{"schema_version": 1, "id": "tyler-tx-msa/finance/2026-10", "product": "Labor Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 337, "label": "Tyler, TX MSA", "slug": "tyler-tx-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "finance", "slug": "finance", "label": "Finance"}, "period": "2026-10", "public_after": "2026-10-01", "frozen_at": "2026-11-03T06:01:23.491723+00:00", "headline": "Tyler finance pay splits sharply by role as talent tightens.", "headline_summary": "Controller pay in Tyler climbed to a $111,469 metro median while Billing Specialist pay fell to $36,983, even as metro unemployment eased to 4.0% and statewide labor force growth slowed to under 1%.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Tyler MSA unemployment rate", "value": "4.0%", "context": "Down from 4.2% in August 2026"}, {"label": "Tyler labor force change", "value": "-1,000", "context": "Monthly decline, Sept 2026, despite +900 annual"}, {"label": "CFO turnover rate, national", "value": "18.3%", "context": "Highest since pandemic (Crist|Kolder)"}, {"label": "TX service-sector wage/benefit index", "value": "20.5", "context": "Highest since January 2023 (Dallas Fed)"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "Controller and Financial Analyst pay are outpacing the metro norm.", "body": "Advertised Controller pay in Tyler rose to a metro median of $111,469 and Financial Analyst pay climbed to $85,601, both flagged as significant local increases even as several other finance roles held flat. This divergence suggests employers are concentrating retention and recruitment spend on roles closest to close-cycle and forecasting risk."}, {"headline": "Billing Specialist pay decline breaks from national pattern.", "body": "Metro median Billing Specialist pay fell significantly to $36,983 against a stable national median of $49,000, an outlier wide enough to warrant a local-specific review on its own terms. Organizations recruiting for transactional finance roles may find more leverage in this local market than national benchmarks would suggest."}, {"headline": "Statewide talent tightening is reaching Tyler's finance bench.", "body": "Texas labor force growth is constrained by lower immigration and the Dallas Fed has downgraded 2026 state employment growth to under 1%, while Tyler's own labor force shrank month over month in September. Smaller metros like Tyler may feel talent scarcity for experienced finance professionals before unemployment data reflects it."}, {"headline": "Contract staffing shift raises audit-readiness questions locally.", "body": "Nationally, 70% of finance and accounting leaders are increasing contract talent use in H2 2026, a trend that, layered onto Tyler's tightening labor force, may push local finance leaders toward similar staffing models. Expanding contractor use during close and audit periods introduces documentation and control considerations that warrant review before year-end audit planning."}], "local_conditions": "Tyler MSA unemployment eased to 4.0% in September from 4.2% in August, even as the labor force contracted by 1,000 and annual job growth slowed to 0.7%, a pattern consistent with tightening labor supply. Statewide, Dallas Fed survey data show service-sector wage and benefit pressure at its highest reading since January 2023, a signal that is likely feeding into Tyler's finance and accounting pay movements given the metro's economic ties to the broader East Texas region.", "implications": "Advertised pay for Controller and Financial Analyst roles in Tyler is rising sharply against a national backdrop where CFO turnover is projected at 18.3% for 2026 and 85% of CFOs report finance talent shortages, suggesting Tyler employers are competing for a thinner bench of experienced finance talent than headline unemployment figures imply. Falling Billing Specialist pay alongside rising Tax Specialist and Credit Analyst advertised rates points to bifurcation by skill level that complicates flat-rate headcount cost models for FY2027 planning. Consider reviewing role-level pay trajectories separately by seniority tier and applying distinct wage inflation assumptions for each tier within the finance function.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Early indicator", "body": "Watch whether Tyler's labor force decline in September (down 1,000) continues into October data releases in November. A sustained contraction would tighten the local finance candidate pool further and could accelerate the Controller and Financial Analyst pay gains already evident."}, {"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "CFO turnover nationally is running at 18.3%, the highest since the pandemic, with external hiring up to 37.5%. Tyler finance leaders should monitor whether this translates into local executive-level vacancies during Q4 close season, when backfill timing is least flexible."}, {"category": "Policy watch", "body": "Texas HB 149, the Responsible AI Governance Act, carries civil penalties up to $200,000 per violation for AI systems used in the state, including FP&A and forecasting tools. Finance teams using AI-assisted budget models should confirm compliance review is underway ahead of broader enforcement guidance."}, {"category": "Worth watching", "body": "Dallas Fed service-sector wage and benefit pressure hit its highest level since January 2023 in October. If this persists into Q1 2027 budget cycles, Tyler employers may need to revisit compensation assumptions built into next year's headcount cost plans."}], "roles": [{"role": "Controller", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 65957.0, "metro_p50": 111468.6, "metro_p75": 115000.0, "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": 75000.0, "metro_p50": 82456.4, "metro_p75": 88500.0, "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": 68724.0, "metro_p50": 85601.0, "metro_p75": 86621.5, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 94646.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Billing Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 31856.0, "metro_p50": 36983.0, "metro_p75": 39000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 49000.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Tax Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 29839.0, "metro_p50": 42526.0, "metro_p75": 59612.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 69556.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "significant"}, {"role": "Credit Analyst", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 57040.5, "metro_p50": 70862.0, "metro_p75": 80000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 71397.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "FP&A Manager", "data_scope": "state_rollup", "metro_p25": 106400.0, "metro_p50": 125340.0, "metro_p75": 137139.25, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 130000.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}], "industry_snapshot": [], "citations": [{"source_name": "Texas Workforce Commission", "source_url": null, "statement": "Tyler MSA unemployment rate at 4.0% in September, down from 4.2%"}, {"source_name": "Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas", "source_url": null, "statement": "TX service-sector wages/benefits index at 20.5, highest since Jan 2023"}, {"source_name": "Crist|Kolder Associates", "source_url": null, "statement": "CFO turnover projected at 18.3% in 2026, highest since pandemic"}, {"source_name": "MAVI", "source_url": null, "statement": "85% of CFOs report finance talent shortages affecting operations"}, {"source_name": "Texas Legislature", "source_url": null, "statement": "Texas HB 149 AI Governance Act penalties up to $200,000 per violation"}, {"source_name": "Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas", "source_url": null, "statement": "Dallas Fed downgraded 2026 Texas employment growth to under 1%"}], "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": "tyler-tx-msa/finance/2026-10.html", "pdf": "tyler-tx-msa/finance/2026-10.pdf"}, "published_at": "2026-11-03T08:31:37.538568+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/tyler-tx-msa/finance/2026-10.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/tyler-tx-msa/finance/2026-10.pdf"}