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My wife and I are considering a move to Charlotte. We love the weather, the close access to pro sporting events, the downtown nightlife, the diversity, and of course the cost of living. We've visited several times and scoped out the many great neighborhoods. We've researched the schools on greatschools.com (we have a 2 yr old son). The only issue is...jobs.
Now, my wife and I are in our late 20's. My wife is a registered nurse with her BSN and I am a buyer/purchaser for a manufacturing company and I'm about 1 year away from completing my MBA. Currently we live in CT and the cost of living is outrageous and rising. Although we live somewhat comfortable now, we have yet to buy a home because... 1)We're not sure if we want to be stuck here. 2)The houses we can afford in the suburban neighborhoods with the good schools just aren't what we're looking for (too old, fixer uppers). Not to mention we want to have a little money left over to save for our son's college and our retirement!
Now back to the jobs. I often use the job search engine Indeed.com and it seems that there are many jobs in both of our fields. But when I read through the posts on this forum I'm constantly hearing about the high unemployment rate. But on other hand I read time and time again about many transplants making their way down there successfully. I want to know the real deal. Are there less blue collar jobs, but plenty of white collar jobs or is it the other way around? Will a Masters degree take me further in the south than up north? Also to all the transplants coming from the north, in recent years, how did you do it? Was it a gamble or were you able to line up a job relatively easy (with or w/o a degree) before packing your bags?
I have many more questions, but I will start here.
Thanks in advance for your responses. Any input we recieve will be greatly appreciated.
Last edited by Tolliver12; 11-16-2010 at 06:10 AM..
Reason: Added more questions
When I was looking to leave CT back in the day, I didn't want to just quit a good job and take that much of a risk, so personally I'd never do it. Unfortunately, as it turned out, NC didn't present itself as an option. I ended up leaving CT and going elsewhere. It took a while, but finally I was able to find a job here and move. But bear in mind that the whole process from when I first started looking (and I was considering FL, GA, TN, and SC as well) to actually moving to NC took about seven years.
Finding a job should be your first priority. Having a Master will greatly help, but in these times of high unemployment, even with a PhD you are in for the long haul. My advice, before you pack up the bags, find a job, at least one of you.
Superk, if you don't mind me asking, where about in CT?...just curious.
We've been looking for about a year and we figure that the entire process could take at least 3 years, considering the time to finish my Masters and then finding jobs.
I often use the job search engine Indeed.com and it seems that there are many jobs in both of our fields. But when I read through the posts on this forum I'm constantly hearing about the high unemployment rate.
There are plenty of jobs if you are in the right field. I get cold calls at least once a week from recruiters trying to lure me away from my employer. My company has been looking for a Government auditor for months now. The jobs are here as long as you are educated and in a field that has high demand.
My advice is not to buy when you first move here. Rent your first year or three and save your money so you can get the house you really like. You won't regret it. Don't over extend yourselves.
I came down with a job already. My wife is a stay at home mom.
I moved here 3 weeks before the family and rented my first year. I ended up buying in Fort Mill and am very happy with my life.
My dad working at Pratt & Whitney for most of his career. If I remember right, we started out in East Hartford, then moved to Ellington because homes there were new and affordable. The daily commute from there to P&WA must've been brutal. Anyway, they downsized and moved to Newington just as I was entering high school. Stayed there for a while, and then I last lived in Middletown.
Pratt & Whitney, huh? I guess CT is as small as it seems. My grandmother worked at Pratt & Whitney for years. She has been retired for about 10-15 years now and she too headed south with her retirement savings taking her much farther than they would've in CT. She now resides in Greensboro.
There are plenty of jobs if you are in the right field. I get cold calls at least once a week from recruiters trying to lure me away from my employer. My company has been looking for a Government auditor for months now. The jobs are here as long as you are educated and in a field that has high demand.
My advice is not to buy when you first move here. Rent your first year or three and save your money so you can get the house you really like. You won't regret it. Don't over extend yourselves.
I came down with a job already. My wife is a stay at home mom.
I moved here 3 weeks before the family and rented my first year. I ended up buying in Fort Mill and am very happy with my life.
If you dont mind me asking, what field are you in and what are the fields in high demand?
One never hears exuberant stories of the transplants who came to Charlotte and found this wasn't the promised land. They end up not liking the heat/humidity of the summer, the lower pay, the inferior schools, living in a far flung plastic clown subdivision that looks like the 1000 other clown subdivisions build over the last decade, and never feeling like they fit in because Southern culture won't change for them.
Though the question has been asked 10000s of times here as the OP mentioned, it seems that no-one is interested in the advice, so if your decision is that Charlotte is more desirable than anywhere else in your book, then quit your job and move here. I say that cold hard experience is always an excellent teacher.
One never hears exuberant stories of the transplants who came to Charlotte and found this wasn't the promised land. They end up not liking the heat/humidity of the summer, the lower pay, the inferior schools, living in a far flung plastic clown subdivision that looks like the 1000 other clown subdivisions build over the last decade, and never feeling like they fit in because Southern culture won't change for them.
Though the question has been asked 10000s of times here as the OP mentioned, it seems that no-one is interested in the advice, so if your decision is that Charlotte is more desirable than anywhere else in your book, then quit your job and move here. I say that cold hard experience is always an excellent teacher.
Hello CherryTwist, this is exactly why I am up here! I would like to avoid the cold hard experience! I am extremely interested in the advice! I want the real deal! I'm guessing you are a transplant or maybe not, either way you sound as though you may have had a negative experience. Please share, as these post will help me in my decision making process. Nothing is set in stone, my mind is not completely made up. I just want to hear both sides, positive and negative, so I can better evaluate just how green is the grass in Charlotte as opposed to CT.
Just to respond to some of your comments. I do not mind the heat or southern culture, as a kid I spent many summer breaks in South Carolina with my distant family and enjoyed every minute of it, besides it is much better than getting 2 feet of snow every other day for about 3-4 months at a time!
I am aware of the salaries but I've done my homework and it seems that the low cost of housing offsets the lower salaries.
I'm not sure about the "plastic houses" I'm guessing you mean built with cheap materials and cookie cutteresque. Most of the houses in CT are over 100 years old and in our price range (since we have "good" jobs) we've been aloud the luxury (sarcasm!) of looking at houses built in the 1950's, so I guess its pick your poison.
Please keep the responses coming! I truly do appreciate it.
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