[vtallison]

Originally Posted by vtallison

I am sure you get this question all of the time, but I am wondering what the average pay for customer service type jobs there might be in the space coast area (Merritt Island etc in Brevard county) . Also my husband is a millworker making furniture for a high end company here in Vermont. He has alot of experience in woodworking but is also skilled in manufacturing, electrician, plumbing, warehouse, well you know what I mean. Something that pays 12-15 an hour. Is that feasible? I was shocked that my Dr suggested a warm climate , but my hands keep turning blue and I am unable to take meds for it. I have relatives in Titusville so I would want to be near them. However if there are better opportunities on the west coast, (North Port area)I would love to hear what people have to say. I really appreciate your help in this matter. I must say I will miss my 43 acres in Vermont as I love the country, but I really cannot afford to lose my hands.

I had meant to say that yes he is quite skilled at making high end furniture but is also skilled at manufacturing, electrical, plumbing and warehouse as well as construction which I know is basically non existent. As I have researched more this week, I have come to see that the pay will not be over $10/hr. It is not like I am saying we qualify for jobs that will pay 12-15 anymore, I am seeing the picture. I am also seeing on the Fla jobs site that there are positions available and I am going to follow up on those. There is actually less work in my area of VT than what I am seeing in FL. We do not live near any cities and the only real city we have is Burlington which is 1 hour and 20 minutes from me on a very dangerous highway because of slick and icy conditions. It can be dry and people screw it up. I would love to drive 10 minutes away to a job. Again, Thanks for the input.

[seain dublin]

Originally Posted by hiknapster

btallison, I'm surprised you hadn't heard of the very, very high unemployment rate and the huge bust in construction jobs in Florida. If you are a researcher then surely you've seen this. And the housing crash and all of the jobs that went with it were national news, yet you were saying your husband was good with a saw. In any event, perhaps you've downgraded your reality since you are no longer looking for $12 to $15 hour jobs. Just be prepared to fight for server positions in Titusville.

What did your family in Florida tell you?

Ah well, best of luck in all of your endeavors!

Exactly, I can't believe the OP is thinking about the Space Coast. NASA has laid off thousands of workers. I know two of them who were Boeing contractors for years at NASA and were lucky enough to be offered jobs in WA state.

There are other states besides FL to look for warm weather, TX for example. A better economy and you can find warm weather there.

But forget the Space Coast, it was on the national news not that long ago, they showed how the NASA layoffs have had a domino effect on the area. They profiled a restaurant owner who let most of his staff go due to business grinding to a halt.

I can tell you the salaries are lower here. Channel 13 news in Tampa profiles the "job of the day". Today's job was a Marketing Specialist and the pay was up to $9 an hour.

I have never seen so many people working two jobs down here. I talked to someone at Target who's other job is working at a prison, a server who is an office manager during the day, etc. Why? Because the salaries here aren't keeping up with the cost of living.

Unless you can sell your property for a good price and come down with a large nest egg(not just money to buy a house and need salaries to survive on) I would look at TX.

And as Kyle1925 said Louisiana also has a better economy, especially the southwest portion of the state.

[beachmouse]

Another possible city- Mobile, AL. Alabama's economic development has actually been pretty successful in bringing manufacturing/trades jobs to the state in recent years, and they only really get two or three coolish months a year where the daytime highs might be 65F or less.