{"schema_version": 1, "id": "college-station-bryan-tx-msa/finance/2026-10", "product": "Labor Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 142, "label": "College Station-Bryan, TX MSA", "slug": "college-station-bryan-tx-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "finance", "slug": "finance", "label": "Finance"}, "period": "2026-10", "public_after": "2026-10-01", "frozen_at": "2026-11-03T05:12:19.456859+00:00", "headline": "College Station's tight labor market is repricing finance roles.", "headline_summary": "Metro unemployment at 3.5% \u2014 among the lowest in Texas \u2014 is tracking a significant jump in Controller pay to $97,500 and an FP&A Manager median of $127,500.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Metro unemployment rate", "value": "3.5%", "context": "vs 4.4% Texas, 4.1% national (Sept. 2026)"}, {"label": "CFO turnover rate", "value": "18.3%", "context": "Highest since pandemic (Crist|Kolder, 2026)"}, {"label": "Controller advertised pay, metro", "value": "$97,500", "context": "Up significantly; vs $115,420 national"}, {"label": "Finance leaders citing talent shortage", "value": "85%", "context": "MAVI survey, Oct. 2026"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "Controller pay is catching up quickly.", "body": "Metro Controller advertised pay rose to a $97,500 median against a backdrop of 3.5% metro unemployment \u2014 among the tightest labor conditions in Texas. Budget cycles built on last year's Controller comp data likely understate current replacement cost."}, {"headline": "FP&A Manager demand reflects a planning capacity squeeze.", "body": "FP&A Manager pay climbed to $127,500 locally, tracking the national move to $130,000, while 61% of finance hiring managers report skilled candidates harder to find than a year ago. Treat this role's pay trajectory as a forward indicator for planning-team retention risk and a standalone signal worth tracking on its own."}, {"headline": "Tax Specialist pay is diverging from the national trend \u2014 a local anomaly worth confirming.", "body": "Metro Tax Specialist pay moved down moderately to $65,036 even as the national median climbed to $69,556 on significant growth. Before assuming local demand has softened, check whether this reflects a thinner pool of postings or an actual shift in employer need ahead of filing season."}, {"headline": "Sub-4% unemployment is now a structural constraint on finance hiring timelines.", "body": "3.5% metro unemployment, down from 4.3% in July, means open finance requisitions compete against a shrinking active candidate pool heading into year-end close and audit prep. Expect longer time-to-fill on Controller and Senior Accountant openings unless sourcing extends beyond the metro."}], "local_conditions": "College Station-Bryan's unemployment rate fell to 3.5% in September, among the lowest in Texas and roughly 60 basis points below the state average, as the metro added jobs at a pace that topped all Texas MSAs in August with 0.9% monthly growth. Tightness is compounding a national finance talent shortage \u2014 CFO turnover is projected at 18.3% for 2026, the highest since the pandemic \u2014 making this metro's already thin labor pool a harder environment to source finance talent against.", "implications": "Metro-level tightness arrives as Controller pay has moved up significantly locally to a $97,500 median, closing some of the gap with the $115,420 national figure, while FP&A Manager pay climbed to $127,500 \u2014 both signals that employers are repricing scarce finance roles ahead of the cycle. With 70% of finance leaders nationally increasing contract talent use in H2 2026, College Station organizations may face a tradeoff between FTE cost certainty and audit-period staffing flexibility. Consider reviewing whether current close-cycle staffing models can absorb a contractor-heavy mix without introducing new control gaps ahead of year-end audit work.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Expected", "body": "Year-end close and audit cycles will test whether the metro's tight labor market extends fill times on Senior Accountant and Controller roles. Watch whether open requisitions convert before December close deadlines."}, {"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "Statewide contract-talent adoption is rising (70% of finance leaders expanding its use), and metro-level tightness may accelerate that shift locally. Monitor whether contractor reliance during close periods creates documentation gaps ahead of 2026 audits."}, {"category": "Worth watching", "body": "Texas HB 149's AI governance requirements, effective this year, apply to AI used in budget forecasting and FP&A modeling. Finance teams running AI-assisted planning tools should confirm compliance review is scheduled before year-end."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "Texas A&M's academic calendar drives seasonal swings in metro labor force and local hiring competition. Watch whether spring enrollment and hiring cycles tighten the finance candidate pool further heading into Q1 budget season."}], "roles": [{"role": "Controller", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 48421.5, "metro_p50": 97500.0, "metro_p75": 110000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 115420.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Senior Accountant", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 74943.5, "metro_p50": 87694.0, "metro_p75": 89372.5, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 87731.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Financial Analyst", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 71895.0, "metro_p50": 92803.0, "metro_p75": 101712.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 94646.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Billing Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 39300.0, "metro_p50": 47616.8, "metro_p75": 55120.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 49000.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Tax Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 50962.0, "metro_p50": 65035.8, "metro_p75": 81061.75, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 69556.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Credit Analyst", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 56115.5, "metro_p50": 70684.0, "metro_p75": 72023.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 71397.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "FP&A Manager", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 105956.5, "metro_p50": 127500.0, "metro_p75": 135575.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 130000.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}], "industry_snapshot": [], "citations": [{"source_name": "Texas Workforce Commission", "source_url": null, "statement": "College Station-Bryan MSA unemployment rate of 3.5% in September 2026"}, {"source_name": "Texas Labor Market Review", "source_url": null, "statement": "Metro posted highest monthly job growth rate in Texas at 0.9% in August"}, {"source_name": "Crist|Kolder Associates", "source_url": null, "statement": "CFO turnover projected at 18.3% in 2026, highest since the pandemic"}, {"source_name": "Robert Half / AFP FP&A Forum", "source_url": null, "statement": "70% of finance and accounting leaders increasing contract talent use in H2 2026"}, {"source_name": "Robert Half", "source_url": null, "statement": "61% of finance hiring managers report skilled candidates harder to find than a year ago"}, {"source_name": "Texas Legislature", "source_url": null, "statement": "Texas HB 149 AI governance law applies to AI systems used in business operations"}], "methodology": "Advertised pay from active employer job postings, not survey data. WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings: distribution analysis shows roughly the lowest 10% of raw values are erroneous entries, so the reported median is the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay.", "edition_label": "November 2026", "files": {"html": "college-station-bryan-tx-msa/finance/2026-10.html", "pdf": "college-station-bryan-tx-msa/finance/2026-10.pdf"}, "published_at": "2026-11-03T08:20:14.330682+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/college-station-bryan-tx-msa/finance/2026-10.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/college-station-bryan-tx-msa/finance/2026-10.pdf"}