AZ vs. The Pacific Northwest? (Phoenix, Tucson: tech job, to buy, earthquake)

[SeattleCat]

Hi, I grew up in AZ and go back twice a year, lived in Spokane for a couple of years (finished grad school there), and have been in the Seattle area for over 20. I recommend you come to Seattle. Yes, it has become very expensive, but the jobs pay very well compared to AZ. An IT job will surely pay you enough for a decent apartment and a nice lifestyle. I think AZ is great for college and retirement, but I feel that there is more opportunity and better paying jobs in Seattle. I have a number of friends here from AZ who all came up here after graduating for the same reason. Great place to live as well outside the traffic. I think a lot of us look at returning to AZ at least part time when our work lives are over. I love coming down in the winter. Of course, if you love Phoenix or love the desert, then different story but it sounds like Phoenix wouldn't be your thing anyways.

[thatguy950]

Originally Posted by Slater

I know. I lived there for 15 years. The pro-gun culture is refreshing.

Brb moving to AZ immediately. I like that you don’t even need a CPL to carry concealed, how it should be

[Sockeye66]

Originally Posted by potanta

Yeah I am sick of the large amount of snow we get NJ. Anything above 2-3 inches per storm is something I don't want.

I wouldn't consider Boise, because I heard Idaho is a white supremacist type of state.

After reading your comment, I looked into the Reno area (in both CA and NV) on Google Earth and seems like a good area to live in. Not too urbanized and not too exurban. I like it! But I never visited it!

I thought about Albuquerque area. Are there are a lot of young people in NM and with NM's small population, is it possible to grow social life out there? I am so used to NJ being so densely populated.

Forget Colorado, too much snow like the East Coast.

Seattle native w/ second home in AZ. Yes, the Phoenix metro area is where the jobs are at in AZ. I certainly couldn't live in that heat.


It is ignorant of you to cross Boise off your list, do yourself a favor and research it further. Wonderful youthful city with a growing tech job market.



Albuquerque is good too but I prefer Las Cruces, NM. Not far from El Paso but a college town with a lower cost of living.



If you're still considering PNW, look towards Tacoma, strong job market, lower cost of living and there is some rural areas you may actually have a reasonable commute.

[johnp292]

Originally Posted by potanta

Based on what other people said on this site, jobs opportunities suck in AZ unless you want a far commute from a neighborhood with a nice AZ climate to the hot Phoenix AZ climate. PNW sounds better than AZ. And no, after college, I really have no desire to stay in NJ for a few more years. I had ENOUGH of living here and I feel like I am just "deteriorating" living here, but yeah I get what you're saying. I'd rather go somewhere as soon as I land a job. Compared to other people my age, I have a lot of money saved up under my name.

I know it’s been a few days but I just caught up on this thread. One thing I want to correct. You CANNOT live outside the “Phoenix climate” and reasonably expect to commute daily to a job in the Phoenix metro area. You would easily be looking at at least an hour and a half each way on a good day and that would assume you got a job in far North Phoenix and lived, say, in Prescott. No entry-level IT salary is going to support that lifestyle. Go anywhere south of the I-17/Loop 101 interchange and you will be looking at a significantly longer commute from up north. It is not sustainable.

Sounds like you’ve decided on the PNW anyway.

[johnp292]

Originally Posted by CybSecGuy

If you are willing to do DoD contract IT work or government civilian IT work, Southeast Arizona has Fort Huachuca, which is right next to the city of Sierra Vista. There is a lot of available enterprise level work. The pay is not as high as some IT hotspots but it is still very well above a majority of career fields in this nation. While I could make more elsewhere, I still make low 6 figures here as a mid-career (albeit upper end of mid-career) IT professional.


Combined with the relatively low COL in comparison to big IT hubs, beautiful scenery, and gorgeous climate, the biggest drawback for young folks may be that Sierra Vista is not exactly a hub for single, young professionals seeking big city attractions. You'd need to drive an hour to Tucson, or live there and commute. There is similar work available in Tucson, though not nearly as plentiful.

I hadn’t thought of this, but it may be an option for the OP. Except for the lack of a social life, that is a pretty nice area.

[johnp292]

Entry level and 70k. Good luck with that.

50 or so is more reasonable.

[Tokinouta]

Have you ever experienced Phoenix in the summer to compare its dry heat to the humid east coast heat? Everything is air-conditioned, and mornings are still nice enough minus maybe a month to go for a jog.

You might not hate it, especially with a pool and the median age is 32 with plenty to do. It's affordable.

I wouldn't cross it off the list just because you fear a couple of months of heat. It's not that bad and the rest of the year is awesome. You can also travel within the state for a lot of varied climates. All within a few hours. Plus, CA, NM, and Nevada are within a mornings drive of 5 or 6 hours.

I might check it out to see if you'd hate it that much. Something tells me you wouldn't. I think vitamin D would keep you happier than you'd be in PNW without it. lol

I've been back east and have relatives in WA and OR, I would rather live in PHX.

[LANDSALMON2]

I'm a native Oregonian, have lived there since 1956. The job landscape and the politcal landscape have changed but the weather hasn't.
I make vacation plans between Mid July and Oct 1st. It is the only time of year that there is predictably sunny warm weather. And really after November is when the rainy colder weather begins here with Fall being the most beautiful time of year here.
I live in Rural Clackamas county, East of Portland. You will pay around $300,000. for a 3 bd 2 bth home in this area and you will have a 45 min -1 hr commute to work in PDX.
If you are a progressive liberal type of person , you'll like Portland , and that is where you should live, the rural areas will not be for you.
Beaverton,Tigard, West slope, Sylvan, Hillsboro. Those are the bedroom communities to the Tech areas on the West side and especially in Hillsboro where there is a massive Intel facility, Ronan Acres. Those are also the spendy areas to live.

For my wife and I, Oregon has changed too much ,and it is very expensive to live here. We have a terrible homeless problem here that is only getting worse.Legal pot, marijuana farms everywhere. so....

We did buy a house in Green Valley Az a year ago.

But Yeah, Oregon has a healthy tech sector

[infocyde]

I got my start in IT in Phoenix in the 90ies, so I know it can be done. Though back then if you could turn on a computer you could pretty much get at least a low-level tech job. I'm sure it isn't quite as easy as back then but still I bet Phoenix is about as easy a place to start in as any. Here are some insights from my experience.

- There are actually a lot of entry level IT jobs in Phoenix. Whoever most of them are bad IT jobs, where they work you hard and are often poorly lead management wise. Where management screws up on timelines it is expected that you make up the difference by working long hours during crunch times. I would assume this job atmosphere is by no means limited to Phoenix IT jobs, but it seems it is worse there. I actually thought that is just how it was in IT because of this, that is not true.

- Phoenix actually is a decent place to live starting off, even though it is hot. Though the PNW might be better, I wouldn't discount Phoenix as "sucking", it is just hot. Sometimes warmer nights is a plus for nightlife when you are young.

- Tech companies I hear, don't know if it is true, are actually starting to relocate to Phoenix, not all at once but in pieces/parts, because the COL is lower. There is a Microsoft presence in Tempe, there was a big Apple presence in Phoenix but I think it moved on, others. And those opportunities might be growing not shrinking.

That's it. I'd say Phoenix is at least a solid B choice for starting off in tech. It did well by me but to be fair I work to live not live to work, so I'm not hyper aggressive about my career. For those who want to climb the corporate ladders better choices would be where the tech lords reside, which is SF and Seattle, maybe even in the ops NJ/NY area. Some areas in Texas and NC might be worth checking out too.

Getting in and doing the grind, getting abused, seeing corporate stupidity up front and personal, and then lastly learning to navigate corporate politics and common personalities (you'd think it would all be about code...ha!) is a good first step. Later getting a telecommute gig that is fairly solid and moving to a nice area might be the second. Just remember the highest salaries usually come at a price, and money isn't everything. You'll see.

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As an after thought, I think it is also important to figure out what kind of industry you want to work in. An IT experience at an engineering firm is generally VASTLY different than say an IT position at a modeling agency You are going to spend most of your life with your working peers. You also over time will be expected to learn the business you are in (after all you will be maintaining and designing systems for that business). What type of stuff do you want to become a subject matter expert on? Developing IT tools for other IT professionals? Semiconductors? Advertising? Education? (BTW I think education is a great way to go, pays less but better generally I experienced the best working atmospheres working in education). When looking for IT jobs keep the industry you want to work in in mind as well. There is no wrong choice just what you prefer and I don't think people think about this as much as they should.

Good luck!

[Code Stemi]

Despite the tremendous draw, beauty, and endless perks to the PNW- they are at very high risk for a major earthquake. That is something to consider, I certainly have. Phoenix, on the other hand, is nearly immune to any natural disaster, albeit drought and localized flooding.