jobs (Salt Lake City, Ogden, South Weber: insurance, credit, job market)

[steveareeno_mn]

I am an IT professional, working in the medical device mfg industry. I am wanting to bail on Minnesota because of the weather; very cold winters (20 below right now) and humid, buggy summers. I have been thinking about Colorado, Arizona and Utah.

I am looking for a nice place to rasie kids and where I have close access to outdoors things like mountains, camping, hiking, etc. I am not bothered by religious views at all, so the morom thing isn't an issue.

What I want most is a stable economy with decent paying jobs and a relatively affordable cost of living. I am not sure about SLC's economy, particularly in the tech sector.

Thanks.

[askslc]

Steve-

I think you'll find what you are looking for from the recreation side of things. However, I think the salary side may get you down a bit. The IT wages are about 25-30% below what you'd find in a comparable city. That being said, you may have highly desirable skills and the norm won't apply to you.

You might check out the indeed site, which gives a flavor (not exact) for salaries, based on what is posted there. Take the salaries for what they are worth (a ballpark), and compare them to where you are now (and see if they seem reasonable). programer Salaries in Salt Lake City, UT 84108 - Free Salary Search

That being said, I think the economy is pretty stable. Who knows how the credit crisis shakes out but I think SLC will hold up as good as anywhere and probably better than many places in the West.

Hope that helps.

askslc

[eggalegga]

And if you own property in Minnesota, and you're planning on selling it and bringing the equity to Utah, your Minnesota equity will probably go farther here. Since our wages are lower, our housing costs are probably lower too.

[Aerorick]

One thing I've learned is to inquire about for any job in Utah is the employee cost of medical benefits. If any are even offered. The employee share of medical plans can be quite high.

[webbedfeet]

I'm moving to the Ogden area - South Weber to be exact - in roughly 4 months. I've done some research about the area and the job market. Coming from Seattle I tend to think it would be a good idea to post my resume now, however, I realize that landing a job prior to moving is a long shot.

I'm thinking about posting my resume about a month before the move in hopes that once I'm settled I'll start getting hits to my resume. I'm moving with at least 3 months worth of savings; I can't really afford to go any longer than than without a job.

Any feedback you can provide is greatly appreciated. Thank you!

[askslc]

WF-

Not sure what your background is. If it's technology or something you could do remotely for a period, I would suggest checking out Craigslist - Salt Lake. You might find a contract gig for 3-6 months which would let you start up in Seattle, continue to do it once you are here, and give you time to find something more permanent once you get here (or maybe it works out for you and you become permanent).

Just a thought...

askslc

[webbedfeet]

Unfortunately my background is not IT. I'm in the insurance & healthcare business, although it's not necessarily what I want to do in the long run but it is my background. My living situation in Utah will be very good which means I'll only need to bring in about 1200 per month.

Do you know anything about the Flying J? Specifically the corporate office in Ogden?