How is the IT Job Market in Tampa? (Miami, Clearwater: condos, chapel)

[cunparis]

Originally Posted by WC_dad

It won't be a dreamworld for renters forever. I fully expect housing prices to come down a bit more (although not drastically from these levels). Rent prices however will skyrocket in the next 5 years nationwide as fewer people can afford/qualify for a home purchase. That's just my opinion, but the rental market has to catch up at some point.

That's good news because once we get settled with our house, I'd like to buy a second house and rent it out.

[Keeper]

He is a contractor. I can find out what agency he is working with for you.

Most of his contract work has been for 6 months - 1 year.

[ManFromMissouri]

cunparis,

For some reason, is seems as though perm placement is preferred in Florida (and some other places as well) over contracting. I'm not saying that you can't find contracting gigs, I think they may just be harder to come by especially in the near future as we may already be in or are entering a recession. The last time recession hit, contracts were really really hard to find. When the going gets tough for companies, you know who generally is out the door first. With that said, and being a j2ee developer myself, i have considered taking a higher paying perm job at least for awhile to see if this wave of good times continues. The way i see it, we've been on an hourly rate tear since 2003 and the rates have only gone up from there. Typically, the cycles run about 7 years but, with some of the data out lately as well as the housing market, high commodity prices, people are even starting to say that nasty word stagflation. That's what scares me the most, even more than recession. So, with that said, from the research that I've done, yes, contracting gigs can be found in Tampa and in the rest of the state basically but you'll find many more perm opps, or at the very least contract to hire gigs.

I would definitely rent before you buy in Tampa, not necessarily because of the fear that housing prices may decline further which i think is inevitable anyway, but just to get a feel for the areas that you like/don't like in the area. Personally, i'm afraid to buy anything in Tampa, or anywhere in hurricane alley right now because of the insurance situation going on. Say you do get the insurance company to cover you and a category 4 hits tampa, does citizens have enough to pay out all of it's liabilities? Even if it does, how quick do you think you'll be getting paid? It's just a bit of a chance to take right now with the unresolved insurance mess. You haven't heard much about it since 05, but don't be fooled, it WILL rear it's ugly head sooner or later.

IMHO...

[cunparis]

Originally Posted by ManFromMissouri

For some reason, is seems as though perm placement is preferred in Florida (and some other places as well) over contracting.
...
I would definitely rent before you buy in Tampa, not necessarily because of the fear that housing prices may decline further which i think is inevitable anyway, but just to get a feel for the areas that you like/don't like in the area. Personally, i'm afraid to buy anything in Tampa, or anywhere in hurricane alley right now because of the insurance situation going on.
...

These are both very good points. I wouldn't mind a perm job, I would just like to start out contracting because if I take a perm job I'd like to make sure it's a good company, in a good area (good for the commute), etc. When we arrive, I'll need to find work ASAP. So I was thinking of contracting for starting out.

I haven't though about the hurricane insurance. How much is it? Is tampa high risk? I figured it'd be less risk than Miami. Would living in Branden or "New Tampa" reduce the risk? I need to figure this into my costs spreadsheet.

Thanks

[WC_dad]

The further inland you live, the less the risk. I think Tampa has only a 1% chance each year to be hit by the eye of a hurricane according to meteorologists. But insurance is much higher than the rest of the nation.

[ManFromMissouri]

cunparis, i think you're on the right track. I hear you on the whole contracting thing, that's why i do contracting because you don't want to get locked into a bad situation, end up leaving, and then it makes you look like a puddle hopper.

If you're a senior level j2ee developer/architect, i assure you that you will have little problem getting a contract job in Tampa. You may not get as many opportunities as say Dallas, or Denver, or San Fran but you will get your share of chances. And be prepared to be lo-balled. There seems to be a lot of security related computer jobs that would probably pay better than the norm but i've seen some pretty rediculous contract rates for seasoned developers (talking, 40 - 45/hour W2!). You'll find your job, but it will probably pay 50-60 if you're an architect, maybe.

I've wrestled with the insurance costs as well and as the previous poster mentioned, it is true, the further inland you are, the cheaper it will be generally. From what I've heard and read, what you have to be careful about inland even 10, 20, 50 miles, whatever from the coast is the WIND. The wind from a hurricane can wreak havoc on your shingles, break glass, rip apart siding, you name it. Also, not being in a flood plane will reduce your costs (ie- storm surge from the ocean is a factor there). I'd get the name of an insurance agent from someone on this board perhaps? Get in touch with them and get a feel from them what the rates might be like. It will probably differ substantially from zip code to zip code i imagine as will the actual house that you end up choosing. A newer house that is more "up to code" will be cheaper to insure than an older home...

Ah, dreaming of warm weather.

[Wild Style]

Originally Posted by cunparis

Like many others here, I'm considering relocating from Paris France to Tampa. Why Tampa? Housing and salaries are not bad, good weather, beaches, no state income tax, on the east coast, want to escape the big cities of the north (boston, NY, etc.)

I'm curious what the IT job market is? I'm an IT architect, mainly J2EE architectures but also SOA and integration. I have searched Monster.com and tried to compare with other candidate cities such as Charlotte. It seems Tampa is a bit less high tech than Phoenix (where I'm from initially) but still not bad. I do a lot of freelancing, anyone know freelance rates in Tampa? I'm going to contact some IT staffing companies to see if I can get some ideas but I thought I'd ask here as well.

great time to be in the I.T. field in America. There is a sever shortage and you can negotiate hard for pay. My friend just negotiated for a senior admin position. He made them go from 49,000 to 70,000 in annual pay via negotiations.

[cunparis]

Can anyone give me an idea of where the jobs are in Tampa? I'm debating between New tampa, Brandon, Bradenton, etc. but I have no idea what the commute will be like.

[stlsmoore]

Hey ManFromMissouri I take you're in Tampa now? I'm from St. Louis too and would looove to move to Tampa if I knew I would be able to find a job in my field. I'm currently in Computer Networking doing field work but hopefully I would like to work for one employer instead of supporting many. Was it hard for you to land your first IT job while you were down there? I could use any help or advice you may have!

[Keeper]

Unless you find a job in Bradenton or Sarasota it is over an hour drive to Tampa everyday depending on the time of day and where you work could be 2 hours. I would stick to Brandon, New Tampa, Wesley Chapel or even other areas of Tampa if you work in Tampa.
HOI if you buy depending on the cost of the house and where it is located could be $4,000.00 a year mol.