relocating from brooklyn,new york to arizona (Phoenix, Surprise: foreclosures, lawyers)

[mab1023]

my name is maria i am from brooklyn, ny and am looking to relocate i am as single mom with a 17 year old i wanted to know what is the cost of living out in arizona, basically the cost of living from jobs to transportation. i am an adminstrative assistant just got a certificate in Paralegal but would likme to continue out there any ideas or suggestions would be helpful.
thanks
maria

[krock1dk]

Yeh. Here's a suggestion: stay in Brooklyn. Arizona has too many people for the jobs available--6.3 million people with an economy of places half its population. The local news media here is saying Arizona and the Phoenix area will be among the last areas of the country to recover from the recession. There are no jobs here and there wont be for a very long time. The AZ Republic newspaper last week said Pheonix has the 4th worst job market in the country. And it ranks among the top cities in foreclosures, job losses, air pollution, and has the single WORST SCHOOLS IN THE COUNTRY. The state of AZ ranks dead last--50th--in public education in ACT/SAT scores, spending per pupil and graduation rates. AZ also has very meager social services and ranks 49th in unemployment benefits, and food stamp money is laughable. Since you are a single-mother, I can PROMISE you that AZ will be a very difficult state to live in because you will receive next to nothing in aid. That is a fact. If you want to move fine, but there are many other states you should consider. Heck, New Mexico or Utah are much much better alternatives to Arizona. In other words.....there are too many people living in AZ for the size of small size of its economy and job market, and we dont need anymore poeple coming here and competing with us for our jobs. People are starting to leave this state anyways for better opportunities in other states. Dont belivee the hype as to how 'good' AZ is. Its a fallacy.

[observer53]

Take everything you read from the above poster with a large grain of salt. (well, take EVERYTHING you read on anonymous internet forums at less than face value. ) Never really liked it here, moved here with a job transfer, as I recall, and then got laid off along with many other people from same company. Hasn't found a job since. Plans to leave shortly. Does not have/never has had children in the schools here, but loves to complain about the subject. They've been challenged on this "dead last in ACT scores" before. Studies I've seen don't bear that out.

Funding for schools here is very bad indeed (we are at the bottom in that regard), but there still ARE good schools here. Funding isn't the only thing that results in a good education. You just have to do your homework.

The job market here is very poor; the economy truly is in dire straits. Paralegal work, if available, would best be found in Phoenix, where the population of lawyers is highest. As far as "competing" with residents for jobs, that's always been the case, and the people who are leaving here (including the above poster) will be competing with residents somewhere else. That's life.

Cost of living will be lower here in many respects than in NY, but I'd still recommend finding a job FIRST before moving. You might want to wait until your 17 year old is out of high school (at which point schools will not be an issue). In a few years, things may be turning around a bit here. If you can, try to come out and visit so that you get a feel for whether you would like it here. No one else can tell you you will, or you won't. That's a personal issue. But, it's VERY different from Brooklyn, you can take that to the bank.

[Lovin' Surprise]

OMGoodness, i take it you DONT like Arizona??? I've lived here in Arizona for just over a year and i LOVE it here!! wouldnt change it for the world. I love the heat and there's alwayz something to do!!!
Lovin' surprise

Originally Posted by krock1dk

Yeh. Here's a suggestion: stay in Brooklyn. Arizona has too many people for the jobs available--6.3 million people with an economy of places half its population. The local news media here is saying Arizona and the Phoenix area will be among the last areas of the country to recover from the recession. There are no jobs here and there wont be for a very long time. The AZ Republic newspaper last week said Pheonix has the 4th worst job market in the country. And it ranks among the top cities in foreclosures, job losses, air pollution, and has the single WORST SCHOOLS IN THE COUNTRY. The state of AZ ranks dead last--50th--in public education in ACT/SAT scores, spending per pupil and graduation rates. AZ also has very meager social services and ranks 49th in unemployment benefits, and food stamp money is laughable. Since you are a single-mother, I can PROMISE you that AZ will be a very difficult state to live in because you will receive next to nothing in aid. That is a fact. If you want to move fine, but there are many other states you should consider. Heck, New Mexico or Utah are much much better alternatives to Arizona. In other words.....there are too many people living in AZ for the size of small size of its economy and job market, and we dont need anymore poeple coming here and competing with us for our jobs. People are starting to leave this state anyways for better opportunities in other states. Dont belivee the hype as to how 'good' AZ is. Its a fallacy.

[cmist]

Originally Posted by Lovin' Surprise

OMGoodness, i take it you DONT like Arizona??? I've lived here in Arizona for just over a year and i LOVE it here!! wouldnt change it for the world. I love the heat and there's alwayz something to do!!!
Lovin' surprise

I have lived here over 30 years. I would say for the first few years or so, the excitement of being somewhere new was fun.

Over time though the same desert that is so new and unlike your home state can start to feel like a thorny wasteland. In most cases, Phoenix is actually at odds with nature, constantly fighting to groom and manicure the terrain into something its not.

As for me, I dont appreciate simulated environments... its like you're on the Truman show like Jim Carey or something.

Granted, its not the worst place in the world, but if you are considering the entire country, to decide on Phoenix seems like a person is doing little else than throwing darts at a wall map.

[kdog]

Originally Posted by observer53

I know what you are getting at, but how are they going to know who she is, assuming she ever applies in a year or two with an employer who might be reading here now? I'd assume anyone would be more careful on a job application or resume than an internet chat forum.

But... let's say you just happened to need an administrative assistant with a certification in paralegal, and you saw the OP replete with misspellings, poor grammar and punctuation. Would you be inclined to proactively contact the OP to apply for the job? Probably not, and thus the OP would have missed an opportunity.

I don't even think about capitalization and punctuation when I type because that's how I think. It would take a conscious effort for me to type in all lowercase for example because it's foreign to me. I would expect no less from any professional that I hired. If you write like the OP does in casual conversation, it's pretty much guaranteed that such sloppiness is going to leak over into your work as well, no matter how hard you try.

[ArizonaBear]

Originally Posted by kdog

But... let's say you just happened to need an administrative assistant with a certification in paralegal, and you saw the OP replete with misspellings, poor grammar and punctuation. Would you be inclined to proactively contact the OP to apply for the job? Probably not, and thus the OP would have missed an opportunity.

I don't even think about capitalization and punctuation when I type because that's how I think. It would take a conscious effort for me to type in all lowercase for example because it's foreign to me. I would expect no less from any professional that I hired. If you write like the OP does in casual conversation, it's pretty much guaranteed that such sloppiness is going to leak over into your work as well, no matter how hard you try.

Unfortunately; you are correct there, kdog.

My spelling/grammar/punctuation/sentence structure/syntax are not the best but; I barely graduated HS with a ca. 2.0 average----------------admin assistant material I ain't.

[ArizonaBear]

Originally Posted by JAinAZ

Maybe we can work out a trade, Krock for mab1023.........hmmm something to think about.

Works for me

[jaada]

Originally Posted by krock1dk

Yeh. Here's a suggestion: stay in Brooklyn. Arizona has too many people for the jobs available--6.3 million people with an economy of places half its population. The local news media here is saying Arizona and the Phoenix area will be among the last areas of the country to recover from the recession. There are no jobs here and there wont be for a very long time. The AZ Republic newspaper last week said Pheonix has the 4th worst job market in the country. And it ranks among the top cities in foreclosures, job losses, air pollution, and has the single WORST SCHOOLS IN THE COUNTRY. The state of AZ ranks dead last--50th--in public education in ACT/SAT scores, spending per pupil and graduation rates. AZ also has very meager social services and ranks 49th in unemployment benefits, and food stamp money is laughable. Since you are a single-mother, I can PROMISE you that AZ will be a very difficult state to live in because you will receive next to nothing in aid. That is a fact. If you want to move fine, but there are many other states you should consider. Heck, New Mexico or Utah are much much better alternatives to Arizona. In other words.....there are too many people living in AZ for the size of small size of its economy and job market, and we dont need anymore poeple coming here and competing with us for our jobs. People are starting to leave this state anyways for better opportunities in other states. Dont belivee the hype as to how 'good' AZ is. Its a fallacy.

this is the truth right here, you need to research this place first before you come out. new mexico is a much better choice.

[observer53]

Originally Posted by jaada

this is the truth right here, you need to research this place first before you come out. new mexico is a much better choice.

It's this person's version of the truth. That stuff about ACT/SAT scores is questionable, there are plenty of other statistics on that that say nothing of the kind. Everyone should take everything they read here with a grain of salt, for sure. But the overwhelmingly negative and unreletingly positive posts deserve the most scrutiny. It's true that everyone should come visit before making a commitment.