Whats down there? (Charlotte: job market, contractors, utilities)

[tom in ohio]

Hey everyone, my friend and I have both decided on the move down to Charlotte this coming Oct. We'll be down next week to take a look around and see where we want to live, and hopefully get some leads on jobs. I just wanted to run a few questions by you all, this forum is a great resource.

1. I've done some research and found you have a JobLink resource center. Are their services valuable?

2. Both of us have industrial maintenance experience (electricians) from up north, what are some larger companies down there that are not too far from the Charlotte area?

3. Is the cost of tuition reduced after you live in the state for a certain amount of time? We both have an Assoc. but would like to look into finishing the Bachelors.

4. We're both young, I'm 22, him 30, we like to go out on the weekends and have a good time, where are the best places to live with people our age around?

5. If you can please recommend an apt complex. We're looking for a younger area, possibly near campus, 2BR 1.5 bath, 1000-1200 sq ft, balcony, most utilities included, 700-850/mo.

6. How's the job market right now for the skilled trades? We have some contacts but nothing solid right now so hopefully when we go down we can get a better feel of the market? Are there any steel mills down there? Thats primarily my experience in the field. Right now we're both looking to stay in the industrial field, but any suggestions are welcome and appreciated.

Weew! That was kinda long, thanks to all who read and who reply.

[brokensky]

Can't help you much w/ your questions . . . but I believe you have to be a resident for a year b/f you can get in-state tuition.

Jobs are getting tight here, as the unemployment rate has gone up. You really need to have a job lined up b/f you come or be prepared to do temp work . . . No steel mills here and a lot of our manufacturing (textiles, furniture) are gone - outsourced.

[the 7 oh 4]

And to get into a nice 1 bedroom...plan on spending about $650-750 a month in the suburbs...more for a 2 bedroom...and utilities included is almost non-existant here.

GOOD LUCK!

[SunnyKayak]

Originally Posted by tom in ohio

Hey everyone, my friend and I have both decided on the move down to Charlotte this coming Oct. We'll be down next week to take a look around and see where we want to live, and hopefully get some leads on jobs. I just wanted to run a few questions by you all, this forum is a great resource.

1. I've done some research and found you have a JobLink resource center. Are their services valuable?

JobLink - Centers - A Service of the NC Department of Commerce (http://old.ncjoblink.com/centers2/centersearch.asp?c=Mecklenburg - broken link)
The Employment Security Commission of North Carolina

2. Both of us have industrial maintenance experience (electricians) from up north, what are some larger companies down there that are not too far from the Charlotte area?

Charlotte Electrical Contractors and Electricians

3. Is the cost of tuition reduced after you live in the state for a certain amount of time? We both have an Assoc. but would like to look into finishing the Bachelors.

you must be a proven resident of the state for least one year.

4. We're both young, I'm 22, him 30, we like to go out on the weekends and have a good time, where are the best places to live with people our age around? Depends on what your definition of a good time is here is a list of things to do

.
Things to do in the Charlotte Metro

5. If you can please recommend an apt complex. We're looking for a younger area, possibly near campus, 2BR 1.5 bath, 1000-1200 sq ft, balcony, most utilities included, 700-850/mo.

Best is to choose a job first so that your commute time is not so long.

6. How's the job market right now for the skilled trades? We have some contacts but nothing solid right now so hopefully when we go down we can get a better feel of the market? Are there any steel mills down there? Thats primarily my experience in the field. Right now we're both looking to stay in the industrial field, but any suggestions are welcome and appreciated.

There is a few manufacturing jobs left but the job field in those sectors is really tight. Steel was never a hit in this area so definitely limited jobs there I would try local headquarter company Nucor
Careers at Nucor (http://www.nucor.com/careers/index.html - broken link)

Weew! That was kinda long, thanks to all who read and who reply.

This forum is for us to help each other and I didnt consider that was a huge request.