Moving to Allentown 2013 (Philadelphia, Bethlehem, Easton: best neighborhood, sales, rental)

[boomer1235]

My wife and I are apparently moving to Allentown/Bethlehem .... Here is the entire scoop:

I really wanted to move to Hawaii .... but my wife changed my mine. We are both 42 and have a really long line of disasters following us. Born and raised in Michigan, the economy there hit bottom 5 years ago and I was out of work for a long time and finally sold some stuff and took a job in New Orleans. I HATE IT HERE I have asked my wife for 2 years "Where do you want to move?" and last night she chose Pennsylvania ... I am not rich .... let me tell ya, it is paycheck to paycheck (Lost everything in a fire and was hit by a car while crossing the road) ... it is awful here. I have looked around craigslist and see cheaper 1 bedroom places THERE.. I am paying $750 for a crappy studio ... I have a 90 lb. American Bulldog ... I would have to buy some used furniture when I got there and would like a cheaper place. Are jobs hard to come by in Allentown. I have no real skills ... 15 years in Customer Service/Sales ... 3-4 years factory/assembly work .... am soooo tired of sales. SO ... WOW that was scattered .. thoughts?

BTW I want cheap rent, but don't want to live in a hood.

[toobusytoday]

I would seriously suggest getting a job before moving. This is not usually considered a cheap area to live. Not as much as big cities, but the places that are really low priced are in bad areas. I just found a handy site where you can compare the two cities: Cost of Living comparison calculator

[loose cannon]

Please get a job before moving. Michigan is a pit, and I'd never thought I'd say this but Allenswamp is Beverly Hills compared to Detroit. You can probably work at Synchronoss or Iquor. Like you I prefer to be done with call centers but I am stuck. It is a terrible time in our society. I was offered an $8 an hr job and i said no. I am holding out. Pay me $10 or above or stick it!

[loose cannon]

I was a Telerx legend, but they are not hiring at the moment. Out of all the cubicle farms in this lehizzle for shizzle Valley tELERX IS THE BEST! Sykes is hiring and they are terrible, but you can get in there just to get on your feet.

[toobusytoday]

Actually, I was in Detroit two weeks ago and Allentown compares quite favorably IMO. Yes, it has a high unemployment rate, but compared to the rest of the country, it's doing better then many places.

[Clark Park]

The possibility for finding a job in Philadelphia is better than in Allentown. Housing prices are a little higher here though (it is a much bigger city after all) but it is possible to find a one bedroom rental for $800 a month - you won't be in the most attractive building or the best neighborhood ... but you won't be in a high crime area or "the 'hood" either.

If you desire to live in Allentown, why not check out nearby places like Bethlehem and Easton?

[veganwriter]

Yikkes ... forgive me, but your post sounds like you're heading for yet another disaster.
There's so much stuff there that a move just won't solve.

You sound like you're entering into the Mid-live "Crisis-Evaluation" stage. This is why that's a good thing:
If you've done something for 10--20 years... chances are, "you've done it." Finished.
Forgive me friend, but you sound a bit rudderless right now. It's time to ask yourself what is your FIRST DREAM. What career or business would you pay them to jump out of bed to get to every morning.

"Attach your happiness to goals not people. With the right goals, the right people will appear."

• If you know what you really, REALLY would love to do in life, then you know where to best find the training to do it, and the best place to live that compliments it.
• Remember, we're living in the age of Globalism. Unskilled factory jobs are in China or India.
• "Everything I want is on the other side of fear."
• If there's any fears about doing or obtaining the training for the type of job or business you'd love, then face it. Get as much information as you can... and do it. Watch your fears crumble one, by one as you walk into them.

"The first key to Depression is to move a muscle."

• Remember, if you're unhappy in one place, chances are very good you'll be unhappy in another.
• Sounds like you're somewhere in your early 40s? Late 30s? That's a PERFECT age for life changes.
• There are tons of opportunities right now that don't involve the traditional, "get a wife, get a job, get a dog, and be happy" scenerio.
• FOOD. It's a HUGE issue and problem right now. Problem = Opportunity. Look three steps past any problem and BaM! ... you get paid.
• Agriculture is the beginning of manufacturing. All the "Value Added" products that come out of growing or creating something. Anything. Dog leashes. Pets are a 4 billion dollar a year industry.
• The rich are getting richer and the poor--poorer. Find something they want... and provide it for them.
• Your sales background could pay off for you if you tweek it a bit. Instead of selling for somebody else, provide a service that people want and need... like organic produce.
• There is a huge call for younger people to learn farming. From Will Allen's, "Growing Power" that uses small urban plots to grow great food in urban, "Food Deserts", to applying for internships with traditional farmers and rural farming opportunities. (The average age of the American farmer is 55.)
• Let's go back to pets. Get a 50 dollar Whole Sale license and drum up some customers.
• Hey... do what I did... find a free or cheap place that'll train you to drive a truck and travel around looking for where you really want to live. (Asking your wife is ... well... indecisive... )
• Out there on the road for one or two years and you'll discover SOOOO many ways to make a living that you never even thought about.

The Underground Economy

• You said you "sold some stuff" to get out of one place. That's great experience.
• There are increasing amounts of people losing jobs... but the same amount of goods and services are being bought... which means the underground economy is growing.
• Selling stuff at flea markets and Farmers Markets.
• If you live near an affluent area, buy some old furniture, fix it up, and sell it to them.

Main thing is you have to know what YOU want to do.

• "He who fails to engineer his life shall have his (or her) life engineered for him."
  
• And in today's world, that means food stamps.
  

Bottom line ... I don't care if you graduate from the Harvard School of Business... if you don't have no "Hustle" ... then it just won't work out for you.

• If there's any addictions... cut them out of your life. (Food, gambling, booze, etc...) You don't need them anymore. Dead weight. Throw the T.V. away.
• Make this year a year of living dangerously ... "Danger" as in, heading into the adventure of yourself. No false coping mechanisms.
• Search the web for articles about mid-life changes and happiness.
• You might want to try something very different spiritually ... Yoga or Meditation.

There's an Awesome book I highly recommend called, "The Artist Way" by Juilia Cameron. International best seller. It takes you through your blocks. It's a life changer. You can buy a used copy for something like 8 or 11 bucks.

Great time to try something different dude.
Forgive me if I sound harsh... but hey, heading into the Rust Belt looking for a factory job... well... it's not the best plan a guy can have for his family.

[toobusytoday]

Originally Posted by veganwriter

Great time to try something different dude.[/b][/color]
Forgive me if I sound harsh... but hey, heading into the Rust Belt looking for a factory job... well... it's not the best plan a guy can have for his family.

Psst - The Lehigh Valley has no steel manufacturers. We are not the rust belt. If you are going to go forum jumping to give advice, at least do some research on the area.

Things to do in Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton, PA | Group and Family Activities in Lehigh Valley | Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, Pa | Discover Lehigh Valley

[PacoMartin]

Originally Posted by toobusytoday

We are not the rust belt.

Since the term describes a set of economic and social conditions rather than denote a geographical region of the United States per se, the Rust Belt has no precise boundaries.

But given that the Lehigh Valley population has not dropped since most of the manufacturing industry went away, the transition to a service based economy was fairly effective. The term "rust belt" is not all that appropriate.