Salt Lake City Salary Growth (Provo, Orem: best cities, job market, living in)

[lovethewest]

Salt Lake City was just named one of the 10 best cities for salary growth even during the current economy. Provo-Orem is on there too. 10 Great Cities for Salary Growth (http://hotjobs.yahoo.com/salary-articles-10_great_cities_for_salary_growth-27 - broken link)

[Tim Tim Tim]

Id agree with that, the economy here really isnt all that bad. I just moved from florida where I couldnt even find a part time job at a clothing store. Come here and see hiring signs all over the place, got a job the same day I arrived here making 15.50 an hour with tons of bonuses and benifits and as much over time as I Want. I know its not a great sallary to some, but im 21 just married and no kids coming from about a year of on and off work in florda for much less money

[Perkinst]

Originally Posted by Tim Tim Tim

Id agree with that, the economy here really isnt all that bad. I just moved from florida where I couldnt even find a part time job at a clothing store. Come here and see hiring signs all over the place, got a job the same day I arrived here making 15.50 an hour with tons of bonuses and benifits and as much over time as I Want. I know its not a great sallary to some, but im 21 just married and no kids coming from about a year of on and off work in florda for much less money

I might have to come down to SLC to check it out. Its hard to get a job in Boise Idaho. Too many people unemployed, very little hiring going on right now. Layed off manufacturing engineers are applying and working at 7.00 an hour jobs to feed their families. Thanks for the info.

[vegaspilgrim]

Question here: I know the economy is doing bad everywhere lately... and I don't want to downplay what's going on in SLC, but Utah is currently ranked as one of the lowest unemployment rates, and Salt Lake City comes up near the top of the list for major cities with the lowest unemployment. Obviously, they must be doing something right. Why is SLC doing relatively "less bad" in these times compared to other cities? Sometimes I almost wonder myself if I should entertain the job prospects there. I'm graduating USC with a MAcc degree in May, looking for entry level but career oriented positions in accounting. I don't have any job offers yet and I'm NOT staying in LA. I'm from Denver, and I'm currently looking for jobs in Denver and Albuquerque. Salt Lake City though, in many ways, would be a place I might also like. Do you think there could be a potential opportunity for me there?

And as a side question... why is Logan, UT ranked as THE lowest unemployment rate for any "metro area" in the nation? Anybody have any answers to these questions?

[kwm03160]

Utah, in general, has a very diverse economy - we don't have one or two industries that dominate the employment picture. I think that is one important factor in why our economy is fairing better than the rest of the nation. Also, employers recoginze that Utah has a highly motivated and hard-working workforce. It also doesn't hurt that wages are relatively low here.

I also have a MAcc degree. While it's been a while since I have been actively looking for a job (jobs seem to just "fall" in my lap), in 2002 when I graduated, candidates with MAcc degrees were starting in the high 30's at accounting firms. Going out of state would get you another 10K. The problem with Accounting in Utah is that Utah graduates A LOT of accountants, and that depresses the overall wage picture. Utah graduates also do not want to leave the state. Granted, my experience was before the huge decline in the economy, and I now work in governmental accounting, so I don't have a good "feel" for what is currently going on at the job front. 2 years ago, when the economy was "hot," we still had over 80 applications for an entry-level Accounting position.

I would recomend coming out for a visit. It's a definite culture change, and there is a definite lack of nightlife in downtown Salt Lake. There are a lot of previous threads that discuss what Salt Lake City is like; it might be worth taking a look at those (there is a "search" feature at the top of the page). I'm not going to bash Salt Lake City; it all depends on what you value and are looking for!

[vegaspilgrim]

Originally Posted by kwm03160

Utah, in general, has a very diverse economy - we don't have one or two industries that dominate the employment picture. I think that is one important factor in why our economy is fairing better than the rest of the nation. Also, employers recoginze that Utah has a highly motivated and hard-working workforce. It also doesn't hurt that wages are relatively low here.

I also have a MAcc degree. While it's been a while since I have been actively looking for a job (jobs seem to just "fall" in my lap), in 2002 when I graduated, candidates with MAcc degrees were starting in the high 30's at accounting firms. Going out of state would get you another 10K. The problem with Accounting in Utah is that Utah graduates A LOT of accountants, and that depresses the overall wage picture. Utah graduates also do not want to leave the state. Granted, my experience was before the huge decline in the economy, and I now work in governmental accounting, so I don't have a good "feel" for what is currently going on at the job front. 2 years ago, when the economy was "hot," we still had over 80 applications for an entry-level Accounting position.

I would recomend coming out for a visit. It's a definite culture change, and there is a definite lack of nightlife in downtown Salt Lake. There are a lot of previous threads that discuss what Salt Lake City is like; it might be worth taking a look at those (there is a "search" feature at the top of the page). I'm not going to bash Salt Lake City; it all depends on what you value and are looking for!

Thank you for your response, kwm! This is EXACTLY the kind of information I was looking for. In this economy, I may have to consider all the options-- not just public accounting (and not just Big Four), but corporate accounting, government accounting... the whole gamut of opportunities. Right now I'm just highly confused as to what exactly my goals are. The original plan where I thought coming into this program and get a job with the Big Four hasn't happened. Now I need to come up with a Plan B. It is my goal to persue the CPA designation as soon as possible. This summer, whether I have a job or no job (and most of these firms are not even starting new graduates until Sep, Oct, or Nov, and some may even get deferred until spring 2010 or laid off), I plan on taking at least several of the CPA test sections. Of course, I need to figure out which state I'm going to be living in first.

I've been to Salt Lake City one time before, it's been about 7-8 years or so. I have been to Utah-- southern Utah-- everything from St George to Moab-- many, many times, and it's one of my absolutely favorite parts of the country. Northern Utah though is somewhat of a mystery to me. I completely agree I would need to visit for a few days. Right now I'm just brainstorming ideas. I'm trying to get a sense of within the four corners states/ Rocky Mountain West region if Salt Lake has more opportunities. The low salary levels you are suggesting is definitely something to think about. On the other hand, I'm willing to bet salaries for me as a new grad are going to be low no matter where I move, given that employers know how bad the job market is, and they know that as new grads without experience beggers can't be choosers. Salaries in LA for accounting firms from what I can tell aren't a whole lot better than what you can make in cities like Denver, Phoenix, etc. Yet in a place like SLC, ABQ, etc, the cost of living is also much lower. Stuff to think about.

[DP525]

Utah's economy just seems to lag behind the rest of the country. The housing boom started later here. The bust also started later. Expect unemployment to start rising soon.