[mustmove]

Young people can't afford to live here. High COL limited economic opportunities. VT has one of the lowest birth rates in the nation. Despite being number one in per capita school spending only 25% of elementary school students passed the recent statewide science test. Our local elementary school was 100% that is every single student Failed. If the house doesn't sell in the next year. I'll leave the keys in the mailbox for the mortgage company before I send my daughter to school here. One of the odd things about VT school spending is teacher salaries are I believe 40-60k, and other places in the Northeast with lower school spending pay teachers in the 60-80k, sometimes 80-100k range. There very well could be some massive embezzlement of school funds here.

[flu189]

I realize the topic is shifting, but in regards to high education expenses, the prime culprit is the shear volume and ratio of teachers, staff, and administrators. Add the volume of projects and programs and it is easy to see how the system in its entirety costs what it does. Even with the handwriting on the wall we still see astronomical funding requests as was the case recently in Burlington. With what is currently going on with the economy, in fact right to the minute as stocks continue to tank, the prime mover and revenue supplier, the American taxpayer and consumer, is simply being tapped out. This is going to lead to a situation where the legislature cannot avoid reality. Costs are going to have to be trimmed at the expense of programs, projects, and other things we have become accustomed to and up until now have taken for granted. As we see now with the tightening of credit it is not possible to sustain a lifestyle and budget in excess of income. This applies to everyday folks and their budgets and better sooner than later it needs to apply to government at all levels. Regarding moving, in my current scenario the costs and risks are much too great. It's time to hunker down and go into bear bones operations, which unfortunately will continue to hurt the economy.

[Maggie&Jerry]

I visited my new school in St. Albans this week and decided to put a down payment on the program. The area I visited was quaint and seemed sweet. I am not into drugs or drug-smuggling, nor do I have anything for anyone to steal so I think I will be just fine. I keep to myself and know better than to wander the streets at night alone. I love that Montreal is so close, the old fashioned movie theater and church, the park right across from my school on Main Street, the tattoo shop across from the park which will come in handy - if it's any good, Burlington is very close by - I think I will do just fine.

Remember, I live in Albany so, I'm used to hearing about crime. (I've had panic attacks in downtown Albany where I've passed out because it's just a horrible, scary place to be - those panic attacks have NEVER happened before yet it happened twice in Albany). I've never known so many people who know someone who has been killed or knows the killers - it's absolutely horrifying. For instance, we were at a bar and down the street that night there was a TRIPLE homicide of an entire family. Children are shot almost biweekly here because they are simply standing outside in a bad neighborhood. I am ready to take on drug addicts and robbers if it means getting away from murderers.

I drove a little further north into Swanton and that's when I noticed that's where it's obviously a little "rough around the edges," (not to offend anyone) - at least the parts I drove through made me feel a little off. Everyone said it's cheap to live in St. Albans - I have been looking on Craigslist and haven't seen many cheap apartments or rooms - even compared to NYS. I am looking to pay $450-$500 a month for a room or studio and I can't seem to find anything. Is it possible?

I was also wondering about student loans. I don't qualify for VSAC until after I've lived there a year and I only have a 10 month program before I graduate so that wont even help. Is there a company I can go to there to apply for a student loan or should I apply for a loan in NYS? Also, am I better off living in Burlington if I only have school Monday and Wednesday nights? I feel like there isn't enough to do in St. Albans to stay there.

Thank you all for your advice and responses, it's much appreciated.

[quickdraw]

Originally Posted by Maggie&Jerry

I visited my new school in St. Albans this week and decided to put a down payment on the program. The area I visited was quaint and seemed sweet. I am not into drugs or drug-smuggling, nor do I have anything for anyone to steal so I think I will be just fine. I keep to myself and know better than to wander the streets at night alone. I love that Montreal is so close, the old fashioned movie theater and church, the park right across from my school on Main Street, the tattoo shop across from the park which will come in handy - if it's any good, Burlington is very close by - I think I will do just fine.

Remember, I live in Albany so, I'm used to hearing about crime. (I've had panic attacks in downtown Albany where I've passed out because it's just a horrible, scary place to be - those panic attacks have NEVER happened before yet it happened twice in Albany). I've never known so many people who know someone who has been killed or knows the killers - it's absolutely horrifying. For instance, we were at a bar and down the street that night there was a TRIPLE homicide of an entire family. Children are shot almost biweekly here because they are simply standing outside in a bad neighborhood. I am ready to take on drug addicts and robbers if it means getting away from murderers.

I drove a little further north into Swanton and that's when I noticed that's where it's obviously a little "rough around the edges," (not to offend anyone) - at least the parts I drove through made me feel a little off. Everyone said it's cheap to live in St. Albans - I have been looking on Craigslist and haven't seen many cheap apartments or rooms - even compared to NYS. I am looking to pay $450-$500 a month for a room or studio and I can't seem to find anything. Is it possible?

I was also wondering about student loans. I don't qualify for VSAC until after I've lived there a year and I only have a 10 month program before I graduate so that wont even help. Is there a company I can go to there to apply for a student loan or should I apply for a loan in NYS? Also, am I better off living in Burlington if I only have school Monday and Wednesday nights? I feel like there isn't enough to do in St. Albans to stay there.

Thank you all for your advice and responses, it's much appreciated.

Burlington is ridiculously expensive. Twice as expensive as St. Albans. And even if you are able to pay the big bucks in Burlington, it's still really hard to find even an expensive apartment. Burlington is funded by rich kids from the University of Vermont. The public tuition at the University of Vermont is the highest public tuition in the country. And more than sixty percent of the students are from out of state-usually NYC, Jersey and Long Island.

[Maggie&Jerry]

Quickdraw, you are my favorite. You always have something to say and it's great! So - what about prices in St. Albans though? Is it me or does paying $600 for one bedroom in a 3BR apartment, for example, sound absolutely absurd and unreasonable for St. Albans? Did I get the right impression of Swanton? Maybe I'll live in Canada and cross the border every Monday and Wednesday for school hahaha.

[quickdraw]

Originally Posted by Maggie&Jerry

Quickdraw, you are my favorite. You always have something to say and it's great! So - what about prices in St. Albans though? Is it me or does paying $600 for one bedroom in a 3BR apartment, for example, sound absolutely absurd and unreasonable for St. Albans? Did I get the right impression of Swanton? Maybe I'll live in Canada and cross the border every Monday and Wednesday for school hahaha.

I'm afraid I can't help you with rent figures as I've been out of that game for many years.

You say you like St. Albans? Great. I don't see the quaintness, but I appreciate the downtown, village green/park etc. Oddly enough though, I feel that's part of St. Albans problem. The strange thing about the Burlington area is we don't have a lot of towns with fairly big (kind of) downtowns like that. St. Albans is pretty far from Burlington so people up there socialize in their own city. In the park, clubs, bars - people hanging around one area-and causing trouble every now and then.

Like I said before, if I was going to college I would have no problem living there. The Burlington Free Press had an article yesterday about St. Albans drug problem and its rising crime. I'd still live there, it's not that bad. But if you are just going to school two nights a week and have a car, I'd really
try to be closer to Burlington if possible. And I mean if at all possible. I'd rather take the tiniest place near Burlington than a bigger place in St. Albans. Only thing is, you may not find a place in or near Burlington. You'll need some luck. You might get lucky to find something in the North End, which is not the best area by any stretch, and you'd still have to be lucky.

There are towns outside Burlington that would be a little less pricey, but still pretty expensive, and probably not very exciting to you. If you lived in one of these towns you'd have to just consider Burlington your town to play in, be it 10 or 15 minutes away. And believe me, you sound like Burlington material in a big way.So if you don't want to consider St. Albans and want to be near Burlington, try to get lucky with some place tiny in Burlington,Essex Junction, South Burlington or Williston. Maybe Colchester. Although it's not as nice as the other places. You won't love the towns, they don't have nice downtowns and they are spread out, but you'd be near Burlington which is a really cool city.

Another possibility is Winooski, right next to Burlington. Personally I wouldn't live there at this stage of my life, but if I was a college kid and found the right place I'd consider it. It is a mix of lower class, middle class, immigrants and some riff-raff.

Swanton, I wouldn't bother.

[flu189]

Going to school in Burlington and living in St Albans would get old pretty quick along with commuting, costs, etc. Granted, you might find cheaper housing by going this route, but there are really no communities in Vermont where ample quantities of cheap housing are readily available. Post secondary education as already mentioned is very expensive, even for those attending community college where the cost per credit hour is just shy of $200. The ability to get loans is beyond the realm of any advice by anybody here. It involves your personal variables and the willingness to grant a loan and for what ammount. The financial landscape is so uncertain at the moment and subject to wild swings.

[quickdraw]

Originally Posted by flu189

Going to school in Burlington and living in St Albans would get old pretty quick along with commuting, costs, etc. Granted, you might find cheaper housing by going this route, but there are really no communities in Vermont where ample quantities of cheap housing are readily available. Post secondary education as already mentioned is very expensive, even for those attending community college where the cost per credit hour is just shy of $200. The ability to get loans is beyond the realm of any advice by anybody here. It involves your personal variables and the willingness to grant a loan and for what ammount. The financial landscape is so uncertain at the moment and subject to wild swings.

Unfortunately, I may be riding from williston to st. albans monday thru friday soon.

She'd only be going twice a week. Burlington to St. Albans I guess is around 30 miles-30 minutes

[pucabear]

Originally Posted by ArizonaDesert

Hello,

My wife and I are considering moving to VT. I will graduate with a masters in education and a teaching certificate this summer. What is the job market like? I've read on some posts that it is not so good. Is it the same for teachers?

I've done some research but I like hearing from the people. They provide better information.

I lived in St. Albans and taught in a Franklin County school. Although taxes are high, it doesn't exactly transfer over to great teacher pay. There is a lot of waste in the schools. The school I was in had a heavy union focus...lots of pressure to join. On the note of getting a teaching position...it is great if you know someone or are in a high needs area. Otherwise, you may find yourself taking a low paying paraeducator job just to get your foot in the door.

[IFlip4Carl]

Maggie you may want to consider living in Milton or Georgia. That would be central to both Burlington & St Albans & I have seen rooms to rent in both areas on Craigslist.