[joe moving]

So where do ex vters go??

[68vette]

Originally Posted by joe moving

So where do ex vters go??

Many move to the Carolinas. Two former coworkers and their families moved to Asheville North Carolina not to long ago. Asheville is in the mountains, so they get the seasons, it's more affordable to live, more opportunities and it's an area that gets a lot of recognition for it's quality of life. I keep in touch with one of the coworkers that moved there. She was a Life long resident of Vermont and loved the state, but it was becoming a very expensive place to live. She loves it there and feels it's a nice compromise.

[arctichomesteader]

Originally Posted by joe moving

So where do ex vters go??

Some I know have moved to NH and ME. Some to Western states and others to the South.

[BickleTravis]

Originally Posted by arctichomesteader

Some I know have moved to NH and ME. Some to Western states and others to the South.

I know lots that head to the Boston area for jobs. Cost of living is basically the same, wages are $3-$4 an hour more.

[LisaMc46]

Originally Posted by joe moving

So where do ex vters go??

Three of my coworkers left VT last year. One went to Maine where he was finally able to afford to buy a home and pay taxes on it. The other two went to N.C. (one went to Ashville because it would be more affordable to retire there and the other went to the Raleigh area where there are lots of job opportunities).

As far as the OP's question is concerned, Vermont is expensive because it's a huge welfare state. It's not just the poor receiving benefits. A lot of working people know how to work the system to get benefits, which are very generous.

For example the state has a subsidized health/dental insurance program for children called Dr. Dinosaur. Parents can earn up to $75,000 for a family of four and still receive benefits. The highest premium they pay is $60 per month for 100 percent coverage.

This is a joke. My dh and I make much less than $75,000. He receives benefits through his employer and we pay about $160 a pay period for them. I don't have a problem with providing health insurance coverage to kids, but I'd like to see people who can afford to do so pay higher premiums, more in line with most of us pay.

I know a woman who refuses to work over 35 hours a week, because she would qualify for employer-health insurance coverage and doesn't want to pay for it. She'd rather work less and get more subsidies. Who can blame her? She's just taking advantage of what the system offers.

[68vette]

Originally Posted by LisaMc46

Three of my coworkers left VT last year. One went to Maine where he was finally able to afford to buy a home and pay taxes on it. The other two went to N.C. (one went to Ashville because it would be more affordable to retire there and the other went to the Raleigh area where there are lots of job opportunities).

As far as the OP's question is concerned, Vermont is expensive because it's a huge welfare state. It's not just the poor receiving benefits. A lot of working people know how to work the system to get benefits, which are very generous.

For example the state has a subsidized health/dental insurance program for children called Dr. Dinosaur. Parents can earn up to $75,000 for a family of four and still receive benefits. The highest premium they pay is $60 per month for 100 percent coverage.

This is a joke. My dh and I make much less than $75,000. He receives benefits through his employer and we pay about $160 a pay period for them. I don't have a problem with providing health insurance coverage to kids, but I'd like to see people who can afford to do so pay higher premiums, more in line with most of us pay.

I know a woman who refuses to work over 35 hours a week, because she would qualify for employer-health insurance coverage and doesn't want to pay for it. She'd rather work less and get more subsidies. Who can blame her? She's just taking advantage of what the system offers.

The state of Vermont does give many handouts as I call them, but this is a national problem as well. I am a first generation American and was raised with a different standard. My parents and grandparents had nothing when they came to this country and busted their tails to make it here. There were no handouts as the country was still in a depression. There is little incentive for some to work hard when our government will pick up our shortcomings.
Plain and simple the state of Vermont needs to become fiscally responsible. We are complaining now how expensive it is here. What happens in another ten years when our taxes double again?

[BickleTravis]

Originally Posted by 68vette

The state of Vermont does give many handouts as I call them, but this is a national problem as well. I am a first generation American and was raised with a different standard. My parents and grandparents had nothing when they came to this country and busted their tails to make it here. There were no handouts as the country was still in a depression. There is little incentive for some to work hard when our government will pick up our shortcomings.
Plain and simple the state of Vermont needs to become fiscally responsible. We are complaining now how expensive it is here. What happens in another ten years when our taxes double again?

It seems like the cost of living problem in VT is less about taxes than it is about the cost of housing and wages.
I'm almost 30, single, no kids, I have a bachelor's degree, and for me to stay in the town I grew up in (Burlington) is pretty much impossible because 1) there are no jobs here, and 2) if you do get one, chances are you're not going to make more than $12 an hour.
I've lived in another high tax state (MA), and I did fine. Wages were much higher, and things like food, housing, etc. cost the same. Actually, food costs less.
I'm also all for helping people who can't help themselves. I'm fine with older people receiving free or reduced medical care. I'm ok with food stamps and things like WIC. What is nuts to me is that you can make $90k a year and get state money for your kids. There's really no way to justify that. In my mind it doesn't have to be either or... We don't have to be a socialist state or a state where there is no assistance. The problem is VT can't seem to find a reasonable middle ground.

[68vette]

Originally Posted by BickleTravis

It seems like the cost of living problem in VT is less about taxes than it is about the cost of housing and wages.
I'm almost 30, single, no kids, I have a bachelor's degree, and for me to stay in the town I grew up in (Burlington) is pretty much impossible because 1) there are no jobs here, and 2) if you do get one, chances are you're not going to make more than $12 an hour.
I've lived in another high tax state (MA), and I did fine. Wages were much higher, and things like food, housing, etc. cost the same. Actually, food costs less.
I'm also all for helping people who can't help themselves. I'm fine with older people receiving free or reduced medical care. I'm ok with food stamps and things like WIC. What is nuts to me is that you can make $90k a year and get state money for your kids. There's really no way to justify that. In my mind it doesn't have to be either or... We don't have to be a socialist state or a state where there is no assistance. The problem is VT can't seem to find a reasonable middle ground.

You are right, the salaries and housing prices are a big part of what hurts the cost of living here. Taxes also add to that burden. There are people living in modest homes and their property taxes are 4 to 5 thousand dollars per year. With a higher income those taxes don't hurt as bad. Then add in high food costs, heat for the majority of the year, fuel and the list goes on and on and you start to see why northern New England is an expensive place to live.
It drives me crazy when a person from New Jersey says I pay a thousand dollars more in property taxes than you do. The point is your income is also double what mine is. It hurts you less.

[sundialstreet]

I moved here in 2004 to attend graduate school and during that time, I was pretty aware of the problems with the area, but fortunate enough to have a large educational grant and family support, which created a buffer between and the economic woes.

Once I graduate I worked two engaging, but low paying jobs (social services paying a 1/3 of what they paid in the SOUTH even) before taking a job in DC (grant writing) which paid me 5x more than what a grant writing job in the area offered (and thought they were doing me a favor). I telecommuted and got a bonus for doing so (green rebate) and seriously and live "affluently" according to my neighbors (as in I live alone in a 2BR condo I own, etc) and honestly I don't live like a rock star. I am saving every penny I earn so when I move next spring, I won't be worried about maintaining two households nor will I feel trapped here, like many of my friends who went to school with me do. I feel fortunate in a way, because many of them were sold a shaky bill of goods and due to families or other obligations (mostly financial) are unable to pack up and move somewhere cheaper.

Being a young, highly skilled person without children in vemont, makes absolutely no sense.

Incidentally, I'm relocating to Syracuse to work in academia and with the COL (despite a 10% salary cut) I will actually have significantly more purchasing power and a much better standard of living.