[TheWarzone]

Hello everyone,

I was hoping to get a little personalized help/advice regarding my possible move to Las Vegas in September/October of this year. I’ll start with my background:

I moved from Milwaukee, WI going on five years ago to my current location in New Jersey. I work in the Philadelphia area for a major pharmacy chain supervising other pharmacy technicians. My partner is currently attending college and unemployed. We have talked about moving to Las Vegas many times over the last few years, and have considered it quite a bit, but I feel like we’re almost ready to make the jump. Now for the issues!

For what it’s worth, I make a pretty decent wage out here. It certainly wouldn’t suffice if I was limited to 40 hours per week, but I currently have access to almost unlimited overtime and it allows for me to work ~10 hours extra per week, which allows us to survive and keep the level of comfort we desire. I checked my company’s internal job listings in the Las Vegas / Henderson area, and there are plenty of positions available all over the city; however, my position is rather unique and I seriously doubt I would be able to make a lateral move if I transferred. Initially, I would likely have to return to working as a pharmacy technician while getting myself established, which would mean taking a pay cut.

If I am currently making roughly $20.00 per hour and had to take a cut down to $15.00 per hour, would I be feeling those effects terribly in the LV area? I understand it’s difficult to say without knowing all my bills and hobbies, so let me break my monthly spending down a bit:


Car - $375
Insurance - $180
Rent - $986 for a small one-bedroom
Tolls - $120
Food - $400 (basic grocery budget – not including restaurants)
Gas - $150
Phone - $75


Obviously, the tolls would be gone and the rent would likely be decreased, but it still seems like I would be barely scraping by, if that. The silver lining is that we currently have about 6 months cost of living saved and my partner would be looking for a job immediately upon arrival, if not sooner. I simply don’t want all our savings to rapidly drain right away. It is also possible that my wage would be higher than what I have proposed, and there are other possible opportunities within the company that I am considering which would pay significantly more, but I can’t bank on those because they’re just too up in the air currently.

It seems like the job market for healthcare in general in the Las Vegas area is decent, but does anybody know about pharmacy specifically? I have ~12 years of pharmacy experience under my belt, much of it supervisory, as well as some banking experience.

Thanks for taking the time to read this wall of text. I’m sure that I left out a lot of pertinent info, but it’s late (for me) and I’ll gladly answer any follow-ups anyone has.

[Merrily Gather]

Try this site to compare cost of living expenses. https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/

It breaks it down by the gallon of milk even.

[Marv95]

https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-livin...as+Vegas%2C+NV

You should be fine on $15/hr unless you're living in a resort. Your rent and groceries are gonna drop compared to Jersey(and even Philly), and you won't pay state income tax in Nevada. Your energy bill will likely be an issue in the summer due to the heat and car registration/insurance/etc. would be higher but as you said you have money saved up. Just don't do any stupid like go on the strip/gamble every week.

I'm seriously considering moving there myself by the fall and will likely be in the warehousing industry. Likely be only making $11-12/hr at 1st but but I'll have several thousand saved up.

[airics]

Originally Posted by Marv95

https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-livin...as+Vegas%2C+NV

You should be fine on $15/hr unless you're living in a resort. Your rent and groceries are gonna drop compared to Jersey(and even Philly), and you won't pay state income tax in Nevada. Your energy bill will likely be an issue in the summer due to the heat and car registration/insurance/etc. would be higher but as you said you have money saved up. Just don't do any stupid like go on the strip/gamble every week.

I'm seriously considering moving there myself by the fall and will likely be in the warehousing industry. Likely be only making $11-12/hr at 1st but but I'll have several thousand saved up.

$11-12 an hour with several thousand saved up is nowhere near enough..even $15 an hour doesn't cut it

[lluvia]

Originally Posted by airics

$11-12 an hour with several thousand saved up is nowhere near enough..even $15 an hour doesn't cut it

The difference being the thread starter might not have to rely on his sole income of $15/hr if/when his partner finds a job
A two income household should make things easier depending on lifestyle choices.

[Clarkcty]

Stay away from gambling and you will be fine working $12 to 15.00/hr. Same with your partner. Rent for 2 bedroom condo goes for $800.00. Utilities for a 2 bedroom condo electricity around $100/month nearly half during the shoulder season (Spring/Fall). Gasoline for a small car/truck 100/month. Groceries are cheap here, lots of competition from the regular chain stores and from ethnic/minority grocery stores. Eating out is also cheap, too many restaurants offering lunch/dinner and happy hour specials.

No cable just digital antenna, Hulu and Netflix for 16.00/month. Sufficient enough for watching tv.

[TheWarzone]

Thank you all for the replies so far - I appreciate it!

Originally Posted by Clarkcty

Stay away from gambling and you will be fine working $12 to 15.00/hr. Same with your partner. Rent for 2 bedroom condo goes for $800.00. Utilities for a 2 bedroom condo electricity around $100/month nearly half during the shoulder season (Spring/Fall). Gasoline for a small car/truck 100/month. Groceries are cheap here, lots of competition from the regular chain stores and from ethnic/minority grocery stores. Eating out is also cheap, too many restaurants offering lunch/dinner and happy hour specials.

No cable just digital antenna, Hulu and Netflix for 16.00/month. Sufficient enough for watching tv.

While we do enjoy playing the occasional slot machine, we aren't concerned about gambling becoming any sort of issue in our lives. We're also not big drinkers, save for the occasional beer, so the party scene won't be getting in our way. We really only impulsively spend more than we should going out to eat. We love trying new foods and restaurants and frequently eat out as opposed to cooking at home.

I would be amazed to see a $100 electric bill! During the colder months here in NJ I'm paying anywhere between $80-$100 per month (with free heat - included in my rent); come summer, we typically range anywhere from $200-$275 per month for electric.

Depending on what job I end up getting before we move, I am willing to make a lot of cuts to spending to make sure my savings isn't draining too quickly while we search for additional / better employment (ditching the cable, cooking at home versus restaurants, etc...).

We're planning a trip out there in July for my birthday, where we'll spend much of the time touring different apartments and making sure we know exactly which area we want to live in (partner doesn't drive, so we need something at least slightly walkable or easy to get around via mass transit).

[LVAllen]

Originally Posted by TheWarzone

(partner doesn't drive, so we need something at least slightly walkable or easy to get around via mass transit).

Uh, that right there might just be a deal-breaker. Although you don't need a car, Las Vegas is not the most mass-transit friendly place. If your partner is limited to walking, large swaths of Las Vegas are out of reach. To see what I'm talking about, look at the interactive map provided by the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada: http://gis.rtcsnv.com/InteractiveMap/

[TheWarzone]

Originally Posted by LVAllen

Uh, that right there might just be a deal-breaker. Although you don't need a car, Las Vegas is not the most mass-transit friendly place. If your partner is limited to walking, large swaths of Las Vegas are out of reach. To see what I'm talking about, look at the interactive map provided by the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada: RTC Interactive Map

I've been looking at the RTC map they provide for the last couple of days and I'm trying to figure out if it's as bad as many people say? Personally, it looks like it's better than where we currently live: sure, he might have to do a bus transfer or two to get where he needs to go, but it looks like the bus lines are pretty extensive and reach most areas around. If it turns out that I'm wrong, which is very possible, we are fine with working his schedule around something where I'm able to take him to / from work, or even using taxis or uber. So the walkable / mass transit accessible thing isn't necessarily a pure need, just a very strong desire.

[yellowsnow]

I think the bus system here is OK but not stellar. To me, here's the issue. It's HOT here and after walking to the bus stop, waiting for 10 minutes and walking to your destination you are good for nothing more than another shower. And the AC on the bus does break down and it never gets really cold because the doors are open all the time. For a smaller city, the bus system is pretty good but as a mode of transportation the heat pretty much kills it.