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I would like to move to this area because I have family there and am looking to leave a bad living situation in Florida. To be honest, I am not a fan of hot weather, but at least I would be moving somewhere that I have family. From my research, Charleston appears to be expensive. I currently make under $12.00 an hour as an accounting clerk. Will that be hard to match there?
Also, what can I expect to pay for a studio apartment? I will not be able to afford a regular apartment.
Thanks - I don't want to discuss with my relative, because it involves personal finance, it's embarrassing how little I make (they are fairly well-off). But she thinks I should come up there to live and I think I should, too.
It shocks me how little the going rate is here -- you will probably find something at $12 IF you bring good overall software & admin skills with you -- just know that jobs are hard to come by here.
Perhaps you should look at Craigslist for "rooms/shared" because there are a decent amount of rentals in that category. My sister went that route and has had 2 different places in the last 3 years - sharing with strangers - and it's worked out well for just around $500 (w/utilities) in Mt. P. Someone gets the master bed/bath & other roomie will get hall bath. It can work.
While I cannot directly answer your question, I can tell a 1st person story. My daughter (manager of a group home) and her husband (firefighter), who live the western suburbs of Boston, fell in love with Charleston/Mount Pleasant area.
They loved the newness, home prices (cheap to them), schools (high rated in Mount P.), little traffic (to them), cheap taxes and auto insurance (to them), etc. They decided this was the place they wanted to live.
They went home and started to evaluate things. Next visit they even had preliminary job interview/question sessions set up. Once they looked past the surface of the less expensive things, they discovered lower wages, low rated school systems, grocery costs the same, new car prices the same, clothing the same, etc. they decided it was not such a bargain while raising a family.
They said retired, not raising a family, etc. it was a bargain but for them (with 3 kids) and similiar jobs in SC paying only about 60% of their MA income, it was not such a great place at this time in their lives.
I will not be having any kids (I am 47) so I don't care about schools, etc. My #1 concern is cost of housing (i.e. rent since I can't afford to own). Groceries and gas are pretty much the same, give or take a few cents, wherever you go (except for the obvious cities like NY, San Fran, etc).
I don't have to live in the city - Summerville or nearby is fine. An efficiency is preferable to a roommate.
Just my 2 cents, but if you're not a fan of hot weather, moving here doesn't really make sense....family or not. How happy will you be when the temps hit 102 in the shade??
Also, "efficiency" apartments are almost non-existent here in the metro area....some may exist downtown, but you're paying premium prices there.
You should look at the defense contractors in the area. They pay quite a bit better than $12/hr for admin/accounting type jobs. Check at Mantech, Scientific Research Corporation, SAIC, Imagine One. I'm sure there's some more that maybe some other people can add.
Just my 2 cents, but if you're not a fan of hot weather, moving here doesn't really make sense....family or not. How happy will you be when the temps hit 102 in the shade??
Also, "efficiency" apartments are almost non-existent here in the metro area....some may exist downtown, but you're paying premium prices there.
Yes, it is hot here from about this time of year through September, but the other 7 months will be much milder than she is getting living in Florida. Plus, unless you are going to move to Maine or Alaska, you can't really avoid hot weather altogether, it's just a matter of how much of the year it is.
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