Jobs in MN (Minneapolis, Rochester, St. Cloud: apartment, for rent, health insurance)

[Minnesota Spring]

Originally Posted by Melissa82

Hmm, that is a really tiny town and far from everything. I come from a town of 500,000 and I think Savannah has 200,000 and this seems rather small to me.

Marshall is pretty small and rural community (about 13K). They have the super wal-mart, K-mart, shopko etc and some pretty good grocery stores and restaurants and a nice hospital, so your basic necessities are there. They just got a Menards and are building a pizza ranch (you probably never hear of pizza ranch but I love it) Southwest Minnesota State University is a nice, small four year university as well. But if you like the larger cities, it is a few hours of driving at least. I live about 1/2 hour from Marshall and drive to the Twin Cities everyweekend for work and family and its not too bad of a drive. I would check out Mankato. There is a larger university, more shoping choices, more of a night life and is only 1 hour from the Twin Cities. Hutchinson, MN is a nice town that is pretty close to "the cities" as well and they have a community college.

To be sure, I am not sure where you grew up, but the winters here, especially for someone who has been in Georgia for a while can be quite the experience. I moved up here from Missouri over 20 years ago and am still not used to the winters, I mean the snow actually stays on the ground for 3 months without melting and just piles up through out the winter! Thats my biggest grudge against winters here I guess. Spring and fall are really nice and summer can get quite warm and muggy, but nothing compared to southern Georgia.

Good luck

[northstar22]

If Savannah seems too small for you, then you won't be happy anywhere in Minnesota except the Twin Cities. MN's largest cities -- apart from Minneapolis and St. Paul -- are Rochester (105,000), Duluth (80,000), St. Cloud (66,000) and Mankato (39,000), all of which are smaller than Savannah. Mankato and St. Cloud are only about an hour from Minneapolis, so it's an easy drive to do "big city" things.

[GBCommenter]

If a population of 250,000 or so + is a deciding factor, then realistically your only option in MN is Minneapolis-St. Paul. Next biggest cities (Duluth, Rochester, St. Cloud) are in the area of 80,000 or so.

Is Minneapolis the only city you're considering? Is there something additional that caused you to look to Minneapolis in particular? Just job prospect and not the South? Would you consider other cities (not that ours is bad, just thinking about what is the best city for you - which might be Minneapolis)

[Melissa82]

I was looking at the twin cities and the surrounding areas because I was reading up that it was a good place to go to college and work at the same time, as well as the cost of living not being terrible. I come from Ottawa, Ontario and my husband comes from North-Western Montana, so the weather is not a concern. We actually want to get away to a 4 season climate.

We need to find somewhere that is well suited for a young couple who has a low income, will be going to school and is not super educated. I have a 2 year degree in business management.

[golfgal]

Originally Posted by Melissa82

Hmm, that is a really tiny town and far from everything. I come from a town of 500,000 and I think Savannah has 200,000 and this seems rather small to me.

Well, you have a choice then, either move to a larger town that you can't afford , won't be able to pay rent, etc. or live in a smaller town for 5 years or so while your husband works on his degree and THEN move to a larger town.

In Marshall you would never need a car, you can walk everywhere and there is a door to door bus service to take you shopping if you don't want to carry all your stuff home. You can find a NICE 2 bedroom apartment for $400/month or less. Utilities are half what they are in the Twin Cities. There is a nice college right in town, low unemployment. You could live on one income easily in Marshall. You will never be able to afford anywhere safe in Minneapolis on $12/hour. MINIMUM you are looking at $600/month in a crappy apartment in a not so safe area. Even taking the bus is expensive. Having even one car your insurance is going to be quadruple what it would be in a town like Marshall.

[Melissa82]

Originally Posted by golfgal

Well, you have a choice then, either move to a larger town that you can't afford , won't be able to pay rent, etc. or live in a smaller town for 5 years or so while your husband works on his degree and THEN move to a larger town.

In Marshall you would never need a car, you can walk everywhere and there is a door to door bus service to take you shopping if you don't want to carry all your stuff home. You can find a NICE 2 bedroom apartment for $400/month or less. Utilities are half what they are in the Twin Cities. There is a nice college right in town, low unemployment. You could live on one income easily in Marshall. You will never be able to afford anywhere safe in Minneapolis on $12/hour. MINIMUM you are looking at $600/month in a crappy apartment in a not so safe area. Even taking the bus is expensive. Having even one car your insurance is going to be quadruple what it would be in a town like Marshall.

Those are excellent points!

But, what is the job prospects out there? I just can't imagine such a small town with any jobs. I will take a look thought online to see what I can find.

[Radical_Car]

Originally Posted by golfgal

MINIMUM you are looking at $600/month in a crappy apartment in a not so safe area.

The apartment im going to be moving to in Richfield is around 600/month, and is only about 15 minutes from downtown Minneapolis, and less then 10 minutes to the mall of america. It's not fancy, and it has it's own parking lot. It's not going to have any amenities and doesn't have a pool or stainless steel appliances or granite countertops or valet parking and trash pick up, but it's a basic apartment that works. Definitely not a dump, and it isn't fancy by any means, but it definitely works. And if GBCommenter's math is correct, then they would be able to afford it in the Twin Cities.

Lots of people with very little money survive in big cities everywhere, it's possible to make it work. You won't have high class amenities or be in the best neighborhood, but where Im moving to in Richfield, the mall of America is simply 5 minutes away, and there'll also be a lot more job opportunities in the heart of the metro as well, especially for those who have little to no college education. I'll also have pretty much all the typical big box stores and mall shops and restaurants you'll need within a 10 minute drive as well.

That saying, yeah outside of the twin cities is definitely cheaper. My grandmother pays around 400 dollars for a 2 bedroom apartment in Wabasso, MN which is like 45 minutes from Marshall(I believe) But if you think Savannah is too small, then I'd definitely not recommend Marshall, and driving an hour and 45 minutes to Sioux Falls or Mankato with gas prices as high as they are would be expensive too. And if you're like me where you'd want to drive there every weekend or something, then I definitely don't recommend it.

I'd Suggest Mankato or St. Cloud, both closer and bigger and still affordable. I hate St. Cloud, but it is affordable, has all the big box stores and mall shops and typical chain restaurants, and the public transportation for a city of it's size is pretty good. Theres a beautiful library that was built only a couple years ago, and there are some fantastic parks as well. We paid under 800 for a 3 bedroom apartment in St. Cloud, with new flooring throughout and new countertops and a new stove and fridge, not stainless steel or granite countertops, but they were new. It was around 1100 square feet.

And since it's just the two of you, and I know of 1 bedrooms in St Cloud and Mankato under 500. Yes, it's probably cheaper in Marshall, but with Mankato and St. Cloud, you're closer to the twin cities, and theres a lot more shopping and activities as well. And you won't have to spend an hour and 45 minutes driving to a larger city every weekend, which would probably make st. Cloud or Mankato cheaper than Marshall.

Originally Posted by Minnesota Spring

I live about 1/2 hour from Marshall and drive to the Twin Cities everyweekend for work and family and its not too bad of a drive.

You might think driving 2+ hours to the Twin Cities every weekend isn't that bad, but I think most people will consider that too far, and gas is incredibly expensive as well. Atleast there isn't really any traffic, but it's still long and uses a lot of gas. And for the op who doesn't have a big income, it isn't a smart decision. Plus it pollutes

I know, for me, driving to Sioux Falls or Mankato would drive me crazy. I'd much rather just live in Mankato. But again, that's just my opinion.

And I don't know if you drive there every weekend throughout the year, but during the winter, it's something you'd definitely NOT want to drive.

[fromupthere]

I still say look seriously at Rochester. If you were to get a job at Mayo, you could take the bus with your Mayo badge. You can look into jobs on the Mayo website that may fit your background. There are several colleges/universities here - University of Minnesota Rochester, Rochester Community and Technical College, College of St. Scholastica, Winona State University, St. Mary's University to name a few. Some are just satellite campuses, but still have classes available here. I have not looked too recently, but I have always been able to find decent apartments that have decent rental price. If it were to be too expensive for you here, there are many small towns within 30 minutes or less of here, and Mayo has shuttle service from all over the place to downtown. Non-Mayo employees I believe can also take the shuttle for a monthly/annual fee. Rochester's population is over 106,000 people and is just an hour from the southern suburbs of Minneapolis/St. Paul.

Rochester also has Olmsted Medical Center and a federal prison medical center. IBM is here - look at their postings as well as they may have customer service work you could do as well.

[Radical_Car]

^I forgot to mention Rochester, definitely another place to look into. Rochester is a fantastic place to live.

[fromupthere]

Rochester, Minnesota - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Look at the economy section to see the major employers in Rochester. Then look at their websites and see what jobs they have and if they have job that fit.