Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Woowwwww..... sorry for the delayed response & the potential can of worms I opened up on here We have had a crazy busy week or so since I posted, but I'm here... ready to be schooled!
1st of all, thank ALL OF YOU for the replies!! Not scared off by the back & forth at all; we do that down here too... we just make it sneaky by adding "bless your heart' I just skimmed the responses & will go back to reread more thoroughly later, but lemme try to cover/reply to everything....
I was probably way off on the anticipated salary, as DH just informed that the HR person basically said "they'd make it worth his while", cost of living in mind. No specifics yet, still early in the game, but he's management level in the big, irritating corporate world - makes about $150k/ year now & we're in Little Rock. Commute's not horrible, mostly mediocre bumper-to-bumper interstate, but y'all have to know that everything down here is spread W W W A A A Y Y Y farther apart than what I understand y'all might be dealing w/. So, a 30 mile commute isn't out of the ordinary at all. & remember, we've lived in several larger cities in the South, as I mentioned. We wouldn't relocate for a lateral move, it would have to be a MAJOR life improvement that God's slapped us in the face w/. We've also relocated & it not work out, so we've struggled through that mess before, sadly.
We've moved w/ his career before, have bought & sold LOTS of homes (used to flip before the market went kaput), so well aware how all that part works. Found the MLS site - very helpful! The taxes, utilities, schools, etc. info is truly intimidating. Will wait & see how the interview/job offer situation goes before I truly start flipping out.
Oh yes - college aged kid; blessed w/ a hard workin', good-head-on-shoulders student.... almost 100% covered by scholarship. Of course, that doesn't include the extras & little bit here & there
Now - here's another scenario/question: WHAT in Heaven's name do y'all do/get paid up there to have a similar lifestyle??! Yes, a $500-700k house down here is pretty flippin' great (ours is $250ish), but what kind of income is happening up there to swing that price range for a "basic/just ok" spread?!
Ok.... hope I've hit the high points here.... again - thanks so much, y'all! This info is great!!
My wife and I are both 6 figures....2 kids, modest cape on a 60 x 100 lot, 2 cars, not exactly living the high life. I don't think the level of comfort you have at 150K in Little Rock will be comparable to 175 to 200K here. I'm sure you're aware of the cost of living difference...that "cost" is not just financial. Trust me. (See bolded above)
Also, as others have mentioned, big corporate jobs on LI have a habit of relocating on a whim..My wife has such a job and is under constant fear of being called down to the HR office..positions are eliminated/relocated on almost a daily basis at her company.
My current commute is 30 miles each way. For my own sanity, I wake up at 4 AM just to get to work more than an hour early every day to avoid the rush of insane traffic (I should be sleeping now...wtf am I doing up??). 30 miles takes me 45 minutes AM and anywhere from 1.5 to 2.5 hours in the PM. I live 2 blocks from the highway entrance, and my job is 1.5 blocks from the expressway...so this is all highway time, no local streets, which would take even longer. 2 to 3 hours of daily commute time takes a toll on you, especially if you're not used to it.
My point was and is, it might seem like a promotion with a 25 to 50 K increase, but I doubt you'll notice the extra money, in fact, it'll probably feel like a pay cut here when all is said & done.
If you did decide to take the plunge...Seeing as you're always so mobile and used to it, it might make more sense to rent here. Your monthly housing expense figures to be relatively equal rent vs buy (with the taxes factored in). You won't need nearly as much $$ up front, and unless you're here at least 5 and probably more like 10 years, I highly doubt you'll recoup any of your investment...the stress of selling your house when you're ready to move on would probably be more of a burden than it's worth.
Just my opinion. Good luck.
Last edited by Family Guy Guy; 04-08-2013 at 11:07 PM..
If you did decide to take the plunge...Seeing as you're always so mobile and used to it, it might make more sense to rent here. Your monthly housing expense figures to be relatively equal rent vs buy (with the taxes factored in). You won't need nearly as much $$ up front, and unless you're here at least 5 and probably more like 10 years, I highly doubt you'll recoup any of your investment...the stress of selling your house when you're ready to move on would probably be more of a burden than it's worth.
Just my opinion. Good luck.
I agree.
If you're not sure it'll be at least a five year stay, financially, renting generally makes more sense.
While you may not "save" much if any money by renting (low interest rates if buying vs "hot" rental market, which firms rental prices = similar monthly payments), you wouldn't have the risk of getting less for your house when selling.
If renting, please keep in mind that on Long Island, the tenant pays the Real Estate fee (mostly 1 month). I just assisted a family being transferred and the employer paid the fee; don't know if your hubby's company offers the same benefit.
We wouldn't relocate for a lateral move, it would have to be a MAJOR life improvement that God's slapped us in the face w/. We've also relocated & it not work out, so we've struggled through that mess before, sadly.
Unless you consider nice beaches (which you can also get in the South), a huge variety of food and proximity to New York City a "major life improvement," you are going to be very disappointed when you get here. Except for those things, you might as well move to Ohio and take advantage of the lower cost of living. It sounds like you're talking about a $25-$50K bump in annual salary and I can tell you that the difference will vanish very quickly once you arrive. I've never lived in the South, but I somehow doubt your stay on Long Island will even be a lateral move.
If the transfer must be done to stay on the corporate ladder, I'd rent for a year and see how things go. (Of course, a year from now, some of that income could also be eaten up by rising home prices.)
You don't hear a lot of us using the phrases "major life improvement" and "living on Long Island" in the same sentence. There's a reason for that.
Our latest issue seems to be possible scandals regarding the use of public money for the Hurricane Sandy cleanup. You have to wonder about a place where public officials are so calculating that -- even during a natural disaster -- they can take the time to think of ways to make money by steering business to their friends and political contacts. At least those are the questions that seem to be surfacing.
Unless you consider nice beaches (which you can also get in the South), a huge variety of food and proximity to New York City a "major life improvement," you are going to be very disappointed when you get here. Except for those things, you might as well move to Ohio and take advantage of the lower cost of living. It sounds like you're talking about a $25-$50K bump in annual salary and I can tell you that the difference will vanish very quickly once you arrive. I've never lived in the South, but I somehow doubt your stay on Long Island will even be a lateral move.
If the transfer must be done to stay on the corporate ladder, I'd rent for a year and see how things go. (Of course, a year from now, some of that income could also be eaten up by rising home prices.)
You don't hear a lot of us using the phrases "major life improvement" and "living on Long Island" in the same sentence. There's a reason for that.
Our latest issue seems to be possible scandals regarding the use of public money for the Hurricane Sandy cleanup. You have to wonder about a place where public officials are so calculating that -- even during a natural disaster -- they can take the time to think of ways to make money by steering business to their friends and political contacts. At least those are the questions that seem to be surfacing.
I agree with this. OP, After reading your post, unless we are talking a massive raise in pay to like 250k a year +, you certainly wont see a major life improvement moving to LI. Also the NYC metro area lifestyle is majorly different from life down south (I lived down south more than a decade). Do lots of research, VISIT the area before making a decision! Good Luck.
Thanks to all of you! Again, spoke too soon on the anticipated salary there, as they haven't gotten that far yet in the process. He's had a pretty detailed conversation w/ HR person, w/ the understanding of how drastically different the COL is, i.e. it would have to be a huge pay raise/promotion to justify. We'd also be sure to visit, possibly a few times, before concreting a decision.
Living in a $250k house earning $150k is a rather telling benchmark... If you're using the public schools in Little Rock for your 3rd grader that's even more telling as you don't have the private school costs. Your housing costs as a percentage of your income are very small - which for me means you're putting money away for the future, vacations regularly, and living with plenty of discretionary spending options. If you want something, you get it.
My gut tells me that you'd want about 25-30% increase in pay to consider maintaining a similar lifestyle moving up to LI, but unfortunately that assumes you'd be getting a similar priced house with similar taxes... neither will be the case - or even close for that matter.
I struggle to think what job, company, etc could pay you what's needed to "make it worthwhile" and, as others have said, the stability of that position... scary.
I'd say 60% to 100% increase in pay. You at least want to feel like the move is a promotion and not just keeping the status quo.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
We have had a crazy busy week or so since I posted, but I'm here... ready to be schooled! 
I just skimmed the responses & will go back to reread more thoroughly later, but lemme try to cover/reply to everything.... 
