Hard to find work in Maine?!? (Portland: house prices, buyers, luxury)

[lovemaine]

Originally Posted by mainr2b

Phish Head,

I certainly understand why you would want to move. When I asked you that question, I was thinking you were already in Maine. Now, I get it! Sorry about that.

I think the idea about getting a P.O. Box in Maine to use for your job search is good.

Good luck with your quest.

I also think it would be a good idea to get a P.O. box. I don't know if every state is different, but when we tried to get a P.O. box in NJ, we had to prove residency. Maybe it's different in Maine though....It wouldn't hurt to call a local post office and find out the requirements for getting a box.

[GrittyMcDuffy]

I grew up in NJ. Once I moved out and saw what the rest of the country is like, I learned to see NJ as in its own realm, along with NYC and go-go types. Maybe I am a luddite in some ways, but the jetset, keeping up w/ the Jones status that NJ fosters is not for me. It has too high an entry cost in terms of commute time, home cost, taxes and health tolls to make me want to live in NJ again.

Visit Maine this summer if you can. If you have any interest in outdoor stuff, like biking, hiking, sailing, look into getting a job up here in a related field. When I moved here, we did not need a residency to get a PO Box. That was two years ago.

It is not as hard as you think to get out of NJ. Funny how I phrase that, like NJ is a prison or something.

[bigchuckie]

Iam really surprised your husband could'nt find a Grocery job. There are 2 major chains Shaws and Hannaford. Either of those companies are always looking for good managers.

[lovemaine]

Originally Posted by bigchuckie

Iam really surprised your husband could'nt find a Grocery job. There are 2 major chains Shaws and Hannaford. Either of those companies are always looking for good managers.

My husband did talk to Shaw's and Hannaford regarding managment positions. (Hannaford was the company that wanted to interview him a few weeks after he accepted a job in NC and we had already moved here.) Shaw's did offer him an entry level position because they like to promote from within. Unfortunately the pay for an entry level job would not have been enough for us to make it. He had talked to Hannaford management for several months, but when the right position did open up, we were already in NC. Timing is everything I guess...

[stevenlear]

A P.O. box and a cell phone is exactly what I did too. Another idea... check with your company (ies) to see if they will allow telecommuting. My wife kept her job and relocated her desk from Arlington, VA to a lovely office on the third floor of our house! She is so happy she giggles about it!!!

[maisy]

What industry are you looking for work in? We're moving to Auburn area in a few weeks, and my hub has already lined up several possibilities in the hospitality market. After selling our house in NJ, and paying for more than half the Maine house, we'll be debt free except for a small mortgage. whatever it takes for us to make it work in Maine, we'll do it. It's so much better than staying in this crap state. Good luck to all of you. (and to us)

[bonnie]

Thank you for the facts. We do have a high tax rate...but we're far from being the poorest state. I would like to add something else...even with our high tax rate there isn't another place that comes close to our quality of life. When a person is poor in Maine they are treated the same as the person with money. Here it does not matter who you are (or think you are), how much you earn or don't, you're viewed the same. I've moved out and tried other places but once you've lived among people who do not judge you by the clothes you wear, the car you drive or the size home you have - it's tough to be any place else! There is no place like it.

Originally Posted by Rocklobstr52

Hi Bill,T

Your post about Maine being the poorest state got me curious and actually there are 20 other states that are poorer than Maine. Accodring the the US Census website the following (ranked wealthiest to poorest) applies as of 2004 personal income per capita:

District of Columbia48,044 (X)
Connecticut 42,104 1
Massachusetts 38,768 2
New Jersey 38,333 3
Maryland 36,399 4
New York 35,454 5
New Hampshire 34,352 6
Colorado 33,446 7
Delaware 33,259 8
Minnesota 33,259 8
Virginia 32,903 10
Washington 32,738 11
California 32,478 12
Alaska 31,954 13
Illinois 31,858 14
Rhode Island 31,285 16
Nevada 30,981 17
Pennsylvania 30,928 18
Vermont 30,392 19
Hawaii 29,826 20
Wisconsin 29,824 21
Michigan 29,635 22
Florida 29,173 23
North Dakota 29,120 24
Nebraska 29,065 25
Ohio 29,049 26
South Dakota 28,617 27
Kansas 28,575 28
Missouri 28,387 29
Maine 28,348 30
Iowa 28,342 31
Texas 28,029 32
Indiana 27,910 33
Georgia 27,870 34
Tennessee 27,828 35
Oregon 27,796 36
North Carolina 27,124 37
Arizona 26,378 38
Oklahoma 26,051 39
Alabama 25,778 40
Kentucky 25,698 41
Louisiana 25,580 42
South Carolina 25,200 43
Idaho 25,132 44
Montana 24,908 45
Utah 24,675 46
New Mexico 24,291 47
West Virginia 23,995 48
Arkansas 23,858 49
Mississippi 22,861 50

[Azbound]

Having lived in Central Maine for over 30 years I can attest to the poverty that exists in that area. Some areas are "appalacian" in their poverty..

[chris]

Maine may not be the poorest on that list but if you looked at median wages, it would be much, much lower than per capita (I'd say in the bottom 10) .

Part of the reason might be due to the fact that Maine has more millionaires per capita than any other state. Lots of retirees living on pensions or investment income.

I grew up in western Maine and I can tell you first hand that poverty, while not a major issue for most Mainers who learn to live with it, does exist on levels you wouldn't expect even in this day and age.

I've probably said it more than once, but I'll say it again. Unless you are financially independent or have a lot of patience, it's strongly recommended that you have a job lined up before relocating to Maine.

[genelady]

Our experience of Maine was also a dissapointment. We LOVED living there and the people were grand (after they got to know us). But we found that we could'nt eat the trees!. We searched for jobs and nothing. no one wanted us as we were new comers.. so we left in 12 months.
We then moved to Connecticut. My home state.. and that was way to high for living expenses and too congested.
So off to North Carolina we went. Jobs were plentiful in the Asheville area 11 years ago. We then moved to Polk County about 50 miles south of Asheville to buy a home and have warmer winters in the Thermal Belt area and cooler summers than that of South Carolina. Needless to say progress followed us again, and we are now after 9 years going to move to the wide open lands of Wyoming. Maybe we can retire there with a few acres of land and a porch big enough for a coupld of rocking chairs.
And when I retire.. I will revisit Maine. As I love everything about it except for the fact that we could not afford to stay there.. Maybe retirement will bring enough income in to rent a small cabin in the big woods of Maine!??
Genelady