,490 |
| Missouri | $100K | -5% | 4,480 |
| Maryland | $100K | -5% | 5,260 |
| Texas | $99K | -6% | 18,200 |
| Montana | $97K | -7% | N/A |
| Arizona | $97K | -8% | 6,430 |
| North Carolina | $97K | -8% | 12,340 |
| New Hampshire | $97K | -8% | 1,850 |
| South Carolina | $96K | -8% | 2,400 |
| Idaho | $94K | -10% | 760 |
| New Mexico | $94K | -10% | 610 |
| Nebraska | $93K | -11% | 2,210 |
| Nevada | $93K | -12% | 1,730 |
| Iowa | $92K | -12% | 1,920 |
| Ohio | $91K | -13% | 7,680 |
| Colorado | $89K | -15% | 6,730 |
| Indiana | $88K | -17% | 5,400 |
| Tennessee | $84K | -20% | 3,970 |
| Rhode Island | $80K | -24% | 1,130 |
| West Virginia | $80K | -24% | 670 |
| Arkansas | $79K | -24% | 1,320 |
| Alaska | $79K | -25% | N/A |
| Alabama | $78K | -26% | 2,540 |
| Michigan | $78K | -26% | 6,570 |
| Wyoming | $77K | -26% | 310 |
| Utah | $77K | -26% | 2,520 |
| North Dakota | $77K | -27% | 540 |
| Hawaii | $76K | -28% | 550 |
| Oklahoma | $69K | -35% | 1,140 |
| Kentucky | $67K | -36% | 2,040 |
| Mississippi | $63K | -40% | 790 |
Showing 1–10 of 49 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track personal financial advisors salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Santa Cruz-Watsonville numbers change.
Related careers in Business & Finance
Frequently asked questions
Can a personal financial advisor afford a 2BR apartment alone in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $122K, rent takes 58.3% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $4,214/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $2,200/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for personal financial advisors in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new personal financial advisors typically earn — is $57K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $3,419/month. At HUD’s $4,214/month FMR, rent would take 123% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is personal financial advisor a high-paying job in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
Local pay is 16% above the national median — $122K here vs. $105K nationally. Keep in mind cost of living here is 10% above the national average, which offsets some of that premium.
How does Santa Cruz-Watsonville compare to the national average for personal financial advisors?
Santa Cruz-Watsonville pays $122K median vs. the U.S. average of $105K — that’s +16%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 109.9), the purchasing-power equivalent is $111K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do personal financial advisors make in Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA?
The median is $122,170 a year, that works out to about $59 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $56,990, and experienced personal financial advisors can clear $271,790. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $122K enough to live in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $7,230/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $4,214/month, which eats 58.3% 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 personal financial advisors salary go in Santa Cruz-Watsonville?
Santa Cruz-Watsonville has a Regional Price Parity of 109.9 (100 is the national average). Prices are above average here, so your dollar buys less than the same salary would in a cheaper metro. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median personal financial advisors salary is worth about $111,165 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do personal financial advisors 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.