Title Examiners, Abstractors, and Searchers Salary
In Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX, title examiners, abstractors, and searchers earn $63,470 at the median, or about $30.51 an hour. The range runs from $46K at the entry level to $100K for experienced workers. Adjusted for local prices (RPP 98.63), that's roughly $64,352 in purchasing power. A 2-bedroom apartment runs $1,573/month, about 35.7% of take-home, which is tight.
So what does $63K get you in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
Groceries, utilities, transportation, and healthcare scaled from national averages by Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands’s Regional Price Parity (98.63). 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 title examiners, abstractors, and searchers
Sponsored links, AffordMap may earn a commission at no cost to you. Learn more
What this looks like in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands
Title examiners, abstractors, and searchers pay in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands tracks closely to the national median, $63K locally vs. $59K nationwide, a 8% difference. The catch: housing math doesn't keep up. A 2-bedroom at the HUD median rents for $1,573/month, which is 35.6% of the median worker's take-home, past the 30% guideline most planners use. Cost of living (RPP 98.63) is near the national average, so spending patterns here track the typical American budget fairly closely. Use the affordability calculator above to model your specific situation.
Compared to nearby metros
Median pay for title examiners, abstractors, and searchers in metros near Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, adjusted for local cost of living.
| Metro | Median pay | COL-adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington | $62K | $60K |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos | $60K | $62K |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels | $56K | $59K |
| College Station-Bryan | $34K | $38K |
COL-adjusted = median salary ÷ (BEA Regional Price Parity ÷ 100). Expresses purchasing power in national-average dollars.
Compensation breakdown
Annual earnings by percentile, Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX
Entry-level title examiners, abstractors, and searchers (10th percentile) start around $46K. Mid-career wages sit at $63K. Top earners bring in $100K or more, a $54K spread from bottom to top.
Title Examiners, Abstractors, and Searchers pay across states
Median income ranked highest to lowest, compared to the national figure
View Title Examiners, Abstractors, and Searchers salary in all states
| State | Median salary | vs. national | Employment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado | $78K | +32% | 1,400 |
| West Virginia | $77K | +32% | 350 |
| Oregon | $77K | +31% | 640 |
| Alaska | $76K | +30% | 100 |
| Nevada | $71K | +21% | 620 |
| Massachusetts | $69K | +18% | N/A |
| California | $67K | +15% | N/A |
| Washington | $66K | +13% | 930 |
| Delaware | $65K | +11% | 140 |
| Rhode Island | $63K | +8% | 120 |
| Connecticut | $63K | +7% | 90 |
| Utah | $62K | +6% | 1,160 |
| New Hampshire | $62K | +6% | N/A |
| New Jersey | $62K | +6% | 550 |
| Idaho | $62K | +5% | 640 |
| New York | $61K | +5% | 2,130 |
| Alabama | $61K | +5% | N/A |
| Texas | $60K | +3% | 6,770 |
| North Dakota | $60K | +2% | 140 |
| South Dakota | $59K | +1% | 180 |
| Florida | $58K | -0% | 4,800 |
| Minnesota | $58K | -1% | 560 |
| New Mexico | $58K | -1% | 480 |
| Ohio | $57K | -3% | 1,860 |
| Maryland | $55K | -5% | 420 |
| Kansas | $55K | -7% | 710 |
| Virginia | $54K | -8% | 1,340 |
| Kentucky | $53K | -10% | 270 |
| Pennsylvania | $52K | -11% | 2,220 |
| North Carolina | $51K | -14% | 400 |
| Oklahoma | $50K | -14% | 1,500 |
| Tennessee | $50K | -14% | 1,160 |
| Illinois | $50K | -15% | 1,290 |
| Arizona | $50K | -15% | 1,210 |
| Michigan | $50K | -16% | N/A |
| Maine | $49K | -17% | 70 |
| Nebraska | $49K | -17% | 360 |
| Wyoming | $49K | -17% | 200 |
| Georgia | $48K | -18% | 660 |
| Missouri | $48K | -18% | 1,470 |
| Wisconsin | $48K | -18% | 700 |
| Arkansas | $48K | -19% | 650 |
| Mississippi | $47K | -20% | 150 |
| South Carolina | $47K | -20% | N/A |
| Iowa | $46K | -21% | 400 |
| Indiana | $46K | -21% | N/A |
| Louisiana | $38K | -34% | 390 |
Showing 1–10 of 47 states with published data
BLS does not publish data for every state when sample sizes are too small
Track title examiners, abstractors, and searchers salary changes
BLS updates this data quarterly. We'll email you when Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands numbers change.
Related careers in Legal
Frequently asked questions
Can a title examiners, abstractors, and searcher afford a 2BR apartment alone in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $63K, rent takes 35.6% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,573/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,300/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.
What’s the entry-level salary for title examiners, abstractors, and searchers in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
The 10th-percentile wage — what new title examiners, abstractors, and searchers typically earn — is $46K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,745/month. At HUD’s $1,573/month FMR, rent would take 57% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.
Is title examiners, abstractors, and searcher a high-paying job in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
Pay here is roughly in line with the national average — $63K locally vs. $59K nationally, a 8% difference.
How does Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands compare to the national average for title examiners, abstractors, and searchers?
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands pays $63K median vs. the U.S. average of $59K — that’s +8%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 98.63), the purchasing-power equivalent is $64K — still ahead of the national median.
How much do title examiners, abstractors, and searchers make in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX?
The median is $63,470 a year, that works out to about $31 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $45,750, and experienced title examiners, abstractors, and searchers can clear $100,090. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.
Is $63K enough to live in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,420/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,573/month, which eats 35.6% 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 title examiners, abstractors, and searchers salary go in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands has a Regional Price Parity of 98.63 (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 title examiners, abstractors, and searchers salary is worth about $64,352 in national-average purchasing power.
Where do title examiners, abstractors, and searchers 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.