What does it cost to hire a financial examiner in Buffalo?

Tier I to Tier VI, $6,240 to $54,340 per search, set by the seniority of the role and never by salary or location. A contingency firm billing 20 to 30% of this role's $77,100 median wage in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area (BLS OEWS, May 2025) would charge roughly $15,420 to $23,130 on the first year salary alone.

Is the talent for this role already in Buffalo?

This is a job zone 4 occupation, which usually calls for a bachelor's degree, and 30.3% of Buffalo adults hold one or higher (Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501). That is a workable pool, though the search will reach beyond the city line.

Hiring a financial examiner in Buffalo, NY

Employers in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area pay financial examiners a median of $77,100 a year, with the middle half of the market between $61,450 and $98,330 (BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 13-2061). Filling it through recruitlocalpros runs Tier I to Tier VI, $6,240 to $54,340 per search, set by the seniority of the role rather than by salary or location, and our vetted recruiting partner handles sourcing, screening and placement end to end.

Do Buffalo residents in business and financial operations work earn more than employers in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area pay?

Buffalo residents working in business and financial operations occupations earn a median of $62,106 (Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011), against $78,810 as the median of the 27 wages BLS publishes for that same occupation group in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area (BLS OEWS, May 2025), a difference of 21%, with the employers figure the higher of the two.

Both sides of that figure describe the whole business and financial operations group, not this one role. In the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area the group covers 27 occupations BLS publishes a wage for, from credit counselors at $57,240 to personal financial advisors at $103,650 (BLS OEWS, May 2025), with financial examiners at $77,100 inside it.

That comparison is between two different measures, not a pay gap. The two weight the same occupation group differently: the Census figure is the midpoint across the people who actually hold those jobs, so a group carrying a few very well paid occupations is pulled toward them, while the BLS figure is the midpoint across the 27 published occupation wages, which counts each of those occupations once whatever its headcount. Census also counts where people live and BLS counts where the jobs are, and the two cover different populations, Census the civilian employed population 16 and over, BLS wage-and-salary jobs only. Read the number against other cities, where the same definitional difference applies on both sides, rather than as a shortfall.

Published wages across this group in the metro run above what Buffalo residents in it earn, which usually means employers here draw this talent from beyond the city line rather than from inside it.

What does a financial examiner earn here?

Place of work

What employers pay

Annual wages paid to financial examiners by employers in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area. BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 13-2061.
25th percentile	$61,450
Median	$77,100
75th percentile	$98,330

Half of financial examiners in this area earn between $61,450 and $98,330 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). A band set below $61,450 competes for the bottom quarter of the market. Occupation detail for SOC 13-2061 at O*NET OnLine.

Place of residence

What Buffalo residents earn

$62,106

Median annual earnings of Buffalo residents working in business and financial operations occupations, 6,054 people (Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011). An occupation group rather than this one role, and where people live rather than where they work, so it is not the same measurement as the wages beside it.

What does the role actually involve?

Core tasks

Direct and participate in formal and informal meetings with bank directors, trustees, senior management, counsels, outside accountants, and consultants to gather information and discuss findings.
Recommend actions to ensure compliance with laws and regulations, or to protect solvency of institutions.
Prepare reports, exhibits, and other supporting schedules that detail an institution's safety and soundness, compliance with laws and regulations, and recommended solutions to questionable financial conditions.
Resolve problems concerning the overall financial integrity of banking institutions including loan investment portfolios, capital, earnings, and specific or large troubled accounts.
Investigate activities of institutions to enforce laws and regulations and to ensure legality of transactions and operations or financial solvency.

Task statements for SOC 13-2061, O*NET OnLine 29.1.

Tools and technologies in demand

Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Access, Microsoft Project, Microsoft SharePoint.

Flagged in demand or hot for SOC 13-2061 by O*NET OnLine 29.1. Useful as a screen, not as a checklist.

Is the talent actually in Buffalo?

This is a job zone four: considerable preparation needed occupation. Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not. O*NET OnLine, SOC 13-2061.

That matters here, because 30.3% of Buffalo adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. That is a workable pool, but the search will reach beyond the city line. Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501, residents of Buffalo aged 25 and over.

The average Buffalo commute runs 19.9 minutes, which is roughly how far your catchment reaches before candidates start saying no. 9.6% of Buffalo workers already work from home, so a fully onsite requirement here is competing against that. Census ACS 5-year 2023, place-level commuting characteristics for Buffalo.

How often do these jobs turn over?

In Erie County, accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping and payroll services employs 2,897 and turns over 12.3% a quarter, with 785 hires against 268 separations. Average earnings in that industry run $5,982 a month. Census LEHD Quarterly Workforce Indicators, 2024 Q1, NAICS 5412.

That figure covers every occupation in the industry, not this role alone, so read it as the local churn rate rather than as a number about financial examiners. It still tells you what you are hiring into: a high-churn market, where speed matters more than a perfect fit.

What does the search cost?

The fee is set by the seniority of the role, never by salary and never by location. Across all six tiers it runs $6,240 to $54,340 per search. A contingency firm hiring at this role's $77,100 median in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area (BLS OEWS, May 2025) would bill roughly $15,420 to $23,130 on the first year salary alone.

One owner runs the search from market map to signed offer. Searches typically fill in 23 to 35 days, which is a typical window rather than a promise, and the replacement guarantee runs 45 days at 50% off.

Questions employers ask about hiring a financial examiner in Buffalo

What does it cost to hire a financial examiner in Buffalo?: Tier I to Tier VI, $6,240 to $54,340 per search, set by the seniority of the role and never by salary or location. A contingency firm billing 20 to 30% of this role's $77,100 median wage in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area (BLS OEWS, May 2025) would charge roughly $15,420 to $23,130 on the first year salary alone.
What should an offer for a financial examiner in Buffalo look like?: Employers in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area pay financial examiners a median of $77,100, with the middle half of the market between $61,450 and $98,330 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). A band set below $61,450 competes for the bottom quarter of that market.
Do Buffalo residents in business and financial operations work earn more than employers in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area pay?: Buffalo residents working in business and financial operations occupations earn a median of $62,106 (Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011), against $78,810 as the median of the 27 wages BLS publishes for that same occupation group in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area (BLS OEWS, May 2025), a difference of 21%. Both figures cover the whole occupation group rather than this one role, and one counts where people live while the other counts where the jobs are, so the percentage is not a pay gap.
Is the talent for this role already in Buffalo?: This is a job zone 4 occupation, which usually calls for a bachelor's degree, and 30.3% of Buffalo adults hold one or higher (Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501). That is a workable pool, though the search will reach beyond the city line.

Price this search

Eight questions about the role. Your tier range appears on screen.

Hiring a financial examiner somewhere else?

Same role, different market. The wage band moves with the metro.

Other business and financial operations roles in Buffalo

Buffalo is the 2nd largest of 4 New York cities in this dataset.