Blue collar jobs and wages (Fort Smith, Fayetteville: for sale, how much, new home)

[SunnySun1]

I am looking for information about blue collar job opportunities and wages, in NWA. How difficult is it to find work? What kind of wages can an assistant manager for a retail pharmacy expect to earn? I am another SoCal transplant, coming your way. I will be in the area in a few weeks to look at homes for sale in the $130-$150 price range. Are homes selling for asking price, or is there room for negotiation? What is the average time homes are staying on the market, before being sold? How much have home prices risen in the past couple of years? Is there a lot of homes currently being built? What is the best area to live while avoiding chicken farms, processing plants and flood zones? Any information would be helpful?

Can't wait for a slower life pace. California moves so fast.

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by SunnySun1

I am looking for information about blue collar job opportunities and wages, in NWA. How difficult is it to find work? What kind of wages can an assistant manager for a retail pharmacy expect to earn? I am another SoCal transplant, coming your way. I will be in the area in a few weeks to look at homes for sale in the $130-$150 price range. Are homes selling for asking price, or is there room for negotiation? What is the average time homes are staying on the market, before being sold? How much have home prices risen in the past couple of years? Is there a lot of homes currently being built? What is the best area to live while avoiding chicken farms, processing plants and flood zones? Any information would be helpful?

Can't wait for a slower life pace. California moves so fast.

ok, just my opinion; others will jump in as well. First, can you find something in your price range? Absolutely you can. Depending on your age and what your interests are, I would suggest, Bella Vista, Centerton, maybe Lowell and Rogers for starters. There are several small towns that would work, I am sure. Houses priced right are selling very quickly, especially if they are updated. I am assuming you are not looking for a mega sized home, but something in the 1300 to 1500 sq ft range, right? Property values have gone up considerably this past year or so. I can not remember the %, but they are up to about they were before the 2008 crash started. Yes, there is some new homes being built, not a lot right now. Don't be too concerned about flood zones. We do have some flooding from time to time, but it usually is gone quickly. The media makes a mountain out of mole hills all the time.

Job wise, that I can not say much about, but I can tell you we have a very low unemployment rate..

[gemstone1]

" Are homes selling for asking price, or is there room for negotiation?" ...it is not normal to sell at asking price without some sort of outside influence that causes demand for existing housing outstrips supply. "What is the average time homes are staying on the market, before being sold? How much have home prices risen in the past couple of years? "....online sites such as zillow can give you some of this data.

Regards
Gemstone1

[nmnita]

Originally Posted by gemstone1

" Are homes selling for asking price, or is there room for negotiation?" ...it is not normal to sell at asking price without some sort of outside influence that causes demand for existing housing outstrips supply. "What is the average time homes are staying on the market, before being sold? How much have home prices risen in the past couple of years? "....online sites such as zillow can give you some of this data.

Regards
Gemstone1

Zillow is a great place to start, but it helps if a person has some idea what city or neighborhood they are interested in. It is almost impossible to get a real feel without some idea what a person has in mind.

Our granddaughter in Lowell sold her home the day it was listed for full price. It happened the person who purchased it had missed out on two other homes in the neighborhood. She was more than willing to pay full price. We have had a couple other friends who have had the same experience in the past 6 months. Then there are others who have had homes on the market for a year with only what they consider bad offers.

[sherrenee]

I haven't been on here in a while so I am late on commenting. I don't know what kind of blue collar work you do but you should be able to find a job pretty easily. The bigger construction companies don't just work in NWA though, a lot of them have jobs down into Fort Smith and Russellville and over as far as Carroll county and often into Oklahoma and Missouri. NWA has been pretty lucky to no feel the down turn of the economy as badly as some areas so you should be able to stay busy. My husband has been an Electrician since 1998 and the only time he had a lay off was for 3 months in 2009.

[Rock Climber]

The unemployment rate in NWA sits at 2.9% right now. It's almost too low. There is no shortage of skilled or unskilled labor here at the moment.