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Minervah, I don't want you to think I dislike Cleveland. I liked it. And ever since I left, I have only liked it even more. There were many other places in this country that I visited for a potential relocation, and immediately knew it wasn't for me (e.g. Denver, Seattle, Austin, Miami, Charlotte, Raleigh, etc.). Cleveland struck me differently, however. As I was leaving CLE, I asked myself, should I move here? I thought to myself, "eh.....nah....the roads were horrendous, most areas looks too gritty, and the people kind of seem Midwestern/gritty (would I really fit in as an east coaster?)." As I was driving back and approaching the east coast, I started to see why people generally prefer to live on the coasts. The BosWash Corridor is just a more global region and arguably a more advanced society than the Midwest. But several days later, moving to Cleveland started to get into my mind again and I am seriously considering it now.
I appreciate and value all of the responses everyone in the Cleveland forum have provided me. You all were very helpful and encouraging. I just need to think hard and serious where I want to anchor myself down for the next 10-20+ years. I don't want this to be a trial thing. I want it to be the real deal.
But yes, Cleveland offers a better shot at changing my career, as noted above. Arguably, however, I would say that central CT may be a better place to live in general. The scenery, New England charm and culture and the perk of being on the coast are things that I like. Today, as I was driving up I-91 north, just north of New Haven, I thought to myself, "oh my god...if I move to CLE, I'm not going to see any of these beautiful mountains or forests and nicely paved roads." Also not to mention, I like the extra progressive/liberal politics of CT. We have some interesting progressive things going on like pretty soon the ability for people to change their gender on their birth certificates, as well as universal FMLA. I know that CLE is a very Democratic area and Ohio leans blue, but do they actually have any progressive policies in place or proposed? Doesn't seem like it.
Anyway, I am scared to do anything. Heck, I'm scared to stay here in Fairfield County. I'm scared to stay, I'm scared to leave. I'm scared of LIFE!
Maybe I should just rely entirely on the poll results in this thread and just move to whichever place wins the poll. Looks like CLE is winning.
I hate to say this, but I think the best thing for you to do right now is...nothing. Just stick with your $94k a year job and keep adding to your cash pile. You've made it clear that you're too scared to move and to try and engage a different career track, so you might as well start learning to like your job a bit better - seriously, most people would kill to have a job like yours. If you hate where you live, get another apartment.
You say you want a house - but homeownership (really should be called homedebtorship) is highly overrated. I live in a neighborhood with 30-foot spacing between homes, and I still hear my next door neighbor banging on his drums on the weekends. The only way to have total peace and quiet is to live in a shack in Alaska, sorry to say. Besides, having a house is a lotta work. And it's a pain when stuff like the AC breaks down as mine did this past week. And it's great fun when the roof starts leaking and I have to find where it's coming from and patch it. And what to do with all them weeds that are taking over the lawn, if it can be called that. Not to mention the painting I need to do...sometime. Oh yeah, it's great fun when a derecho hits and the 100-feet tall trees growing 10 feet from the house sway madly in 90-mph winds and all these limbs start crashing down on the roof. Yes, it's quite scary. My house hasn't been crushed yet, but I've seen a few around here that have. Where you live, you don't have to worry about any of that - lucky you.
If there really was a paradise in this country where everything was perfect, everyone would move there. California was one of them, and we all know what that place is like now. When I moved here 10 years ago, Atlanta was a pretty calm place - compared to now. Yuppies are snatching up houses right and left and I'm having to do things like appeal a 27% increase in my home valuation, and I suspect I'll have to do it again in the near future. And one of these days, we'll have to move (again), because it'll be too damn expensive to live here, just like Ft Lauderdale. Oh well, that's life.
Count your blessings - you've got it a lot better than most...
Last edited by NorthStarDelight; 04-12-2015 at 08:17 AM..
I hate to say this, but I think the best thing for you to do right now is...nothing. Just stick with your $94k a year job and keep adding to your cash pile. You've made it clear that you're too scared to move and to try and engage a different career track, so you might as well start learning to like your job a bit better - seriously, most people would kill to have a job like yours. If you hate where you live, get another apartment.
You say you want a house - but homeownership (really should be called homedebtorship) is highly overrated. I live in a neighborhood with 30-foot spacing between homes, and I still hear my next door neighbor banging on his drums on the weekends. The only way to have total peace and quiet is to live in a shack in Alaska, sorry to say. Besides, having a house is a lotta work. And it's a pain when stuff like the AC breaks down as mine did this past week. And it's great fun when the roof starts leaking and I have to find where it's coming from and patch it. And what to do with all them weeds that are taking over the lawn, if it can be called that. Not to mention the painting I need to do...sometime. Oh yeah, it's great fun when a derecho hits and the 100-feet tall trees growing 10 feet from the house sway madly in 90-mph winds and all these limbs start crashing down on the roof. Yes, it's quite scary. My house hasn't been crushed yet, but I've seen a few around here that have. Where you live, you don't have to worry about any of that - lucky you.
If there really was a paradise in this country where everything was perfect, everyone would move there. California was one of them, and we all know what that place is like now. When I moved here 10 years ago, Atlanta was a pretty calm place - compared to now. Yuppies are snatching up houses right and left and I'm having to do things like appeal a 27% increase in my home valuation, and I suspect I'll have to do it again in the near future. And one of these days, we'll have to move (again), because it'll be too damn expensive to live here, just like Ft Lauderdale. Oh well, that's life.
Count your blessings - you've got it a lot better than most...
As mentioned, there is no way I'm staying here with my current job. The job is damaging my career, as it is not developing me professionally and can be done by a lower skilled employee. And $94k isn't a big deal around here. It's a middle class income here. Median household income here is $80k.
And let's be real. I'm not going to keep renting for years and years. That's not a smart path to retirement, and I can't tolerate hearing neighbors through the walls and ceilings ... at all. No financial advisor would advise most people to rent for their whole life. Come on.
If you purchase a house that's not a fixer upper, it generally means there will be less repairs and maintenance. My 28 year old brother owns a home for 3 years now and would never go back to renting. He says people make a much bigger deal than it really is, when it comes to home repairs, maintenance and costs. And sometimes it can actually be exciting or enjoyable. Convincing me to rent for life is just ridiculous
I'm 100% ready and certain to move out of here. Now I just have to figure out where.
As mentioned, there is no way I'm staying here with my current job. The job is damaging my career, as it is not developing me professionally and can be done by a lower skilled employee. And $94k isn't a big deal around here. It's a middle class income here. Median household income here is $80k.
And let's be real. I'm not going to keep renting for years and years. That's not a smart path to retirement, and I can't tolerate hearing neighbors through the walls and ceilings ... at all. No financial advisor would advise most people to rent for their whole life. Come on.
If you purchase a house that's not a fixer upper, it generally means there will be less repairs and maintenance. My 28 year old brother owns a home for 3 years now and would never go back to renting. He says people make a much bigger deal than it really is, when it comes to home repairs, maintenance and costs. And sometimes it can actually be exciting or enjoyable. Convincing me to rent for life is just ridiculous
I'm 100% ready and certain to move out of here. Now I just have to figure out where.
I'm not saying rent your whole life, I'm just pointing out that homeownership isn't the holy grail...lol. It is a bit easier and practical to share a home with another person, and makes it more rewarding - I personally wouldn't have bought a home while I was still single, but being partnered, it's the best. I just want you to be aware that it does take extra work (and potentially unexpected expense) as opposed to renting, not to mention it'll "lock" you into a place a bit more than renting will.
If you're dead-set on getting another job, you might as well go whole-hog and go into general accounting, and if you're going to do that, you might as well move to Cleveland so you can live the life you want on what it pays. All it takes is one call to U-Haul, and you're set.
Like they say in the Nike commercial - Just Do It.
I'm not saying rent your whole life, I'm just pointing out that homeownership isn't the holy grail...lol. It is a bit easier and practical to share a home with another person, and makes it more rewarding - I personally wouldn't have bought a home while I was still single, but being partnered, it's the best. I just want you to be aware that it does take extra work (and potentially unexpected expense) as opposed to renting, not to mention it'll "lock" you into a place a bit more than renting will.
If you're dead-set on getting another job, you might as well go whole-hog and go into general accounting, and if you're going to do that, you might as well move to Cleveland so you can live the life you want on what it pays. All it takes is one call to U-Haul, and you're set.
Like they say in the Nike commercial - Just Do It.
Well like I said, I'm not going to immediately buy a house wherever I move next. I will be renting for 6-12 months, regardless. Then, if I want to, I will buy. I just want to be somewhere where I at least have the OPTION to afford to buy a home. You know?
The real questions I am asking myself right now are as follows:
(1) Would I rather live in a cheaper area of CT that I like better than Cleveland, even if it means staying in a career that I don't really like?
(2) Is it worth moving to Cleveland for a career change that may or may not work out?
(3) Will I even be able to get a job in a cheaper area of CT, even if I wanted?
Those are the questions that are running through my mind right now, and I hope to have the answer this week.
Well like I said, I'm not going to immediately buy a house wherever I move next. I will be renting for 6-12 months, regardless. Then, if I want to, I will buy. I just want to be somewhere where I at least have the OPTION to afford to buy a home. You know?
The real questions I am asking myself right now are as follows:
(1) Would I rather live in a cheaper area of CT that I like better than Cleveland, even if it means staying in a career that I don't really like?
(2) Is it worth moving to Cleveland for a career change that may or may not work out?
(3) Will I even be able to get a job in a cheaper area of CT, even if I wanted?
Those are the questions that are running through my mind right now, and I hope to have the answer this week.
I don't know how you'll be able to answer these questions in a week, unless you have a crystal ball...lol.
But since you're putting these questions out there - I'll give a stab at answering them for you:
1) No, since you're still going to dislike what you do, and you'll be in the same boat you're in now down the road.
2) Yes, since there's no other way of knowing otherwise. (and your life won't be ruined if it doesn't work out)
3) Probably not, since you're convinced there aren't enough jobs in your field in the cheaper areas of CT (which explains why it's cheaper in the first place - the relative lack of professional jobs.)
I don't know how you'll be able to answer these questions in a week, unless you have a crystal ball...lol.
But since you're putting these questions out there - I'll give a stab at answering them for you:
1) No, since you're still going to dislike what you do, and you'll be in the same boat you're in now down the road.
2) Yes, since there's no other way of knowing otherwise. (and your life won't be ruined if it doesn't work out)
3) Probably not, since you're convinced there aren't enough jobs in your field in the cheaper areas of CT (which explains why it's cheaper in the first place - the relative lack of professional jobs.)
I spent a good amount of time today evaluating the likelihood of being able to transition from tax accounting into general/financial accounting. I am sad to report that the chances seem extremely slim. It seems like 95% of the general accounting job postings want previous experience in.......general accounting, which I do not have. There are almost no job postings that are considered "entry level" either. And even the temp general accounting jobs almost always want previous experience in general accounting, too. Over the years, I have repeatedly had recruiters tell me that almost all employers want someone with general accounting experience to fulfill a general accounting role, which sucks for me. They say that that type of career change is typically done internally, say, after already being in a tax accounting role for a few years at a company. Sigh....so I probably shouldn't count on it working out. In the past, I have applied to many general accounting jobs and always get a rejection. Also, recruiters ONLY reach out to me with tax accounting roles; never general accounting.
It looks like I will have to just suck it up and deal with tax accounting forever, or make a switch internally some day, which is looked down upon, because it's considered a regressive career move with lower skill.
I spent a good amount of time today evaluating the likelihood of being able to transition from tax accounting into general/financial accounting. I am sad to report that the chances seem extremely slim. It seems like 95% of the general accounting job postings want previous experience in.......general accounting, which I do not have. There are almost no job postings that are considered "entry level" either. And even the temp general accounting jobs almost always want previous experience in general accounting, too. Over the years, I have repeatedly had recruiters tell me that almost all employers want someone with general accounting experience to fulfill a general accounting role, which sucks for me. They say that that type of career change is typically done internally, say, after already being in a tax accounting role for a few years at a company. Sigh....so I probably shouldn't count on it working out. In the past, I have applied to many general accounting jobs and always get a rejection. Also, recruiters ONLY reach out to me with tax accounting roles; never general accounting.
It looks like I will have to just suck it up and deal with tax accounting forever, or make a switch internally some day, which is looked down upon, because it's considered a regressive career move with lower skill.
Sigh.
So how does this influence your desire to move to Cleveland? Are you leaning toward to getting a job with another firm in New Haven? Or maybe look for another job in SW CT that's more suited to your skills, and hopefully get your salary well into the six figures?
So how does this influence your desire to move to Cleveland? Are you leaning toward to getting a job with another firm in New Haven? Or maybe look for another job in SW CT that's more suited to your skills, and hopefully get your salary well into the six figures?
First of all, the primary reason I want to move out of Fairfield County is because I simply don't like it here. It's not suited for me, if that makes any sense. It's very fast paced, ultra heavy traffic, lots of aggressive, Type A people, and it's just totally different than the rest of CT. I'm a more laid back guy from Hartford County. So, even if I could find a six figure job here, I would still want to leave. I just don't like it here. I feel like my life ended ever since I moved here two years ago. I just can't bloom here.
Anyway, this doesn't really change my desire to move to Cleveland or not, regarding the unlikelihood of being able to make a career change. It's okay. I'll just stick with tax accounting. At least it pays much higher and the workload/hours are about the same as general accounting anyway. I mean, by switching into general accounting, is it REALLY going to be all that great? Would it mean that I would never have to deal with idiot managers again? Would it mean that there will never be pain in the ass assignments again? I doubt it. It's just that tax accounting is more complex and a pain in the ass. Tax accounting jobs typically pay about $15,000 more per year than general accounting (say, $70K instead of $55K). I'm average at it, but oh well. If I have to sit at a desk all day for 40+ hours a week, might as well get paid more for it. Might as well suck the corporation's money into my bank account.
So now, I have reduced my questioning/thoughts down to the following:
(1) Should I look for a tax job elsewhere in CT, while remaining employed? I would still be considered a local candidate and employed, which is a good thing. But the rest of CT isn't that strong on tax jobs, albeit possible.
(2) Or should I pursuit a tax job in Cleveland, which is plentiful in tax jobs, and if so (a) do I search while I continue to live in CT, or (b) do I move to Cleveland unemployed and then start looking for a job after I move there? It's a challenge to get a job as a nonlocal candidate, but maybe not quite as bad in Cle, considering jobs for me are plentiful there.
(3) Since I could afford to live in either Cle or the rest of CT, where would I rather live in general, and where should I settle down for the long term (next 10 years)? This is the most important question.
First, after much research on the job markets, I am simply going to have to pursue another tax accounting job. It turns out, there are absolutely no temporary tax jobs in Cleveland. I checked recruitment agency web sites and Indeed.com. So forget that. And I also checked for general accounting temp jobs in Cleveland. There are some, but 90% of them want previous general accounting experience. So forget that. On the bright side, Cleveland has plenty of permanent tax accounting jobs that I am qualified for. Much more than Connecticut does.
So here is my tentative plan. I think I am going to stay in my apartment here for 3-6 more months while looking for a job in BOTH Cleveland and the rest of Connecticut (outside of Fairfield County). If it doesn't work out, I am just going to find another apartment around here and keep my current job and hope for the best. I am scrapping my original plan to move to Cleveland with no job lined up. My career history is unstable and full of unemployment gaps, short tenures, etc., which worries me even more if I move there with no job lined up (a 4th unemployment gap will look horrible on my resume). Plus, I don't want to end up possibly blowing through 30-40% of my savings or more. $75K being depleted down to $50K is just depressing and I cannot allow that to happen.
The job market in CT (outside of Fairfield County) is weak, but I would be considered a rather local candidate. The job market in Cleveland is strong, but I would be considered a nonlocal candidate.
What do you think?
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Where you live, you don't have to worry about any of that - lucky you. 
I just want you to be aware that it does take extra work (and potentially unexpected expense) as opposed to renting, not to mention it'll "lock" you into a place a bit more than renting will.
