Need advice from residents of Chicago (Elk Grove Village: apartment, for rent, credit)

[Karate_Qid]

Hi everyone.

I'm a guy in his late 20's, trying to make a path for myself in life by heading to a new city. I want to move to Chicago some day.
I live in the Seattle area now.

What kind of job opportunities are available in the Chicago area? I would like to live in the city , but I do not mind commuting for work purposes.

I am a high school graduate (awesome, right? ) and I have a Associate's Degree and I completed one quarter (of my third year) at a university. I have a few years of work experience (around 4 or 5-which is not much, considering my age) mainly doing office work.

I would really like to do something physical, as sitting in the office is just not a very good fit for me.

I imagine I would come to Chicago with some savings (not much at all) and try to look for a job as soon as possible.

Do you have any recommendations/suggestions for me? What can I do to make my move to Chicago successful?
I would be willing to do pretty much any manual work and I don't mind working over-time or weekends, holidays, etc.

Are there any agencies/etc that hire people from out of state? Does anyone know?

I am single with no children so I assume that would make things easier.


Thank you.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by Karate_Qid

Hi everyone.

I'm a guy in his late 20's, trying to make a path for myself in life by heading to a new city. I want to move to Chicago some day.
I live in the Seattle area now.

What kind of job opportunities are available in the Chicago area? I would like to live in the city , but I do not mind commuting for work purposes.

I am a high school graduate (awesome, right? ) and I have a Associate's Degree and I completed one quarter (of my third year) at a university. I have a few years of work experience (around 4 or 5-which is not much, considering my age) mainly doing office work.


I would really like to do something physical, as sitting in the office is just not a very good fit for me.

I imagine I would come to Chicago with some savings (not much at all) and try to look for a job as soon as possible.

Do you have any recommendations/suggestions for me? What can I do to make my move to Chicago successful?
I would be willing to do pretty much any manual work and I don't mind working over-time or weekends, holidays, etc.

Are there any agencies/etc that hire people from out of state? Does anyone know?

I am single with no children so I assume that would make things easier.


Thank you.

I would imagine doing something "physical" is not going to be TERRIBLY difficult to find. Do you want to be paid decently or not? I mean, there is always stuff like warehouse jobs and what not, but I have no idea which ones pay well or not. Probably an easier way out really. The jobs like this...laborous non-office jobs you don't necessarily have to be "trained" in to get a job in them.

Not sure about agencies and what not.

[chet everett]

The majority of "industrial" type work in the region is confined to a few areas that are not particularly convenient to the popular "youth oriented" neighborhoods of the northside. Further the general paucity of employment in many sorts of tradional labor sectors means someone w/o connections is at a distinct disadvantage -- through long established relationships with political leaders it is common for work to only flow to those with ties to various factions that have long cemented themselves in power...

It is a long standing policy of such connected firms to dole out things like overtime and holiday pay not to the most eager but to the most . This is pretty standard in most "organized labor" settings and I suspect there are old-time Boeing employees in Seattle that would say the same thing...

Frankly folks looking to do even skill trades type work in Chicago come predominatly from countries like Poland & Mexico. The difficulty of breaking into these things is compounded by the tight ties between that exist at many levels of oversight -- in addition to the aforementioned unions and local poltical organizations the mindset of regulations at Federal and local levlels that ensure things like "prevailing wage rules" and set asides mean "an independent" doesn't stand a chance...

Honestly if you don't have some unique skills / qualifications there are almost certsinly far better places to "make it" than Chicago.

[marothisu]

^ True, although there is some on the lower west side and some suburbs near O'Hare like Elk Grove Village

[Karate_Qid]

Originally Posted by chet everett

The majority of "industrial" type work in the region is confined to a few areas that are not particularly convenient to the popular "youth oriented" neighborhoods of the northside. Further the general paucity of employment in many sorts of tradional labor sectors means someone w/o connections is at a distinct disadvantage -- through long established relationships with political leaders it is common for work to only flow to those with ties to various factions that have long cemented themselves in power...

It is a long standing policy of such connected firms to dole out things like overtime and holiday pay not to the most eager but to the most . This is pretty standard in most "organized labor" settings and I suspect there are old-time Boeing employees in Seattle that would say the same thing...

Frankly folks looking to do even skill trades type work in Chicago come predominatly from countries like Poland & Mexico. The difficulty of breaking into these things is compounded by the tight ties between that exist at many levels of oversight -- in addition to the aforementioned unions and local poltical organizations the mindset of regulations at Federal and local levlels that ensure things like "prevailing wage rules" and set asides mean "an independent" doesn't stand a chance...

Honestly if you don't have some unique skills / qualifications there are almost certsinly far better places to "make it" than Chicago.

If am willing to do pretty much anything (within reason) that would involve me not sitting at a desk for 8 hours. I don't have any technical skills but I could definitely work in a warehouse type of setting.

I've always been poor, so if that stays the same so be it.

I am glad you told me about having to know people to get into better positions (networking). I'm not very social so that is something I would definitely have to work on.

If I found a low-paying job (around $11.00/hour) in Chicago, could I afford an apartment in any decent neighborhood? Decent would mean a neighborhood which isn't known for drive-by shootings/gang violence.

Since there is a good chance that when I do come to Chicago I won't have a lot of money on me, I may have to be homeless for a while. I know Chicago winters are harsh, but the spring and summer time are easier for homeless people to bear, right?

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by Karate_Qid

If I found a low-paying job (around $11.00/hour) in Chicago, could I afford an apartment in any decent neighborhood? Decent would mean a neighborhood which isn't known for drive-by shootings/gang violence.

You should be able to, especially if you can find a roommate or two. If you work 40 hours per week at $11/hour, then that's $1760 pre tax. Say $400 comes out of that, then you're left with $1360/month. There are neighborhoods which are fine (slight shadiness in a few areas, but mostly fine) where with roommates you should be paying less than $550/month in rent. I know of people paying less than $500/month for their rent.

Of course too, you can get away without owning a car here too especially depending on where you'd work. So even if you were paying up to $600/month for rent, but didn't have a car, you would still have enough money left to do other stuff barring any other debts you have.



[quote
Since there is a good chance that when I do come to Chicago I won't have a lot of money on me, I may have to be homeless for a while. I know Chicago winters are harsh, but the spring and summer time are easier for homeless people to bear, right?[/quote]

Yes, winters can be harsh and spring/summer are much better, but honestly I would not ever recommend to be homeless. I would strong suggest you save up some money somehow if you plan on coming here.

[purplesky]

Why of all places, Chicago? Do yourself a favor and move to a state whose economy is not in the dumps. We are second behind California.

Your notions seem a little "pie in the sky"

FInish schooling in something you can get a job in. If you like to do physical work, go to school to be a physical therapy assistant (2 years and a summer at a community college), you'll make good money right out of school. If you don't want to go to schoo that long, take a 5 month pharmacy tech course. You'll make more than $11 an hour, and you'll also be on your feet.

Please reconsider Chicago unless you have friends here you can move in with. Concentrate on getting some skills, then moving here if that is still your choice.

[chrawnick]

I was in a similar predicament last year. I wanted to move here immediately as well. Sometimes you just want an immediate change.

So, I saved money, found a roommate on Craigslist and moved here without a job last year April. I found a job in May. It only pays $8.25 an hour but I'm able to always pick up hours and get overtime (70-80 hours every two weeks, sometimes 90-100.)

My rent is about $550 a month with utilities included. Now, that I've lived here a bit and "settled in", I've found a much cheaper place for $400 a month with utilities included.

You could possibly do that but you have to be willing to work hard.

However, before you do move, save money. Save. Save. Save.

SAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE E!!!!

All in all, do what you want to do. Do what you need to do. But be smart about it, lol.

[Stan_The_Man]

I am a new immigrant to US, and moved to Chicago from abroad. Lol I remember nobody would rent me a place from craigslist thinking I was a scam when I said I don't have credit history at all, not even Social security number! Haha...

Well... many of my dreams crashed against the rock of reality here, but I was prepared for harsh US reality.
There are jobs if you are willing to look for them. I noticed even more jobs in North Suburbs than in inner city.
I completed about 1500 job applications, went to 8 interviews and changed 3 jobs in the last 7 months, longest time I was unemployed was 2 months. The smallest pay I had was $11/hr

After having lived in Chicago for 7 months , I realize that moving here probably was a mistake - very high unemployment rate, bankrupt state and high taxes. But you have entertainment, diversity and once you meet right people you can move up. I had no friends, no reference to provide to be hired for a job and no US education and so far I am surviving, this means anyone born in the US can succeed, so good luck!

[Karate_Qid]

Originally Posted by Stan_The_Man

I am a new immigrant to US, and moved to Chicago from abroad. Lol I remember nobody would rent me a place from craigslist thinking I was a scam when I said I don't have credit history at all, not even Social security number! Haha...

Well... many of my dreams crashed against the rock of reality here, but I was prepared for harsh US reality.
There are jobs if you are willing to look for them. I noticed even more jobs in North Suburbs than in inner city.
I completed about 1500 job applications, went to 8 interviews and changed 3 jobs in the last 7 months, longest time I was unemployed was 2 months. The smallest pay I had was $11/hr

After having lived in Chicago for 7 months , I realize that moving here probably was a mistake - very high unemployment rate, bankrupt state and high taxes. But you have entertainment, diversity and once you meet right people you can move up. I had no friends, no reference to provide to be hired for a job and no US education and so far I am surviving, this means anyone born in the US can succeed, so good luck!

Thanks a lot Stan! I wish you well in the US!

I have some acquaintances in Chicago, but no one who would be willing to even mention me to prospective employers. I would basically be on my own.

Thanks for all the advice, everyone! I will save save save!